Over the past twenty years, we have seen a wonderful growth in women’s leadership.
While women are currently heading everything, from technical giants to international banks, they remain significantly unpromected in the most powerful corporate positions.
To emphasize those who change this narrative, we recently interviewed more than 3,000 people to identify the most inspiring women -liders in every state.
This is what stood out to us when we dug in the results.
| Name | Position | Business | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cynthia Krutchfield | General manager | Innovation in Alabama | Alabama |
| A lot of bets | Chairman, President and Chief Executive Director | First National Bank of Alaska | Down |
| Christina Erich | General manager | Axis for autism | Arizona |
| Marsi preferor | President and General Director | Arkansas children | Arkanza |
| Lynsi Chets | Owner and president | In-n-out Burger | California |
| Linda Alvarado | President and General Director | Alvarado Construction | Colorado |
| Crysta Bradford | Founder and general director | Good search / intellectual | Connecticut |
| Dr. Dzhenis Nevin | President and General Director | Christiancare | Delaware |
| Christina Duffy | President | Carnival cruise line | Florida |
| Carol took | General manager | Combined parcel (UPS) | Georgia |
| Sherry Menor Maknamara | President and General Director | Chamber of Commerce Hawaii | Hawaii |
| Anne Rive | General manager | Chris Rive knives | Idaho |
| Erica Allen | General manager | City manufacturers team | Illinois |
| Kristen Cooper | Founder and general director | Startup lady | Indiana |
| Tiffany O’Donnell | General manager | Women lead shifts | Iowa |
| Cheryl L. Makafi | General manager | McAfee3 Architects | Kansas |
| Amy Lattrell | President and General Director | Goodwill Industries from Kentucky | Kentucky |
| Dinna Rodriguez | President and General Director | Entergy New Orleans | Louisiana |
| Melissa Smith | Chairman and Head | WEX Inc. | Maine |
| Crystal Hanley | Founder and general director | Weslar | Maryland |
| Caroline Kirk | General manager | Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (Masstech) | Massachusetts |
| Mary Barra | General manager | General Motors | Michigan |
| Bet Ford | General manager | Land O’Lakes | Minnesota |
| Donna Ladd | CEO, co -founder and editor | Mississippi free press | Mississippi |
| Kathleen Maczallla | General manager | Greybar Electric Co., Inc. | Missouri |
| Mary Johnson | General manager | Electronics of the wavelength | Montana |
| Denise M. McColi | General manager | Woodmenlife | Nebraska |
| Karen S. Haller | General manager | South -Wall gas assets | Nevada |
| Holly McCormak | General manager | Cottage Health Care System, Inc. | New Gampshire |
| Valery Montecalvo | President and General Director | Bayshore Recycling Corp | New Jersey |
| Stef Sherrodd | President and General Director | Federal Credit Union of the Laboratory Sandy | New Mexico |
| Joanana | President and General Director | Jetblue Airways | New York |
| Sheila Robinson | Founder and general director | Variety woman of the media | North Carolina |
| TWYLAH BLOTSKY | President and General Director | Batler of cars Company | North Dakota |
| Gina Boswell | General manager | Bath & Body Works, Inc. | Ohio |
| Kari Watkins | General manager | National Memorial and Museum of Oklahom -City | Oklahola |
| Katie Poppe | Co -founder and general director | Blue Star Donuts | Oregon |
| Madlin Bell | President and General Director | Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia | Pennsylvania |
| Kristen Adamo | President and General Director | Providence Warwick Bureau of Convention and Visitors | Rod -Alend |
| Lou Kennedy | General manager | Nephron Pharmaceuticals | South Carolina |
| Sarah needle heart | General manager | Return to the heart fund | South Dakota |
| Fawn Weaver | General manager | Uncle the nearest premium whiskey | Tennessee |
| Katherine Farmer | General manager | BNSF Railway | Texas |
| Jenny Gruberg | General manager | Books | Utah |
| Marie McClour | President and General Director | Green mountain power | Vermont |
| Katie Warden | Chairman, General Director and President | Northrop Grumman | Virginia |
| Denise Moriguchi | General manager | Variety | Washington |
| Elizabeth Makilven | President and General Director | Fiesta Dailware Company | West Virginia |
| Shavna Nelson | General manager | Organic valley | Wisconsin |
| Heather noisycker | CEO and founder | Language input/conclusion | Wyoming |
Key conclusions:
Healthcare is a powerful lane for women -liders.
