20 powerful women shaping the networking industry

Women are severely underrepresented in top leadership roles across the business world. Only 10.4% of the Fortune 500 companies have women CEOs. In an AP survey of S&P 500 companies, only 25 of 341 CEOs were women.

That disparity extends into the technology sector. The Women in Tech organization reports that 17% of tech companies have a woman CEO, and only 25% of all C-suite jobs are held by women.

But there are a number of groundbreaking women who have been highly successful in networking, and we’re highlighting 20 of them (in alphabetical order). We’ve found no clear pattern or career path—some have stayed with the same company their entire career; others have bounced from one place to another. Several went out and started their own company. Some have technical backgrounds; others have business or management degrees. Two traits they share are a commitment to diversity and inclusion and active participation in organizations and programs championing women in tech.