Crisis management was the name of the game this week, as The Wall Street Journal announced its annual list of “The Top 50 Women to Watch.”
Sheila Bair, the chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., headed a roster of “women poised to have an impact on the world of business.”
The ranking was filled with executives who responded with confidence to the collapse of the financial and credit markets.
But some of last year’s stars are missing in action this year, their careers having fallen victim to troubles in the market.
Similarly, the Journal found that the percentage of women who are vice presidents or higher in Fortune 500 companies is down from 16.4 percent in 2005 to 15.4 percent now.
Bair, a protege of Robert Dole, the former Senate majority leader, moved up from No. 5 on last year’s list to No. 1 this year.
In 2007, the Journal praised Bair for warning that the subprime mortgage debacle was on its way. “Millions of people’s homes are on the line,” she said.
Since then, she’s been a forceful voice on behalf of troubled homeowners, working hard to limit foreclosures.
She also led the FDIC’s takeover of IndyMacBank, and she helped on the sale of Washington Mutual to JP Morgan Chase & Co.
“She’s been great,” Rep. Barney Frank, a Democrat from Massachusetts who heads the House Financial Committee, told the Journal. “She’s shown you can be concerned about consumers and not skimp on your job as a regulator.”
Last year’s list leader, Angela Braly, the president and CEO of Wellpoint Inc., a major insurer, occupies the 15th spot this year.
The company missed its earnings projection for the first time this spring, and its stock has lost 50 percent of its value. But Braly gets credit for her efforts to “restore investor confidence.”
Indra K. Nooyi, the chairman and CEO of Pepsico Inc., was No. 2 on the list this year, as she was last year. In 2007, she gained praise for her efforts to have Pepisco make products that are healthier and environmentally friendly.
This year, Nooyi got credit for taking “bold steps” in dealing with “the consequences of the souring economy.” Her company recently eliminated 3,300 jobs, and it has shut down some plants.
Barbara J. Desoer, president of mortgage, home equity and insurance services at Bank of America Corp., was No. 3 on this year’s list.
A newcomer to the top 50, Desoer is watching over Countrywide Financial Corp., the troubled mortgage giant that Bank of America acquired last year.
Hu Xiaolian, the deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China, follows Desoer at No. 4. She was No. 23 last year.
Christine Lagarde, France’s finance minister, is on the list for the first time this year at No. 5.
The results of the presidential election are reflected by the selection of Laura D’Andrea Tyson, a professor at the University of California at Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, as No. 10. A former economic adviser to President Clinton, Tyson is now an adviser to President-elect Barack Obama.
Margaret C. “Meg” Whitman, the former president and CEO of EBAY and the national co-chair of Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign, fell off the list entirely after occupying the No. 9 spot last year.
Also delisted this year was last year’s No. 4, Zoe Cruz. She resigned her position as co-president of Morgan Stanley last November. Gone, too, are Patricia Russo, the former CEP of Alcatel-Lucent, last year’s No. 16, and Erin Callan, last year’s No. 45.
At this time in November 2007, Callan was about to become the CFO of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. She took over in December and was pushed out in June of this year. As luck would have it, she landed on her feet at Credit Suisse Group and Lehman Brothers is no more.
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