Name: The 2025 Next to Lead List
Uploaded: 2025-12-16
Duration: 2 min 4 s
Description: The 2025 Next to Lead list is here.

The 2025 Next to Lead List

Leadership

What makes for a great leader? I read a ton. And how do Fortune 500 companies spot their next CEO? The first thing we look for. Really is like, does this person have horsepower? Hi, I'm Ruth Ummo, editor at Fortune. I read about leadership, management, and the rising stars in corporate America. For the 2nd year in a row, I've compiled the Fortune Next to Lead list featuring 25 of the most powerful Ryzen executives in the Fortune 500. This list spotlights leaders whose influence, performance, track record, and upward trajectory. Signal that they are credible contenders for the CEOC whether within their current organization or at another major company. Over the last year, I've spoken to dozens of analysts, executive recruiters, management consultants, company insiders, and industry peers to understand the shifting power dynamics inside the C-suite and to identify which executives are truly worth featuring. This Rankin listees were evaluated across several key benchmarks such as the scale and significance of their role within a Fortune 500 company, whether they lead major divisions or organizations, their industry-wide and global influence, as well as their financial and operational performance. We have people like IBM's Rob Thomas. You only need three things to drive execution priorities, data. And you need rhythm. Wayfair's John Blattner. Having pride in your own ideas is only, it's never a good thing. And NBC Universal's Donna Langley, and I am a firm believer in the theatrical experience. We also assess these executives' capacity for visionary leadership, whether they've driven transformative strategies, made high stakes decisions, navigated volatility, and inspired. Large teams to deliver outsized results. Cultural and societal contributions, along with longevity and consistency, were equally important. Each of these executives has built a multi-year track record of leadership excellence. What this list underscores is that the Fortune 500 has many leaders who are already operating at CEO altitude, even without a chief executive title yet.