Earl G. Graves, Sr with IBM's Rodney C. Adkins (Image: Corey Shelton/EconoPix, Inc.)

Rodney C. Adkins, IBM’s Senior Vice President, Systems and Technology Group, has received the highest honor BLACK ENTERPRISE bestows upon a top-ranked exec: 2011 Corporate Executive of the Year. One of the nation’s most powerful business leaders in the tech sector, Adkins manages a 50,000-employee division that generates $18 billion in revenues and serves global clients in automotive, telecommunications, healthcare and manufacturing.

He was presented the award by BLACK ENTERPRISE Chairman and Publisher Earl G. Graves, Sr. at the National Network of Black IBM Retirees and Alumni conference, a business development and leadership event that brought more than 200 to Atlanta this past weekend.  “He’s a born competitor…a driven, visionary leader…and an extraordinary manager of talent and resources,” Graves said of Adkins’ attributes. “Moreover, this year’s honoree—and the company he represents—stands at the vanguard of 21^st century corporate leadership, constantly resetting the bar for diversity and fairness in the workplace.”  Celebrating its centennial anniversary this year, IBM has been listed among the BLACK ENTERPRISE 40 Best Companies for Diversity since the roster’s inception in 2005.

In gaining such recognition, Adkins, 53, is in good company. Past recipients include American Express Chairman and CEO Kenneth I. Chenault, Aetna Chairman and CEO Ron Williams (retired), McDonald’s Corp. President and COO Don Thompson, Whirlpool International President Michael Todman, Amway Chief Global Marketing Officer Candace Matthews and Symantec CEO John W. Thompson, an IBM alum.

He’s deserving of the placement: His achievements and management prowess has placed him among the leading candidates to replace retiring IBM CEO Samuel J. Palmisano. Appointed to his position in 2009, the Miami native who holds a degree in physics from Rollins College and a master’s in electrical engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology oversees all aspects of IBM’s server, storage, systems software and retail store solutions business. The company’s integrated supply chain, which includes global manufacturing, procurement and customer fulfillment also reports to him. The 30-year veteran who is an engineer by training was also responsible for oversight of the servers for Watson, the computer that won the Jeopardy! competition against two champions earlier this year.

True to form, Adkins spent his acceptance saying that “he was humbled by the honor… and I thank the magazine helping me have a great professional and personal year” before giving the audience a presentation on the 130-year history of technology and Black achievement. Excited by technology entering “the learning era” and IBM’s Smarter Planet thrust, he foresees the computer power and analytical capabilities of Watson transforming healthcare, finance, transportation and media sectors, among others.

Beyond using technology to improve  quality of life and taking IBM to greater global influence and profitability,  Adkins, a board member of National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering, promotes educational and mentorship programs to develop the next generation of African American engineers and scientists.  He told the audience: “We all have a responsibility to reach back and pull through.”

For more on Adkins, read the September 2011 issue of BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine currently on newsstands and view Executive Editor Caroline V. Clarke’s Power Player interview on the award-winning, nationally syndicated television show, Black Enterprise Business Report on Saturday, Oct. 8 and Sunday, Oct. 9 (check times and listings in your area).

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HOW WE SELECTED OUR MOST POWERFUL WOMEN
What does it take to be named one of Black Enterprise’s 75 Most Powerful Women in Business? To identify our senior corporate executives and leading entrepreneurs—women responsible for developing product lines, positioning brands, operating core business areas, generating revenues, and with profit & loss oversight at the highest levels—our editorial and research teams pored over hundreds of biographies and résumés, as well as conducted interviews with potential candidates and leading trade associations for several months. Our selections met the following criteria:

Corporate business: Executives who hold C-Suite and/or president positions and have the title of senior vice president or above at the parent company. Managing significant lines of businesses, they serve as a representative on the executive leadership team of the top 1,000 publicly traded corporations; 400 largest privately held companies; leading global businesses with strong U.S. operations; or biggest financial services firms and contribute to the development of the business and financial strategy for the entire entity. Also on our listing are female executives who either retained their positions or have been promoted since their inclusion on BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America released in February 2009. None of the executives listed have primary responsibilities for staff functions. This list does not include general counsels, chief diversity officers, domestic human resources officers, presidents of corporate foundations, or executives who oversee corporate communications, investor relations, community development, government affairs, and public/media outreach.

Entrepreneurship: Female BE 100s CEOs, COOs, and presidents with oversight of revenue generation, profitability, product and service development, and brand management for the entire company, as well as having gained industry-wide reputation and corporate board positions outside the company. Those included on the list run BE 100s companies that met the following criteria: industrial/services companies with gross revenue of $250 million or more; advertising agencies with gross billings of $250 million or more; commercial banks with assets of $200 million or more; asset managers with assets under management of $1 billion or more; private equity firms with capital under management of $2 billion or more; and investment banks with lead issues of $2 billion or more on either the taxable or tax-exempt rankings.

Our list, which begins on the next page, does not include any elected or appointed political representatives who currently hold national, state, or local office, including state treasurers, comptrollers, or commissioners who have oversight of corporations and industries. This list also excludes educators, activists, and heads of nonprofit and civic organizations.

You can also view the list here.

