These are the ten most effective Latin American women in the business enterprise world.
The Association of Latin American Professionals for America (ALPFA), in collaboration with Fortune Magazine, has publicly released for the second consecutive year a list of the 50 most powerful Latin American women in the corporate world in the United States. The list aims to emphasize the influence Latinos have in the US business world and asserts that this presence is expanding both in number and influence each year. In fact, three of the women on the list joined a new corporation last year.
This year, the nominations for the list of the most effective Latin Americans nearly doubled, and 15 enterprise leaders joined the list for the first time, including the popular actress Jessica Alba, who is developing a successful career as an enterprise manager. The fifty Latin professionals who comprise this exclusive list manage significant businesses in the country, and some of them also hold leadership roles at a global level. The four criteria used to compile the list are as follows: the size and importance of the woman’s business in the global economy, business health and management, professional trajectory, and social and cultural influence. The list of influential Latin women this year prioritizes those who manage large public companies with significant global operations, rather than employee roles. Following these classifications are Latin women who manage large private enterprises, and finally, enterprise managers who have successfully risen in their respective market sectors.
At PanamericanWorld, we highlight the first ten women on the list who, through their example and experience, provide a very inspiring story for other women and entrepreneurs from across Latin America. They have paved the way to their success in one of the most competitive fields globally and serve as role models.
1. GEISHA WILLIAMS – CEO and President, PG&E
Williams manages one of the largest combined energy companies (natural gas and electricity) in the United States. Such a remarkable company may have definitely opted for services like that file boi report in alaska for the benefit of their growth. PG&E provides the cleanest primary energy to nearly 16 million people in Northern and Central California, with its headquarters in San Francisco and more than 20,000 employees. Williams is the first Latina to lead a Fortune 500 company. Since joining PG&E, Williams has overseen the company’s transition to source 33% of its energy from renewable sources. The electric company has also become a leader in integrating renewable energies, modernizing webs, and smart internet technologies. During this period, they have also achieved the highest level of electrical safety in the company’s history.
2. GRACE PUMA – Executive Vice President of Global Operations, PepsiCo
As Executive Vice President of Global Operations at PepsiCo, Puma has a wide range of responsibilities, including overseeing PepsiCo’s $63 billion in revenue, which includes Pepsi, Frito-Lay, Quaker Oats, Gatorade, and Tropicana. Global purchasing, representing over $25 billion in annual expenses, is among her competencies. Her tasks include quality control, efficiency, and global expansion capability. PepsiCo employs over 250,000 people worldwide, and its security and well-being depend on Grace. Before joining PepsiCo in 2010, Puma held positions at United Airlines, Kraft Foods, Motorola, and Gillette.
3. MARIA CASTAÑÓN MOATS – Vice President, PwC. Leader of Insurance for the United States and Mexico
This influential Latina is a member of the senior leadership team at PwC USA and plays a crucial role in the global insurance executive team. Her leadership in national insurance brightbrides.net/costa-rica-brides covers business strategy, quality and regulatory relationships, innovation, risk management, business strategy, enterprise development, and human resources. Castañón-Moats is a business leader with a long professional career, primarily focused on client services in the consumer and industrial products sectors. Her career spans auditing, financial reporting, research, mergers, and acquisitions for both public and private entities.
4. SONIA DULA – Vice President, Bank of America Latin America
Dula has overseen Bank of America’s three divisions in Latin America: corporate, investment banking, and wealth management. Sonia has dedicated herself to covering telecommunications and commodities in Latin America, contributing to their rapid transformation. Before this, she held senior positions at Pemex and Goldman Sachs. As General Director of Radio Latin Group, she was responsible for over 500 radio stations in Latin America and the United States. Sonia was born in Mexico but grew up in Brazil.
5. GISEL RUIZ – Executive Vice President and Director of Operations of Sam’s Club, a Walmart unit
Gisel Ruiz began her career at Walmart 25 years ago and now oversees operations at nearly 600 Sam’s Club stores in the United States with revenues of $60 billion. She also supervises real estate, digital services within the club, and operational transformation initiatives. Ruiz has held various executive positions at Walmart and was recognized by Latina Style as “Latina Executive of the Year” in 2010, and Fortune has named her among the 50 most powerful business women in the world in 2012, 2013, and 2014.
6. MARIA MARTINEZ – President, Salesforce Customer Success Group and Success Cloud. Manager of Salesforce for Latin America
Martinez has worked for over three decades in various leadership roles in business and technology. Her primary commitment is to help clients transform their business and achieve their goals in the shortest possible time. Before joining Salesforce, Martinez managed Microsoft’s global services business, where she supervised enterprises to increase revenue goals and significantly improve customer satisfaction with Microsoft. She also served as President and General Manager of Embrace Networks and held senior positions at Motorola and AT&T.
7. MICHELE DOCHARTY – Co-Director of Global Synthetic Products Distribution/General Head of Corporate Access, Values Division of Goldman Sachs
She joined Goldman Sachs in 1989 in the investment banking division and held sales positions in the United States and Latin America before assuming responsibility for the effective business division in 1999. She is also a member of the Americas Diversity Committee.
Docharty has actively participated in all of the firm’s initiatives to promote diversity, contributing to the Multicultural Women’s Alliance and the Goldman Sachs Women’s Network. She was appointed Managing Director in 1999 and Partner in 2010. She earned a BSBA (Bachelor of Science in Business Administration) from Georgetown University, where she also helped guide the firm’s recruitment efforts.
8. YASMINE WINKLER – CEO of the Central Region of UnitedHealthcare
Yasmine Winkler oversees approximately 30% of UnitedHealthcare’s entire Medicaid business, serving over 1.9 million people with a team of 2,700 employees. She is also a member of the CEO Diversity and Inclusion Council of UnitedHealthcare and the UnitedHealth Group Innovation Forum. Winkler has also held management positions at BlueCross/BlueShield of Illinois, Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma.
9. ADRIANA CISNEROS – CEO, Cisneros Group
Cisneros manages a third-generation family business focused on digital and interactive media and real estate. She is also President of the Cisneros Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to improving education quality in the region. She is also co-president of Endeavor Miami, Director and member of the executive committee of the International Academy of Arts and Television Sciences, Paley Center for Media Trustee, and member of the MoMA Acquisition Committee for Latin America. She recently joined the councils of Parrot Analytics, The Knight Foundation, and the University of Miami.
10. JESSICA ALBA
Alba is the founder of The Honest Company and Honest Beauty, companies that offer over a hundred products tested and proven safe for babies, personal care, and cleaning. She is a globally recognized business leader, entrepreneur, advocate, actress, and New York Times bestselling author of The Honest Life, a practical guide for parents to create a safe and healthy life for their families. The Honest Company has donated over twelve million products and more than 15,000 hours of community service by its employees through its Honest to Goodness program.
These women exemplify leadership and achievement in the business world and serve as inspiration for others across Latin America.
