The 25 best CEOs of large companies, ranked by female employees
Jeff Bottari/Invision for Adobe/AP Images
- Career site Comparably released its latest ranking of the best CEOs according to female employees.
- The list is based on female ratings over a 12-month period, starting on June 23, 2020.
- The following are the top 25 CEOs at companies with more than 500 employees.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
Courtesy of Comparably
Location: Sunnyvale, California
Industry: Biotechnology
Employee quote about the CEO: "I love that she values work-life balance and treats us as human beings rather than cogs in a machine. I also love her readiness to innovate--even in things like rethinking the workplace of the future."
24. Kenneth Lin, Credit KarmaCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Oakland, California
Industry: FinTech
Employee quote about the CEO: "Transparent, empathetic, experienced, open, and trustworthy."
23. Amy Zupon, VertaforeCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Denver, Colorado
Industry: Computer software
Employee quote about the CEO: "Empathetic and allows the team to be flexible. Gives opportunity for me to present my ideas and values it as well."
22. Andrew Wang, Beacon Hill Staffing GroupCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Industry: Staffing agency
Employee quote about the CEO: "Recently the leadership has emphasized diversity and inclusion, which is something I like a lot."
21. Keith G. Myers, LHC GroupCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Lafayette, Louisiana
Industry: Healthcare
Employee quote about the CEO: "Strives for excellence while allowing for humanity to be present."
20. Chris Caldwell, ConcentrixCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Fremont, California
Industry: Customer service outsourcing
Employee quote about the CEO: "Transparency, empathy, a moral compass, and fun."
19. Tim Cook, AppleCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Cupertino, California
Industry: Consumer electronics
Employee quote about the CEO: "I appreciate the commitment to diversity, inclusion, fairness and the environment."
18. Pierre Naudé, nCinoCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Wilmington, North Carolina
Industry: Financial services
Employee quote about the CEO: "Driven to accomplish company goals. But believes that those goals will be achieved through employee empowerment."
17. Arvind Krishna, IBMCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Armonk, New York
Industry: Computer enterprise software
Employee quote about the CEO: "Open, direct, honest, and caring."
16. Eric Yuan, Zoom Video CommunicationsCourtesy of Comparably
Location: San Jose, California
Industry: Video conferencing software
Employee quote about the CEO: "Eric's focus on happiness — for our customers and our employees — is infectious and permeates the organization from the top down."
15. Bert Bean, Insight GlobalCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Industry: Staffing and recruiting
Employee quote about the CEO: "Since Bert Bean took the role of CEO, he has embraced diversity, change and evolution."
14. Robert G. Painter, TrimbleCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Sunnyvale, California
Industry: Web hosting and navigation software
Employee quote about the CEO: "We are lucky to have Rob. It is the first time that I feel included in the strategy, and that the voice of each of us counts."
13. Annette Brüls, MedelaCourtesy of Comparably
Location: McHenry, Illinois
Industry: Medical devices
Employee quote about the CEO: "Inclusive and caring, visionary and daring."
12. Craig Boundy, ExperianCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Costa Mesa, California
Industry: Financial services
Employee quote about the CEO: "Very supportive and encouraging of a positive work/life balance with a 'health and family always comes first' mentality."
11. Jim Loree, Stanley Black & DeckerCourtesy of Comparably
Location: New Britain, Connecticut
Industry: Consumer goods
Employee quote about the CEO: "Jim Loree does a great job conveying and demonstrating the importance of recognizing the role each of us plays as individuals and the value of a diverse, inclusive environment."
10. Kumsal Bayazit, ElsevierCourtesy of Comparably
Location: New York, New York
Industry: Publishing
Employee quote about the CEO: "Our CEO is an inspirational woman who, since her arrival, has created a strong awareness of the organization's values and care for our customers."
9. Satya Nadella, MicrosoftCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Redmond, Washington
Industry: Computer software and electronics
Employee quote about the CEO: "Satya Nadella is driving culture change in very impressive way. moving from 'know it all' to 'learn it all.'"
8. Dan Rosensweig, CheggCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Santa Clara, California
Industry: Online education and training services
Employee quote about the CEO: "Empathy towards employees and recognition of the importance of contribution from every wing of the organization."
7. John Foley, PelotonCourtesy of Comparably
Location: New York, New York
Industry: Health and fitness
Employee quote about the CEO: "I believe that John Foley is one of the kindest, most earnest people I know."
6. Vladimir Shmunis, RingCentralCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Belmont, California
Industry: SaaS/enterprise platform
Employee quote about the CEO: "Much openess and understanding to the needs of the employees during these difficult times."
5. Sarah Friar, NextdoorCourtesy of Comparably
Location: San Francisco, California
Industry: Private social networking platform
Employee quote about the CEO: "Coming from male led companies for the last 25 years of my career, working for a female led company is a very welcome change. Authenticity, diversity, inclusion, transparency."
4. Brian Halligan, HubSpotCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Industry: CRM Software
Employee quote about the CEO: "I appreciate his transparency, listening to staff of all levels and the empathy. Forward thinking with inclusion."
3. Leslie Stretch, MedalliaCourtesy of Comparably
Location: San Francisco, California
Industry: SaaS Platform
Employee quote about the CEO: "Our leadership, starting with our CEO Leslie Stretch, is unmatched in their engagement and empathy toward our workforce."
2. Jeffrey Dailey, Farmers InsuranceCourtesy of Comparably
Location: Woodland Hills, California
Industry: Insurance
Employee quote about the CEO: "Focused on diversity and inclusion and caring about employees as whole people. I am a single mom. I have chronic health issues. All of this is considered and accommodated."
1. Shantanu Narayen, AdobeCourtesy of Comparably
Location: San Jose, California
Industry: Enterprise software
Employee quote about the CEO: "Shantanu is genuine and authentic. He's a great communicator and delivers a vision for our company that I believe in."
Here is the full list for large companies:Courtesy of Comparably
Comparably creates several rankings a year using employee ratings collected on the website. In addition to producing a list of the best companies for women, the career site also publishes an annual list of the best CEOs for women.
To compile the rankings, the career site only used anonymous female ratings from June 23, 2020 to June 23, 2021. The large company list only includes companies with over 500 employees.
There are still not that many women in executive positions, and only five female CEOs made the top 25 of the large company list.
Nextdoor's CEO Sarah Friar ranked the highest among female CEOs that made the top 25. Elsevier's CEO Kumsal Bayazit was the only other female CEO that made the top 10 this year coming in at No. 10. Both of these CEOs have approval ratings of at least a 90 (out of 100) on the career site.
The full list, including the top CEOs of small and midsize companies according to women, can be found on Comparably. Employee quotes and industries noted above are from Comparably and provided to Insider.