Sheryl Adkins-Green
Global Vice President, Brand Development
Mary Kay Inc.
Adkins-Green is responsible for leading global product strategy including product positioning, packaging, product education, and pricing for the $2.6 billion cosmetics giant. She manages product and packaging innovation for the Mary Kay skin care, color cosmetics, body care, and fragrance portfolios of products, currently sold in more than 35 global markets.

Claire Babineaux-Fontenot
SVP & Chief Tax Officer
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Babineaux-Fontenot, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees global tax administration and compliance issues for Wal-Mart in the U.S., Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, China, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Prior to joining Wal-Mart, she served as partner-in-charge of the law firm Adams & Reese.

Carol Baldwin Moody
SVP & Chief Compliance Officer
Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co.
In her current position, Baldwin Moody is charged with evaluating all compliance issues, adhering to regulatory agency rules, and ensuring that all corporate policies, procedures, and standards of conduct are followed. Prior to joining Nationwide, she served as the chief compliance officer for TIAA-CREF, ensuring that all the company’s mutual fund products met regulatory requirements.

Ingrid Beckles
SVP
Default Asset Management
Freddie Mac
Beckles leads an area responsible for developing and implementing loss mitigation and foreclosure strategies, and policies, procedures, and technologies that enable Freddie Mac to mitigate and manage credit losses as the company serves its mission to provide liquidity, stability and affordability to the housing market. Beckles has oversight and leadership responsibilities in nonperforming loan servicing, REO/property disposition, default, fees and claims, and collateral enhancement operations.

Donna M. Boles
SVP
Human Resources
BD (formerly known as Becton, Dickinson, & Co.)
Boles is responsible for the $7.2 billion global medical technology company’s worldwide human resources activities, reporting to BD’s chairman, president, and CEO. She is also a member of the BD leadership team and the development committee.

Rosalind G. Brewer
Division President
Southeast Operations
Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
Brewer was promoted to her post in 2007 and is currently responsible for managing sales and operation plans, including strategic growth opportunities for 800 stores and 250,000 associates.

Julia Brown
SVP
Procurement
Kraft Foods
With responsibilities that include the global procurement of all goods and services for the $42 billion food and beverage company, Brown oversees the supply chain for dozens of household brands, including Oscar Mayer, Crystal Light, Jell-O, Maxwell House, Nabisco, Oreo, and Kool-Aid.

Glynis A. Bryan
CFO
Insight Enterprises Inc.
Bryan, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, manages financial strategy for the $4.8 billion global information technology hardware, software, and services company. Previously, she served as CFO at APL Logistics.

Janice Bryant Howroyd
Founder & CEO
Act-1 Group
Bryant Howroyd oversees operations of her firm (No.5 on the BE Industrial/Service Companies list with $735 million in revenues), which for more than 25 years has provided staffing, human resources, and management solutions to top 500 companies in entertainment, technology, fashion, and the biotech industry. The company operates branches throughout the U.S., and serves clients worldwide.

Teresa Bryce
President
Radian Guaranty Inc.
Bryce leads the mortgage insurance unit of the $1.8 billion company. A mortgage banking expert and former general counsel, she assumed her position in 2008 to develop strategies to reduce customer foreclosures and increase stock performance.

Ursula M. Burns
CEO
Xerox Corp.
Burns, the first African American woman to hold the position of CEO at an S&P 100 corporation, is focused on building the company into an indomitable force in the $132 billion business technology market through a combination of acquisition and organic growth. She joined Xerox in 1980 as a mechanical engineering summer intern and has risen consistently through the company’s ranks.

Gwendolyn L. Butler
President & COO
Capri Capital
Partners L.L.C.
Butler, one of the first African American female COOs in the commercial real estate investment management sector, has oversight of all investment, finance, and marketing personnel for the asset manager (No. 5 on the BE Asset Managers list with $4.2 billion in assets under management).

Ann-Marie Campbell
President, Southern Division
Home Depot
Campbell’s responsibilities include overseeing the sales and operations of more than 650 stores. Beginning her 20-plus year career with the $71.3 billion home improvements retailer as a cashier, Campbell now leads more than 100,000 associates in 15 states, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

Pamela L. Carter
President, Cummins Filtration
Cummins Inc.
Appointed president in 2005, Carter, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is the first woman to serve as president of a major filtration company. Cummins’ various business units design, manufacture, distribute, and service engines and related technologies, including fuel systems, controls, air handling, filtration, emission solutions, and electrical power generation systems.

Susan E. Chapman
Global Head of Operations
& Strategy, Citigroup
Corporate Realty Services
Citigroup
Chapman runs CRS’ operations including mergers and acquisitions, retail branch development, real estate administration, strategic projects, and global business relationship management for one of the largest corporate portfolios. She also co-leads real estate strategy around Citi’s $50 billion commitment to climate change.

Bernice Clark
SVP, Merchandise Marketing
Macy’s Inc.
Clark is responsible for marketing and merchandise for seasonal branding efforts as well as fashion, beauty, and home marketing across all media including TV, radio, direct mail, newspaper, magazine, online, and outdoor.

Nelda J. Connors
President,
Tyco Electrical & Metal Products
Tyco International
Connors leads a $1.4 billion global unit of Tyco, which manufactures galvanized steel tube, piping, conduits, and other materials for electrical, mechanical, and industrial applications.

