Late last night I was thumbing through the lastest edition of Forbes magazine and came across something very interesting indeed.
It's a list of the world's most powerful women.
The methodology "isn't about celebrity or popularity; it's about influence," the article touts. The womens' influence was measured by factors such as the size of their company (or country) and the amount of press they'd received. Forbes also looked at their proximity to the top of their respective professions as well as their accomplishments. And of course, the number of Twitter followers (where applicable).
What took me by surprise were the number of highly-ranked women in the food manufacturing industry. Check it out (the number in front indicates their rank):
1 - Angela Merkel (Chancellor, Germany)
3 - Indra Nooyi (Chief Exec, PepsiCo)
6 - Irene Rosenfeld (Chief Exec, Kraft Foods)
21 - Mary Sammons (Chief Exec, Rite Aid)
29 - Brenda Barnes (Chief Exec, Sara Lee Corp)
36 - Hillary Clinton (Sec of State)
40 - Michelle Obama (First Lady)
41 - Oprah Winfrey (Chairman, Harpo)
I couldn't help but wonder about
Ms. Rosenfeld. She's apparently done wonders for revitalizing the Kraft brand and making it profitable again. Under her guidance, the Oreo cookie made $1 billion in sales in China alone last year. Anyone think she's partly responsible for all those awesome Kraft promotions and printable coupons in recent months (not to mention the rebates)? Thanks, Ms. Rosenfeld! I wish more companies would follow suit.
Maybe it's just me...but does anyone else find it a touch humorous that to have more influence in this country you should instead run a company that sells cakes instead of run for Secretary of State? OK, I better shut up before I get in trouble...
You can view the entire "Top 100" list by going
here.