DUBAI — New research by CTPartners Executive Search Inc. said women CEOs at the world's largest corporations may not have made great progress in terms of numbers but have at least made up for it in terms of running larger and more powerful companies. Only 12 women CEOs, or 2.4 percent, feature on the Fortune Global 500 companies in 2012, albeit in some of the most powerful organizations. A quick comparison between global and regional surveys shows that, in the region, 14 Arab women take the helm of their burgeoning companies as CEOs against the 12 global CEOS. This trend, witnessed by CTPartners in the Arab World, shows Arab women, especially from the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, are powerful corporate leaders and board members. With an exemplary educational background and a strong sense of economic growth, Arab women have the right ingredients to become successful CEOs, the research said. In the recent survey by Arabian Business magazine of the top 100 most powerful Arab women, 14 percent of the women have secured their places to be successful in running regional conglomerates in their capacity as chief executive officers or CEOs. Lubna Al-Olayan, CEO of Olayan Financing Company of Saudi Arabia, Dr. Amina Al Rustamani, CEO, TECOM Business Parks in UAE, Sheikha Al Bahar, CEO of National Bank of Kuwait, Salma Hareb CEO of Jafza and EZW in the UAE and Randa Ayoubi, CEO of Rubicon Group Holding in Jordan, made it to the top 50, making them prime examples of Arab women having the talent and ability to lead multi-faceted regional organizations with global reach. Three Arab women were ranked among the 100 most powerful women in the world by US-based Forbes magazine. They are Shaikha Al-Bahar, CEO of the National Bank of Kuwait, ranked 85; UAE Minister of Trade Sheikha Lubna Al-Qasimi, ranked 92, and Sheikha Mayassa Al-Thani, who heads the Qatari government agency in charge of museums and ranked 100. Interestingly, 25 percent of the influential women featured in the Forbes survey were CEOs.Few but more powerful women CEOs. Today, only 2.4 percent of world's leading companies are run by female CEOs, according to CTPartners. From six women CEOs running Fortune Global 500 companies in 2005 (1.2 percent) their number rose to 12 in 2012, or an addition of six women leaders over the past seven years. Although this represents 100 percent increase, the executive research firm says that this works out to be an average increase of one woman CEO a year. The good news is that, while companies run by women ranked over 300 in the 2005 list, women today run some of the world's largest and most influential corporations. Meg Whitman, for example, runs one of the 10 largest businesses in the world — Hewlett-Packard. Virginia Rometty of IBM runs a corporation that is ranked 19th in the world. Other women CEOs run companies ranked 28th, 41st, 46th and so on. Only one woman runs a company ranked over 300 in this year's list. She is Cynthia Carroll from one of the world's largest diversified mining and natural resource groups — Anglo American. The 12 women CEOs are in charge of 2.4 percent of the total revenues of the Global 500 companies in Asia, Europe and the US. Altogether, they control over $680 billion in revenues today, compared to just $102 billion by their counterparts in 2005. However, the 2012 amount is only 20 percent of the economy that Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, oversees. With the exception of Alison Cooper from Imperial Tobacco Group, who is in her forties, all women CEOs in the research are over 50 years old. None are over sixty. From three female CEOs in 2005 to nine listed among Global 500 female CEOs today, US companies have made the most progress in placing women in the top seat, tripling the number over the past seven years. Women CEOs from the US also run larger companies than their Asian and European counterparts, with revenues totaling $580 billion altogether. European companies in the Global 500 list this year hold the largest revenues ($10,138 trillion) as a group. But from only one woman CEO in 2005, there are only two women CEOs leading corporate heavyweights in Europe, ranked 145 and 360 globally. Want to become a CEO? Switch to a career in technology or consumer goods Consumer and technology companies appear to be the most open to hiring women CEOs. Yahoo!'s new CEO, Marissa Mayer, and Google's Chief Operating Officer (COO), Sheryl Sandberg, have generated many news headlines this year, but women leaders are nothing new to technology powerhouses including Hewlett-Packard, IBM or Xerox. Consumer goods companies, PepsiCo., Kraft Foods and TJX, each have a woman CEO. — SG