Edith Cooper
Managing Director & Global Head of Human Capital Management
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
Named partner in 2000, Cooper, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees all functions related to staffing, including company efforts in recruiting, development, promotion, and retention. Cooper serves on the firm’s management committee and is vice chairwoman of the partnership committees.

LaVerne H. Council
Corporate Vice
President & Chief
Information Officer
Johnson & Johnson
Council is responsible for management of information technology and related systems for Johnson & Johnson’s worldwide enterprise, which includes more than 250 operating companies and 3,500 information technology employees—all on an annual budget of $1.9 billion.

Gladys DeClouet
SVP, North America Company Operations,
Burger King Corp.
DeClouet, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is responsible for all operations and profitability of the U.S. and Canadian company-owned restaurants. The global executive also oversees ongoing strategic re-imaging efforts intended to increase restaurant traffic and drive sales.

Lori Dickerson Fouché
President, Commercial
Insurance Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co.
Allianz
Dickerson Fouché, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, leads the company’s commercial insurance business, an operating unit consisting of $2.4 billion in insurance premiums and 650 employees. She is responsible for the profit and growth of the business and leads underwriting, product management, sales and marketing, finance, and operations.

Esi Eggleston Bracey
VP & GM
Global Cosmetics Innovation,
Branding and Operations
Procter & Gamble
With more than 1,000 people under her leadership, Eggleston Bracey is responsible for P&G’s CoverGirl and Max Factor brands globally. Both represent more than $2 billion in retail sales. During her tenure with the company, which began in 1991, Bracey made history as one of the youngest to be appointed general manager.

Amy Ellis-Simon
Managing Director, head of middle market & multi-product sales
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
In overseeing the multiproduct sales team, Ellis-Simon leads a group that serves as a single point of contact across the spectrum of debt and equity products, including convertibles, equities, equity derivatives, credit, and credit derivatives. Her current leadership spans 10 U.S. locations as she drives the institutional sales force.

Felicia J. Fields
Group Vice President, Human Resources & Corporate Services
Ford Motor Co.
Appointed to the position in March 2008, Fields leads the global human resources and corporate services functions. With the company since 1986, her previous positions include vice president for human resources and executive director of human resources, automotive operations, and corporate staffs. Her recognitions include 2009 HR Executive of the Year by the American Society of Employers.

Vicki L. Fuller
SVP & Director
Public Funds Group
AllianceBernstein L.P.
Working within a firm with approximately $498 billion in assets under management, Fuller is responsible for market and business development, product advocacy, and client services for state and local government clients totaling nearly $100 billion. She is an active supporter of the Toigo Foundation, an organization that assists M.B.A. graduates of color in pursuing careers on Wall Street.

Linda R. Gooden
EVP, Information
Systems & Global Services
Lockheed Martin
Gooden, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees 54,000 professionals who operate in all 50 U.S. states and about 60 countries. As a whole, they provide integrated information technology solutions, systems, and services to support worldwide missions of civil, defense, intelligence, and other government customers. Gooden’s division generated $11.6 billion in sales in 2008.

Kim Goodman
EVP, Merchant
Services Americas
American Express
In the position since 2007, Goodman, one of  BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the company’s relationships with American Express Card merchants in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean.

Mirian M. Graddick-Weir
EVP, Human Resources
Merck & Co., Inc.
Graddick-Weir, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is responsible for all aspects of human resources for Merck’s 100,000 colleagues worldwide. She joined Merck in 2006 from AT&T, where she was executive vice president of human resources and employee communications since 2004.

Angela Guy
SVP, GM
SoftSheen-Carson
L’Oreal USA
Guy is the top executive for the SoftSheen-Carson division of L’Oreal USA, a leading beauty products company. In this capacity she oversees all aspects of the SoftSheen-Carson ethnic brand in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean. SoftSheen-Carson brands include Dark & Lovely and Magic Shave.

Carla A. Harris
Managing Director
Morgan Stanley
With Morgan Stanley since 1987, Harris’ recent focus within the firm has been the strategic client group at MS Investment Management. In that role, the Wall Street veteran provides investment advice to corporations, public pension plans, foundations, and endowments. The company’s emerging managers’ platform is also under her leadership.

Kim Harris Jones
SVP & Corporate Controller
Kraft Foods Inc.
Appointed in October 2009, Harris Jones serves as controller for the entire corporation. She held various finance positions at Chrysler Group L.L.C. before joining Kraft as senior vice president, corporate planning & analysis in June 2009.

Bridgette P. Heller
Worldwide President,
McNeil Nutritionals, L.L.C.
Johnson & Johnson
Heller’s responsibilities at the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary include overseeing the global business for the company’s innovative nutritional products, including its flagship brand and market leader, Splenda Sweetener products. She was one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America in her previous role as J&J’s global president, baby care.

Mellody Hobson
President
Ariel Investments L.L.C.
Company-wide management and strategic planning are Hobson’s core duties as she oversees all operations outside of research and portfolio management for Ariel Investments (No. 4 on the BE    Asset Managers list with $4.4 billion in assets under management). With the firm since 1991, she serves as chairwoman of the board of trustees for the mutual funds and corporate director of three public companies.

Catherine L. Hughes
Founder & Chairperson
Radio One Inc.
Hughes is the founder and chairperson of Radio One Inc. (No. 13 on the BE Industrial/Service Companies list with $350 million in revenues). Radio One is the first African American company in radio history to dominate several major markets simultaneously and possesses the first woman-owned radio station to rank No. 1 in any major market.