A noticeable piece of the best managers, non -profit healthcare systems or innovative healthcare companies.
From Madlin from Chop to Marsi, the pre -pre -ARKANSAS Children’s and Dr. Jennis Nevin from Christiancare, these women do not just manage hospitals – they rethink how medical care is provided in their communities. In the industry historically formed by the leaders of men, these leaders bring a new depth for care, politics and access.
Some of the most influential leaders are not common names – for now.
While figures such as Mary Barra and Bet Ford are well known, others, such as Christina Erich (axes for autism) and Jenny Groserg (books) quietly change the way of providing critical services, often with a more practical, personal approach.
This balance of national recognition and lower innovation is part of what makes this list fresh and genuine.
States with fewer corporate headquarters often increase leaders in non -profit organizations, education or public business.
You see this especially in places such as South Dakota, Western Virginia and Vermont, where traditional Fortune 500 power plants are not enough.
In these cases, inspiration is based on women who manage groups of economic development, non -profit literacy organizations or local production firms.
This is a powerful reminder that “impact” is not always measured in income – sometimes we are talking about transformation at the ground level.
Women lead in the sectors where men dominate, but they are still an exception, not a rule.
Transportation, energy, aerospace industry and technology appear on the list – Katie Warden in Northrop Gramman, Poppe Patricia in PG & E, and Joanna Gerata in Jetblue are strong examples.
But their presence emphasizes a broader problem: progress is real, but the pipeline still has serious gaps.
The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and flourishing.
Many leaders on this list are founders, and not just the general directors – women, such as Whitney Wolf Herd (Bumble), Eric Allen (group of urban manufacturers) and Monica Smith (Marketsmith) are built by companies from scratch.
Their stories are not only about the rise of stairs – they are about creating them where no one existed before.
The emphasis on leaders based on values is growing.
From sustainable agriculture (Bet Ford) to ethical production (Gail Friedberg Rottenstich in Zago) and social justice (the closest uncle), many of these leaders not only manage business – they use business as a means for a social benefit.
This topic of decision-based decisions is that today it seems especially strong among women leaders.
The last thoughts
This list does not just inspire – it is instructive. This shows that leadership is no longer universal.
These women bring to the table a combination of emotional intelligence, operational shine and deeply rooted goal – and this changes not only how the companies look, but also how they work.
We often talk about breaking a glass ceiling, but what these women do is more nuanced: they will redesign the floor plan.
They prove that success may look like compassion, cooperation and influence of the community, and not just promotions and IPO prices.
Methodology
A survey of online panels 3021 people based on age, gender and geography. Internal data sources are used to obtain sets of data data. We used a two -stage process to ensure representativeness through a stratified sample and weighing after stratification.
Respondents are carefully selected from the geographically representative online panel of the dual stronghold members. This choice is additionally adapted to the exact criteria necessary for each unique survey. Throughout the survey, we have developed questions to carefully check and authentication of respondents, guaranteeing the alignment of the survey with ideal participants.
To ensure the integrity of our data collection, we use many data quality methods. Along with traditional measures, such as digital removal of the fingers, checks of bots, geover and detection of acceleration, etc. Each response is subjected to a thorough review of a special member of the team to ensure quality and contextual accuracy. Our commitment applies to open answers, subjecting them to thorough thorough thorough thorough thorough thorough fabric and plagiarism.