– Tech transformation. In 1990, Walt Disney World didn’t have a centralized database of its millions of theme park visitors. Sheila Jordan, who joined the legacy entertainment company that year as a VP of marketing and sales finance, saw a moment for growth—Disney’s and her own. Identifying that business opportunity helped her become SVP of Destination Disney, where she brought a CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, system to the company.
Fifteen years of guest experience later, Jordan was ready for a change: “I’ve always had this desire to go work in Silicon Valley and deep in tech,” she remembers. She worked at Cisco for nine years before moving into the security space as CIO of Symantec. “Then it was time to think about applying all this experience to a multinational, global industrial supply chain,” she says.
No. 119 on the Fortune 500, Honeywell is an industrial technology company with a sprawling catalogue of products: security software solutions, pressure sensors, and barcode scanners, to name just a few. The company grew its revenue 5% to $38.5 billion in 2024. As chief digital technology officer, Jordan is behind a multi-year digital transformation plan as the business simplifies.
Meanwhile, she’s spearheading its adoption of AI. “There’s a technology that happens every five to seven years that fundamentally changes how we work, live, and play,” she says. She is particularly interested in agentic AI because it can be like “having a conversation with your best friend”—which is her experience of Amazon’s Alexa+.
It’s not just tech that has changed since Jordan entered the industry. There are also more women serving in CIO and CTO roles. “I love being the chief digital technology officer, but I’m also a girl, and I like jewelry and I like makeup,” she says. She says that Disney, Cisco, Symantec, and Honeywell have all allowed her to be herself. “I don’t have time to hide the fact that I’m female. So you have to pick the cultures of a company that will allow you to flourish without trying to change you too much.”
Looking ahead, Honeywell, a longtime “diversified conglomerate,” is preparing to break into three separate companies: automation, aerospace technologies, and advanced materials. The company has also in the past few years made a few acquisitions—like buying defense tech company CAES for approximately $1.9 billion—and divestitures—like selling its personal protective equipment business for $1.3 billion. Jordan brings the same eye she brought to Disney’s theme park data to these more complex changes: “It’s understanding where we want to go and what the growth opportunities are for us.”
Nina Ajemian
nina.ajemian@fortune.com
The Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter is Fortune’s daily briefing for and about the women leading the business world. Today’s edition was curated by Nina Ajemian. Subscribe here.
Correction, June 13, 2025: A previous version of this article misstated Honeywell’s lines of business.
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Stop the scams. Led by New York’s Letitia James, a group of state attorneys general are asking Meta to deal with the rise in investment scams on Facebook. “Thousands of Facebook users have lost hundreds of millions of dollars to these scams,” said James. CNBC
- Athlete appeal. In an appeal of the recent House v. NCAA settlement, eight female athletes say that the settlement goes against Title IX. More specifically, they argue that women will be deprived of $1.1 billion, their fair share of the $2.7 billion athletes are set to receive in back pay tied to name, image, and likeness deals. AP
- Dictator defense. As she did in March, Walmart heiress Christy Walton ran a newspaper ad criticizing President Donald Trump. Here, she calls on Americans to “defend against aggression by dictators” and to join protests this weekend. Walmart (No. 1 on the Fortune 500) said in a statement that her ads are not endorsed by the corporation. Wall Street Journal
- The Caitlin Clark effect. With the WNBA’s biggest ratings driver Caitlin Clark out on injury, how has the Indiana Fever fared? Front Office Sports explores the viewership data.
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Jacqueline Ardrey is leaving quilted and patterned bag brand Vera Bradley after around two and a half years as CEO.
Chanel named Ruth Warder global chief communications officer. Most recently, she was CEO for the U.K. and Ireland and EMEA brand chair at Edelman.
ASRC Federal appointed Ann Stevens as chief strategy officer. Most recently, she was VO of maritime and intelligence systems at Boeing.
Instabase, an AI platform for managing unstructured data, appointed Sumita Sharma as chief revenue officer. Most recently, Sharma was VP, strategic west at Palo Alto Networks.
Kynisca, a women’s sports organization founded by Michele Kang, appointed Jennifer LaMothe as chief people and culture officer. LaMothe was most recently chief administration officer at Cognosante.
ON MY RADAR
AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler on the value of Trump: “The best organizer is a bad boss” Fast Company
The moms trying to delay their daughters’ periods Vox
Did she or didn’t she? She did, and she’ll tell you exactly how New York Times
PARTING WORDS
“I already have one opponent. I don't need two.”
— Tennis champion Coco Gauff, who just became the first American woman in 10 years to win the French Open, on not being her own worst enemy