Frankie D. Hughes
President & Chief
Investment Officer
Hughes Capital Management
Before founding her firm (No. 14 on the BE Asset Managers list with $1.08 billion in assets under management) in 1993, Hughes was director of the asset management division, portfolio manager, and member of the Investment Policy Committee at W.R. Lazard & Co. where, she managed $1.1 billion in fixed income assets for institutional clients.

Jessica C. Isaacs
SVP, Field Operations and Global Reinsurance,
Chartis International
AIG
Isaacs, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, has global responsibility for the personal lines of business operations in South America, Africa, the UK, Ireland, and North America. Isaacs also has global responsibility for all reinsurance negotiations and treaty placements in 57 countries where her division operates.

Melissa E. James
Managing Director
Morgan Stanley
James runs the loan products group at Morgan Stanley. She has responsibility for managing the origination of more than $50 billion of loan commitments for the firm’s clients. James is also a member of Morgan Stanley’s capital commitment committee.

Sheila C. Johnson
CEO & Founder
Salamander Hospitality
Johnson founded Salamander Hospitality—which owns, manages, and develops hotels, resorts, and inns—in 2005. Previously, Johnson was a founding partner of Black Entertainment Television (BET). Johnson is the only African American woman to have ownership in three professional sports teams (WNBA’s Washington Mystics, the NBA’s Washington Wizards, and the NHL’s Washington Capitals).

Debra Lee
Chairman & CEO
BET Holdings Inc.
Viacom
Lee is responsible for BET’s original programming strategy and last September, she managed the launch of Centric, the 24-hour entertainment network featuring artists, music, series, movies, and reality programming. She also oversees the company’s current growth initiatives, including international distribution of the brand in the United Kingdom and Africa.

Freda Lewis-Hall, M.D.
SVP & Chief Medical Officer
Pfizer Inc.
As the most senior physician at the pharmaceutical giant, Lewis-Hall leads medical, patient safety, regulatory affairs, and quality assurance efforts throughout Pfizer, as well as outreach to doctors and other medical professionals. Prior to joining Pfizer, Lewis-Hall was at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, where she was responsible for clinical and nonclinical development and both medical and regulatory affairs.

Wonya Lucas
Chief Marketing Officer
Discovery Communications
Lucas oversees brand strategy and coordination across the media and entertainment company’s global businesses. She is responsible for strengthening the company’s properties and increasing global viewership among its channels, which include Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, and TLC.

Candace S. Matthews
Chief Marketing Officer
Amway Corp.
Matthews, BE’s 2009 Corporate Executive of the Year, oversees Amway’s global marketing team, which focuses on global category marketing and includes beauty, nutrition, and wellness, Global Amway Brand, and consumer and market research. Previously, Matthews served as president of Soft-Sheen Carson, consumer products division of L’Oreal USA.

Glenda McNeal
SVP & GM Global
Client Group, Merchant Services Americas
American Express
McNeal, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is the general manager of the global client group in Merchant Services Americas, a role she assumed in June 2009. She’s responsible for managing global customer relationships in the retail, oil, airline, lodging, car rental, and online industries.

Karen Mincey
VP, Information Technology & Chief Information Officer
TECO Energy
Mincey is a 27-year veteran in the electric utility industry. She leads a team of technical professionals responsible for TECO Energy’s corporate computing systems. Under her leadership, TECO Energy has been recognized as one of the “100 Best Places to Work in IT” and among Information Week’s “Top 500 Companies in Technology Innovation.”

Valerie Mosley
SVP, Fixed Income
Portfolio Manager
Wellington
Management Co.  L.L.P.
As partner of the $540 billion global money management firm, Mosley manages fixed income portfolios for corporate and public pension funds, endowments, and mutual funds. She also chairs the firm’s industry strategy group, which examines themes and secular trends and identifies which industries to emphasize and which sectors to avoid.

Kim Nelson
SVP, President
Snacks Unlimited
General Mills
Nelson, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is responsible for ensuring the profitable growth of some of America’s most popular snack brands, including Nature Valley Granola Bars and Chex Mix. Her portfolio of businesses reported $1.1 billion in net sales to General Mills.

Christina Norman
CEO
OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network
Norman manages all business and creative areas of the new cable channel and multiplatform media venture designed to entertain, inspire, and empower people to live their best lives. Prior to OWN, Norman worked at MTV: Music Television, where she most recently served as president, providing the leadership, strategy, and management for MTV, MTV2, mtvU, MTV Tr3s, and MTV.com.

Felicia Norwood
CEO & President, Active Health
Management Inc.
Aetna
Norwood, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees a wide range of business operations, including sales and marketing, account management, product development, healthcare delivery, and legal and government relations. Active Health is a subsidiary of Aetna Inc. and the leading provider of health management services.

Lisa Opoku
Managing Director & COO, Securities Division, Asia
Goldman Sachs
Originally from Ghana, Opoku manages the day-to-day activities of the global financial services giant’s Hong Kong-based Asia securities division. Her previous role at the firm was serving as COO for the Fixed Income, Currency & Commodities Bank Loan Syndications and Trading businesses in New York and London.

