Microsoft’s Satya Nadella has been named the world’s top CEO by brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance. The Indian-born American succeeded Steve Ballmer in 2014 as the leader of the technology corporation.
He has been credited with overhauling Microsoft’s fortunes by changing its culture towards one of teamwork, innovation, and inclusivity, and instilling a growth mindset throughout the business.
David Haigh, chairperson and chief executive of Brand Finance, said the brand recognises those who are building business value in a sustainable manner, by balancing the needs of all stakeholders – employees, investors, and the wider society.
“More and more, CEOs ranked in the Brand Guardianship Index must work in partnership to build a sustainable future, redefining the role of a CEO from ultra-competitive entrepreneur to collaborative diplomat,” said Haigh.
The Brand Guardianship Index ranks the world’s top 250 CEOs and evaluates the performance of chief executives according to how well they manage and grow their companies’ brands. This ranking is informed by the results of an original survey of over 1 000 market analysts and journalists.
The top 250 ranking is drawn from a sample of more than 500 chief executives of the world’s top companies with at least one brand featured in the annual ranking of the world’s top 500 most valuable brands – the Brand Finance Global 500.
The technology and media sectors dominate the top 10 of the ranking. Tech boasts the majority, with six featuring. Tim Cook, the chief executive of Apple, sits in second place, having overseen Apple’s record-breaking year, which saw it become the first company to achieve a $3 trillion (R45.77trn) market valuation.
Other household brand names include Tencent’s Huateng Ma (4th), Google’s Sundar Pichai (5th), and Netflix’s Reed Hastings (7th) all featuring at the top of the ranking. AMD CEO Lisa Su is a new entrant in 10th place, making her the highest-ranked female in the Brand Guardianship Index 2022.-iol
