Fortune - USA (2021-10 & 2021-11)

Northrop’s brightest
spot is its fast-growing
space business, where
revenue climbed more
than 30% in two recent
quarters, a growth spurt
that the company is
crediting in part to an in-
ternal realignment of the
business executed by
Warden. So far analyst
concerns that a Demo-
cratic administration
would mean less fund-
ing for weapons like
Northrop’s missiles and
tanks have proved
overblown.

As Apple’s top HR offi-
cial as well as chief of its
$74 billion or so retail
business, O’Brien’s re-
sponsibilities touch
147,000 employees and
millions of consumers.
She helped formulate
Apple’s return-to-work
plans and is evolving its
physical store strategy,
including adding ex-
press counters where
shoppers can pick up
online orders and
launching an in-store
project to help mentor
young creatives.

Kathy Warden
Chairman, President,
and CEO, 50,
Northrop Grumman

Deirdre O’Brien
SVP of Retail and People,
55, Apple

23

McLay has turned Sam’s

into one of the retail win-

ners of the pandemic,

with revenue climbing

9% to $64 billion and op-

erating income up 16% in

its last fiscal year. Mem-

bership at Walmart’s

warehouse club division

has grown at a record

pace, too, hitting an all-

time high. The Aussie

has rolled out new ways

to shop: In July, Sam’s pi-

loted a service that lets

customers place direct-

to-home orders while

perusing the aisles.

The post-merger con-

solidation at ViacomCBS

continues, complete

with management

shakeups and division

reorgs. Redstone is

leading the transforma-

tion, which includes go-

ing all in on streaming

service Paramount+,

which launched in

March. But it’s a

crowded space, and too

early to tell whether the

new offering will suc-

ceed. In the meantime,

pressure is mounting,

and revenue is falling.

Kathryn McLay

President and CEO,

Sam’s Club, 47,

Walmart

Shari Redstone

Chair, 67, ViacomCBS

24

27 28

21

Duke’s stock has out-

performed the overall

utilities sector over the

past year, and the com-

pany continues to ramp

up its clean energy pro-

duction. But critics have

disapproved of aspects

of its handling of the

pandemic, including dis-

connecting the power of

some unable to pay their

bills. Duke says the

charges are “without any

merit,” adding that it

waived fees and offered

payment plans for strug-

gling customers.

Boeing’s defense busi-

ness has been overshad-

owed by the scandals

surrounding the compa-

ny’s aircraft division. But

the $34 billion in reve-

nue unit led by Caret has

remained a fierce com-

petitor to Lockheed

and Northrop, in part

through aggressive

pricing on contracts.

Caret achieved a major

milestone for autono-

mous flight in 2021 when

Boeing debuted the first

unmanned aircraft to

refuel another aircraft.

Lyn n G o o d

Chairman, President,

and CEO, 62,

Duke Energy

Leanne Caret

President and CEO of

Defense, Space, and

Security, 54, Boeing

29 25

20 31 23

26

30

Flex snuck back onto

the Global 500 in 2021

at No. 499, with Advaithi

again becoming one of

the few women of color

to run a Global 500 busi-

ness. Almost three years

into the job, she is guid-

ing the $24 billion manu-

facturing giant through

the supply-chain chal-

lenges of 2021 with tools

such as virtual factory

floor walk-throughs. The

producer of necessities

like masks is among the

largest independent

producers of ventilators.

Revathi

Advaithi

CEO, 54, Flex

25

29

36

Ford led the century-old

farmer-owned coopera-

tive to a record year in

2020, with profits up

29% as consumers

stocked up for home

cooking. The Iowa native

has led the push for

high-speed Internet ac-

cess in rural communi-

ties and is making

strides on the sustain-

ability front: In February,

Microsoft committed to

pay $20 per ton of car-

bon that Land O’Lakes

farmers sequester in

the soil.

Beth Ford

President and CEO, 57,

Land O’Lakes

28

KEY NO CHANGE MOVED UP MOVED DOWN

32

31

Su has proved

AMD’s naysay-

ers wrong. The

semiconductor

chief has shown

the world that AMD

is still an industry

leader, with its

graphics chips

powering the latest

video game con-

soles from Sony

and Microsoft.

Although AMD,

like its rivals, has

been impacted by

the chip short-

age, its business

hasn’t flagged.

Sales are up 96%

over the past 12

months, and the

company’s share

price climbed 79%

during the same

period as investors

continue to cheer

Su and her success

in turning the chip-

maker around.

Lisa Su

President and CEO, 51,

AMD

TOP, FROM LEFT: ANDREW HARNIK—AP IMAGES; COURTESY OF SAM’S CLUB; JE

SSICA CHOU; COURTESY OF DUKE ENERGY. SECOND ROW, FROM LEFT:

JC OLIVERA—GETTY IMAGES;

MARTINA ALBERTAZZI—BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES; JESSICA CHOU; PATR

ICK T. FALLON—BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES. SU: COURTESY OF AMD