Lisa Pickrum
EVP & COO
The RLJ Cos.
Pickrum is responsible for operations, infrastructure, and business development. She helped create the global private equity firm with $60 billion under management including RLJ Development L.L.C. (No. 8 on the BE Industrial/Service companies list with$ 605.2 million in revenues). Pickrum serves on several boards including Rollover Systems Inc., Bright Beginnings Inc., and Liberia Women’s Advisory Council.

JoAnn H. Price
Co-founder/Managing
Partner
Fairview Capital
Price is a member of Fairview’s investment committee and a manager for all of the firm’s sponsored funds. Prior to co-founding Fairview (No. 2 on the BE Private Equity firms list with $2.6 billion in capital under management), Price served as president of the National Association of Investment Cos. in Washington, D.C.

Vikki Pryor
President & CEO
SBLI USA Mutual Life
Insurance Co. Inc.
Since joining the company in 1999, she’s initiated the turnaround of the 70-year-old company. Pryor and her team administered the expansion of SBLI USA, and currently oversee $15.3 billion of insurance in force, more than $1.4 billion in assets, and nearly 300,000 customers across the country.

Mary E. Pugh
President & Chief
Investment Officer
Pugh Capital
Management Inc.
One of the most sought-after advisers in the fixed-income investment arena, Pugh oversees operations for her firm (No. 12 on the BE Asset Managers list with $1.2 billion in assets under management). She chairs the investment committee and manages its flagship core fixed-strategy portfolio.

Sylvia Rhone
President, Universal Motown Records, EVP
Universal Records
Universal Music Group
Rhone is responsible for overseeing all aspects of traditional, digital, and strategic marketing; artist development; sales and distribution, radio and video promotions; international affairs; and publicity for the label’s diverse roster of artists. In addition, Rhone is responsible for guiding the overall corporate development and branding of Universal Motown.

Anna Richo
SVP & Chief
Compliance Officer
Amgen Inc.
Richo holds global responsibilities for the biotechnology giant’s compliance and business ethics programs, including all companywide activities related to standards and product development, manufacturing, marketing, and reporting. She also manages Amgen’s privacy program, enterprise records, and information management programs.

Cathy D.  Ross
SVP & CFO,
FedEx Express
FedEx Corp.
Ross, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees the worldwide financial affairs of FedEx Express, including financial planning, financial analysis, reporting and forecasting, and global controller oversight functions. She manages more than 2,000 finance professionals throughout the U.S., Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Canada, and Latin America.

Stacey Ryan-Cornelius
Senior Partner,
Worldwide Controller
Ogilvy & Mather
In this role, Ryan-Cornelius oversees internal and external financial accounting and reporting, as well as the analysis of the firm’s 450 operating companies for the international advertising, marketing, and public relations agency. She also works with the CEO and CFO to manage the company’s global finances.

Debra Sandler
Chief Consumer Officer
Mars Inc.
The former worldwide president of McNeil Nutritionals, maker of the world’s No. 1 sugar substitute, Splenda, Sandler is now chief consumer officer for Mars Inc., maker and distributor of confections, snacks, pet food, and other products sold in more than 150 countries. She was BE’s 2008 Corporate Executive of the Year and is one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America.

Kim D. Saunders
President & CEO
M&F Bancorp, Inc.
As president and CEO at M&F (No.11 on the BE Banks list with $270.3 million in assets), Saunders has guided the bank through its first acquisition in 85 years with Mutual Community Savings Bank. The bank is now worth more than $260 billion and based in five major North Carolina cities: Durham, Raleigh, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and Charlotte.

Suzanne Shank
President & CEO
Siebert Brandford Shank & Co. L.L.C.
Shank has been president and CEO since the municipal finance firm (No. 6 in taxable securities with $21 million in lead issues and No. 1 in tax-exempt securities with $5.3 billion in lead issues on the BE Investment Banks list) opened in 1996. With 18 offices nationally, the firm has managed deals for state and local governments across the country totaling more than $550 billion.

Deloris Sims
President & CEO
Legacy Bank
Legacy Bank (No. 13 on the BE Banks list with $224.5 million in assets) is the only bank holding company in the U.S. organized by African American women. Deposits have grown at a rate of about 21% each year, including 2008. Sims is part of a select team of community bank CEOs tapped by President Barack Obama in his effort to reboot the economy and encourage small business lending.

Donna Sims Wilson
President
M.R. Beal & Co.
Sims Wilson oversees revenue growth with corporations, public pension plans, and institutional asset management firms for New York–based M.R. Beal & Co. (No. 10 in taxable securities with $18.8 million in co-lead issues and No. 3 in tax-exempt securities with $2.1 billion in lead issues on the BE Investment Banks list). She also collaborates with federal government agencies on mortgage-related issues.

Gwendolyn Smith Iloani
President & CEO
Smith Whiley & Co.
At Smith Whiley (No. 10 on the  BE Private Equity Firms list with $300 million in capital under management), Smith Iloani oversees the firm’s investment and portfolio management activities. She is a member of the firm’s executive committee and is the chairman of the investment committee.

Colleen Taylor
EVP, Treasury Management
& Merchant Services
Capital One
Taylor’s responsibilities involve overseeing teams throughout the country that are engaged in supporting business development, implementation, and servicing efforts within the bank’s real estate, middle market, small business, and private banking groups. She also leads the merchant services business to increase Capital One’s market share, revenues, and profitability.

Sherice Torres
SVP, Global Home Entertainment
& Adult-Brand Licensing,
MTV Networks
Viacom
Torres, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, manages the home entertainment portfolio for the entire MTV Networks portfolio of brands, including Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV, VH-1, CMT, and Logo. She also oversees and sets the strategic vision for the execution of home entertainment plans worldwide: the U.S., Canada, Germany, UK, France, and Australia.

Tracey Travis
SVP, Finance & CFO
Polo Ralph Lauren Corp.
Travis, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, has been senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer since January 2005. Travis served as senior vice president, finance of Limited Brands Inc. from April 2002 until August 2004, and chief financial officer of Intimate Brands Inc. from April 2001 to April 2002.

Monica L. Walker
President, Chief
Investment Officer-Equity
Holland Capital
Management L.L.C.
A founding partner of Holland Capital Management L.L.C. (No. 11 on the BE Asset Managers  list with $1.3 billion in assets under management), Walker oversees the overall business and financial operations of the Chicago-based firm. She also oversees the research team for the firm’s large-cap and mid-cap growth equity strategies.

Kathy N. Waller
VP & Controller
Coca-Cola Co.
Waller joined Coca-Cola in 1987 and has risen through the ranks to become a solid support in managing the finances of the world’s largest beverage company. Revenues were $31.9 billion this past fiscal year. According to company reports, Coca-Cola is currently on track to deliver $500 million in annualized savings from productivity initiatives by year-end 2011.

Robin L. Washington
SVP & CFO
Gilead Sciences Inc.
In her position since 2008, Washington oversees worldwide finance and investor relations functions of the $5.3 billion biopharmaceutical company, whose revenues have grown 26% since 2007.

Mary Beth West
EVP & Chief
Marketing Officer
Kraft Foods Inc.
As part of Kraft’s executive management team, West, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, is responsible for consumer insights and strategy, integrated marketing communications, consumer services, and sustainability and Tassimo hot beverage business globally.

Carol H. Williams
President, CEO & Chief Creative Officer
Carol H. Williams Advertising
Williams oversees one of the nation’s largest black-owned advertising agencies (No. 2 on the BE Advertising Agencies list with $311 million in billings). Her firm provides consumer research, strategic marketing, advertising planning, and media placement for clients such as the U.S. Army, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, General Mills, and The Walt Disney Co.

Kathleen Wilson-Thompson
SVP & Chief Human Resources Officer
Walgreens
Wilson-Thompson, one of BE’s 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America, oversees the strategy and delivery of all human resources-related activities at the nation’s largest drugstore chain. She serves as a member of the executive management team.

Oprah Winfrey
CEO
Harpo Productions Inc.
This supervising producer of The Oprah Winfrey Show and head of Harpo Productions (No. 14 on the BE Industrial/Service Companies list with $340 million in revenues) runs a multimillion-dollar company that spans the media spectrum of television, print, radio, and film production. Winfrey will launch The Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) in 2011.

Mary Winston
SVP & CFO
Giant Eagle Inc.
Winston serves as senior vice president and chief financial officer for Giant Eagle Inc., a supermarket chain with 158 corporate and 63 franchised stores and more than $8 billion in revenues. Prior to joining Giant Eagle, Winston served as executive vice president and chief financial officer for Scholastic Corp., a $2 billion global publishing, education, and media company.

Deborah C. Wright
Chairman & CEO
Carver Bancorp Inc.
With 150 employees, Wright is the head of Carver Bancorp Inc., the holding company for Carver Federal Savings Bank (No. 1 on the BE Banks list with $789.9 million in assets). Previously, she was president and chief executive officer of Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corp.

This article originally appeared in the February 2010 issue of Black Enterprise magazine.

Matthews

When a headhunter called Candace S. Matthews about an opportunity at Amway, she initially scoffed at the idea. “Were they even still around?” she thought. “Would [the role] be bigger than what I’m doing now?” After all, she was already president of Soft Sheen-Carson, a consumer products division of the cosmetics giant L’Oreal USA, and she had held a series of top marketing positions at some of the world’s leading corporations, including Procter & Gamble and The Coca-Cola Co.

What Matthews didn’t realize at the time was that the family-owned, multilevel network marketing business had grown beyond offering a line of cleaning products. Encouraged by the recruiter to re-examine the offer, Matthews became receptive, even enthusiastic. “I had no idea of the company’s global scope,” she says of the enterprise that operates in more than 50 countries, employs 13,000 staffers, and at the time grossed roughly $7 billion in revenues. “It was huge, and totally under the radar.”

Matthews would soon discover how she fit into Amway’s growth equation. In 2007, the board, led by co-CEOs Steve Van Andel and Doug DeVos, decided that the company needed transforming. The direct sales leader lagged behind its competitors in connecting well with American consumers. In the company’s early stages of growth, 80% of its revenues came from the United States and 20% from international markets. Now those percentages were reversed. Expansion was happening rapidly in areas such as Russia, India, and China, its largest market, with only marginal growth in the U.S. Amway’s bruised reputation here also contributed to flat domestic sales. Matthews, 50, who came aboard at the end of that year, says, “They [knew] they needed to transform and laid out three main pillars: growth through innovation, consumer orientation, and performance driven.”

Amway needed a strong chief marketing officer who understood how the pieces came together and who could infuse a new level of dynamism into the organization. Matthews was the executive for the job.

She was tasked with moving the company from a multilevel marketing business model to a consumer driven model; creating the strategic direction for the five lines of business; and establishing a process for new product development and consumer insight, as well as developing global positioning for Amway products and brands. She wasted no time tackling this audacious mission. Matthews, who controls a budget in the hundreds of millions, has launched a fully integrated marketing program, which her 600-person global team executes in support of 3 million distributors who sell five categories of products: beauty, nutrition, home care, personal care, and durables.

“This fall we will unveil the new Amway brand identity, which will be modern and contemporary with a strong connection to distributors and consumers,” she says. The components include a powerful promotional video that she directed, highlighting Amway products and how they enhance the lives of individuals across the globe, and a vibrant new Website offering details about corporate history, brands, business-building opportunities, and community engagement.

While most companies were battered by the worst economic climate in a generation, Matthews’ efforts helped boost Amway’s revenues to $8.2 billion, an impressive 15% gain in 2008. The company projects solid growth in the single digits for 2009.

She’s on track to hit those growth targets, having already designed a multipronged platform to propel Amway to its next stage of business development. Her intense focus on the impact of culture on brand acceptance and regional sales models has reinforced a marketing approach that blends innovation, technology, and interpersonal relationships. Through her business prowess and inventiveness, she is helping turn Amway into an even more dynamic global powerhouse. For that reason, Candace S. Matthews has been selected as our 2009 Black Enterprise Corporate Executive of the Year—the first such honoree to serve in the C-suite of a privately held corporation.

RETELLING THE AMWAY STORY
Amway has a history of growth and transformation. Headquartered in Ada, Michigan, outside Grand Rapids, Amway started in 1959 when two spirited entrepreneurs, Jay Van Andel and Rich DeVos, who had started roughly six other businesses, began selling a line of cleaning products door to door. By the early 1960s, the high school buddies’ determination and sales prowess had paid off: The company had expanded to more than 700 employees, a network of 100,000 distributors, and estimated retail sales just exceeding $500,000. The two had found a formula that worked for any dedicated salesperson: A good sales pitch, a demonstrable product, and reasonable pricing. By the 1980s, Amway had grossed a whopping $1 billion in retail sales.

If you were a child in the 1970s or 1980s, chances are you knew of loyal, entrepreneurial-minded folks who sold Amway products and, in turn, would try to persuade others to not only become a customer but to join its network of independent business owners, or IBOs. But this novel distribution model drew criticism and accusations that the company was operating a pyramid scheme or, even worse, a cult. In 1979, the Federal Trade Commission ruled that Amway was indeed a legitimate business.

By 2000, Amway had grown to a multibillion-dollar operation run by the founders’ sons. Today, product lines manufactured by the company are supported by a broad team of professionals including 400 scientists and 100 engineers. Amway owns and operates 6,311 acres of organic farmland in the U.S., Mexico, and Brazil. In the past decade, the company has gone through several permutations as the owners sought to continually enhance their business model.

In 2000, in an attempt to improve its image in the U.S. as well as develop and acquire new businesses, Amway formed the holding company Alticor. Quixtar would replace the name Amway in the U.S. and relaunch as an online business.

The board, however, approved setting another agenda in 2007 and, for the first time in the company’s history, recruited outside talent: Among them Russell Evans, a former Boeing and General Electric exec as CFO; former S.C. Johnson Wax Senior Manager Steve Lieberman as managing director of North America; and Matthews as CMO.

With the new team in place, one of the first decisions was to reintroduce the brand in the U.S. using the original name, but this time as Amway Global. According to R. Dale Wilson, marketing professor at Michigan State University, it was an astute business move. “The problem with [changing the name of a product] is you have to build brand awareness, and that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars,” he offers. “Using the old name, they could focus on changing attitudes around the brand.”

The newly installed CMO’s next challenge was indeed to change perceptions among corporate managers and independent distributors who viewed sales and marketing as interchangeable functions and communicated to customers only through direct sales channels. “I’m bringing the discipline of consumer marketing to this business model as well as an understanding of the difference between marketing and selling,” says Matthews, “demonstrating that you have to augment selling with marketing efforts.”

Initially, Matthews’ brand-building strategy wasn’t popular with distributors, who believed investment in such marketing would diminish individual growth opportunities. Changing that mindset required an education process, she says, in which distributors “could see facts, data, and then understand the business opportunity within this new model.” Matthews showed them that if the direct sales model tapped 20% of market share in a particular category, then 80% of that market represented additional sales opportunities. Moreover, aggressive marketing to that segment would create product awareness and, in turn, boost revenues. “Our Nutralite business is our biggest business,” she says. “We are the world’s largest vitamin supplement company. We have the world’s largest market share, and literally nobody knows about us. What would happen if we actually started telling the story about this brand?”

Matthews also had to direct international distributors on how to address specific issues within their regions. Over the past year, she hired chief marketing officers in six regions to serve on her CMO council. To convey her expectations to the group, she used a stuffed octopus. “I said, ‘We think globally here,’ ” she explains, touching the head of her colorful sea creature, “and then we implement through each of our areas,” in which she points to the octopus’ tentacles. “So I gave everyone a stuffed octopus and when we get into one of our meetings and people get too far down into their details, I say ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa–get back to the head of the octopus.’ ”

Carlos Costa, manager of strategic business lines for the Latin American Transformation Team, recently back from an assignment in that region, successfully applied her strategy. “We have adopted Candace’s philosophy in the region,” he says. “Our leader has started saying, ‘We’re not regional marketing; we are the Latin American marketing team.’ Since then we’ve been seeing a lot of success.”

BUILDING A POWERFUL TEAM
Growing up in New Brighton, Pennsylvania, Matthews wanted to follow the path of most of the town and work at the local steel mill. She, however, intended to manage the operation. That aspiration led her to earn a degree in metallurgical engineering and administrative and management science from Carnegie Mellon University. The youngest of 18 children, this minister’s daughter was raised in a strict but loving household where trying to keep up with older siblings inspired a competitive streak. An avid math and science student, she became adept at solving problems and, as such, adopted cracking Sudoku codes as her favorite pastime.

Upon completion of her M.B.A. from Stanford University in 1986, the then 27-year-old Matthews was recruited by corporate star Ann Fudge to work at cereal maker General Mills. At the time, Fudge, now retired, was a director of marketing who earned the distinction of becoming one of the most powerful African American female executives in corporate America. The young professional gained an influential mentor.

As Matthews began her marketing career at General Mills, she followed Fudge’s guidance when it came to maneuvering politically charged corporate environments. “I had to learn how to operate in corporate America as an African American,” Matthews recalls, “because you face things in which you would be appalled. But you’ve got to learn how to handle them so you can constructively take it to the next level.”

Matthews’ mentorship, marketing skills, and empathy, a trait she inherited from her late mother, established leadership qualities that enabled her to ascend to top positions at the world’s most powerful corporations.

Although not especially tech-savvy, Matthews constantly relies on technology to power her marketing agenda. She’s enlisted the aid of tech guru Mike Edwards, director of digital and consumer experience marketing, who outfits her with the latest gadgetry— today it’s her iPhone—and crafts her digital strategy. Edwards asserts, “She is an advocate for the digital space and stays up to speed with the information. As long as we have the measurement to put in place, she’s pretty good about letting us go out and play.”  His team recently launched a viral philanthropic program in nine languages called the One by One campaign for children; it uses social and global networks to carry the message of Amway’s Nutralite brands. And he’s preparing to release a fully integrated iPhone application that will enable distributors to offer full presentations with graphics and videos and allow consumers to complete purchases.

Matthews with her family

A FORMULA FOR WORK-LIFE BALANCE
On a recent visit to Matthews at Amway headquarters, she was preparing for a 10-day business trip to South Africa and Ghana aboard the corporate jet. Her assistant, Jayne Germain, was briskly pulling together the details. The medical packet prepared at the company’s onsite facility included everything from bug spray to prescribed medicine. Her passport bulged with additional pages and visa documents; cash for remote areas; and information about the security detail that would accompany her on certain legs of the trip. “I am extremely busy, but I am never stressed,” says Matthews, navigating in her two-seater Mercedes convertible to the 8½ -acre ranch she shares with her husband, Bruce, and three children, twin girls Sydney and Simone, and son Seth.  Her commute is all of seven minutes.

“Never stressed,” is a phrase one rarely hears from an executive—particularly a senior-level professional woman, wife, and mother. When you meet her husband though, you quickly understand. The two were married 10 years ago after a four-month courtship. A quality control engineer with a degree from the University of South Florida, Bruce owned a coffee shop and home-improvement firm when they met and married in Atlanta. Matthews was at Coca-Cola at the time.

Hailing from a big family, she never suspected she would encounter fertility problems, but she did. So the couple adopted from the foster care system—twin girls, now 11, who were received at age 3 with a “failure to thrive” diagnosis, and their 4½-year-old son who has been with them for since he was 1. Matthews remarks, “They are thriving and it shows how environment and nurturing can change a child. I would encourage more black families to consider adopting out of foster care.”

In 2001, Matthews received a job offer from L’Oreal to head Soft Sheen Products, once a black entrepreneurial institution in Chicago. She expected it to be a career-making but demanding opportunity, especially with a young family that required special attention. “I asked her, ‘Is this what you want?’ recalls Bruce. “When she said yes, I offered to stay at home.” And he’s been a stay-at-home dad ever since.

Today, Bruce runs the ranch, managing all household duties, the children’s care, and schedules. He also oversees construction of their home and barn, which houses two horses: a Tennessee walker and a quarter horse. “A man does whatever is necessary for his family,” he says.

Bruce plays a supporting role in his wife’s career. He attends company events and offers professional help. For example, he recently attended a dinner in which Matthews was wooing a marketing candidate to Amway. Bruce provided the candidate and his wife with information on Matthews’ management style, the company’s family-oriented corporate culture, the owners’ dispositions, and family life in Grand Rapids. A few weeks later the candidate accepted the position, saying he was won over by the company’s approach.

Matthews never imagined when she received the headhunter’s call two years ago that she and her family would be presented with so many opportunities. At Amway, she’s still focused on building an effective team and a winning strategy to help the company reach its goal—dubbed “12×12”—$12 billion by 2012. She says, “The best of all worlds is when the best of who you are can come out in what you do.”

—Additional reporting by Benice Atufunwa

This story originally appeared in the September 2009 issue of Black Enterprise magazine.