In this article, I’ll be talking about the top 20 most powerful and popular women on the platform, give some information on each of them, and some of my personal impressions, if any.
Without further ado, shall we?
1. Arianna Huffington – 10,224,258 Followers
I’ve mentioned her once before in my top 20 list of most popular people on Instagram. With over 10.2 million followers, she certainly deserves her spot.
Founder and CEO of Thrive Global, co-founder of the Huffington Post, and the author of 15 books, Miss Huffington is nothing short of a talented and powerful woman.
Her LinkedIn page is well-built and relatively short, with only the most relevant facts being showcased and a few publications of hers on display.
She’s quite present on LinkedIn since she posts daily, almost, and receives plenty of reactions from her followers.
I can see how Arianna Huffington is a perfect role model for every young girl and woman out there!
2. Melinda French Gates – 7,241,934 Followers
Melinda French Gates was also mentioned in one of my other articles, and I believe I said that she and Bill Gates are like two peas in a pod.
Both are extremely intelligent people with far greater vision than most people out there.
Their philanthropic efforts are almost unmatched, and each carries a world of experience on their shoulders.
Melinda is the Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, a businesswoman, a global advocate for women and girls, and the author of Moment of Lift.
Melinda seems like the kind of person who derives joy from helping people and uplifting their spirits. A philanthropist at heart, she’s exactly what the world needs.
3. Bren̩ Brown Р4,045,422 Followers
Brené Brown is well known for her research on courage, shame, vulnerability, and empathy. She authored six New York Times best-sellers on these topics and hosted two award-winning podcasts.
Her LinkedIn page showcases all of her achievements, skills, education, research, and publications. Quite a lengthy list of achievements, and most of her books look really interesting.
Brené has also won 7 awards and honors from various companies and magazines throughout the years for her efforts in understanding the psychological underpinnings of courage, among other human psychological states.
Among her activities, you can see open book reads, discussions that she had with various people, and promotional material for her books. I may pick up one of her books soon…
4. Liz Ryan – 3,118,922 Followers
The CEO and founder of Human Workplace, which is a coaching, publishing, and consulting firm, Ryan is also a writer and expert coach on enhancing efficiency at work.
According to her LinkedIn page, she offers coaching on multiple aspects, including leadership, career advice, human relations, and so on.
She wrote the Reinvention Roadmap, a handy guide that describes how you can get any job and build any career of your choice.
It’s a colorful and supposedly dumbed-down font of knowledge and advice on hunting down the ideal job.
The book doesn’t exactly have the most stellar of reviews on GoodReads, the way I see it (many of them are low), but we’re not here to talk about that.
Miss Ryan also has a hefty set of certifications, skills, volunteering events, and recommendations judging by her LinkedIn page.
5. Gretchen Rubin – 3,040,693 Followers
Gretchen Rubin is the founder of The Happiness Project, which, if you don’t know about it, is an ecosystem of tools and products that foster happiness in people, whether that’s through productivity, health, or otherwise.
She’s an author, speaker, and blogger who writes about happiness and habits on her blog, but she’s also a bestselling writer in America.
In her Activity tab on LinkedIn, you’ll find many posts related to recent scientific breakthroughs related to psychology and cerebral development.
Among her biggest achievements are being interviewed by Oprah, dining with Daniel Kahneman, walking with the Dalai Lama, having her work reported by a medical journal, and being reported on by the New Yorker.
Quite a reputable and accomplished person, though it’s mostly her books and literary efforts that have propelled her to the height of popularity.
6. Sallie Krawcheck – 2,821,194 Followers
Sallie Krawcheck was the head of the Bank of America’s Global Wealth and Investment Management Division and is not the CEO and co-founder of Ellevest, a firm that offers financial advice to women.
At one time, Sallie was called the most powerful woman on Wall Street. Her LinkedIn page is basically oozing with gender pay gap content, stats about the gender wealth gap (there “is” such a thing as well, apparently), and so on.
I might have something to say about the gender pay gap, but this isn’t the time or the place to do so. I’ll simply say that Sallie Krawcheck is a very successful entrepreneur who happens to be a woman.
It wasn’t her gender that made her rich but her skills, business acumen, hard work, determination, and ambition.
Success doesn’t care for gender. Only hard work, skills, experience, and talent are important.
7. Naomi Simson B.Comm – 2,789,055 Followers
Naomi Simson B.Comm (a bit of a weird name) is a popular podcaster, blogger, and business commentator who appeared in four seasons of Shark Tank Australia.
Her LinkedIn page shows random motivational posts and business-related news, her experience (Co-Founder of Big Red Group and founder of RedBalloon), education, volunteering, and skills. She’s quite the accomplished person, let me tell you.
She also has several recommendations on her LinkedIn page by industry leaders, student organizations, and marketing individuals.
She’s also published several books throughout her career, most of them being motivational in nature.
She has over 2.7 million followers on LinkedIn and engages with them on a daily basis, the way I see it. Very cool!
8. Christine Lagarde – 2,701,365 Followers
Meet the president of the European Central Bank – Christine Lagarde. She’s widely known for arguing that the rich should pay higher taxes to reduce inequality in the world, which is quite an…interesting idea.
She is a lawyer by trade, not an economist. I just thought this distinction had to be made. She’s also a former politician and executive.
The way I hear it, though, the European Central Bank didn’t go through good times during her leadership. Rising inflation, diminishing real wages, record-high public debt, negative interest rates, and more.
Plus, she may or may not have been convicted of criminal charges over a massive government payout, which she was found guilty of.
Eh, quite the contradiction between this and her supporting the reduction of inequality in the world as well as higher taxation for the rich.
Anyway, moving on.
9. J.T. O’Donnell – 2,646,511 Followers
Have you heard of Work It Daily? It’s an online platform that helps people solve career issues, and J.T. O’Donnell is the founder and CEO of Work It Daily.
Her over 15 years of experience in career coaching, HR, and recruiting made her the perfect person to aid people in need of career advice.
Her LinkedIn page mentions her skills in employer branding, executive coaching, recruitment marketing, HR & recruiting, and more.
She regularly posts tips and tricks that business owners can use to grow their businesses and insights into how CEOs should act when leading a company.
O’Donnell is also an online columnist, advisor on Remote.com, a contributing author to Fast Company, and a syndicated columnist. She does seem grounded, pragmatic, and worthy of praise.
10. Marla Gottschalk, Ph.D. – 2,202,518 Followers
Ever heard of The Pampered Chef? It’s a premier direct seller of high-quality kitchen appliances and tools. Marla Gottschalk is its CFO, Chief Executive Officer. She’s also a member of the Berkshire Hathaway family of business.
On her LinkedIn page, she talks about economy topics and work-life experiences and tries to help people get a grip on their personal and professional lives.
Her “Experience” section is quite impressive, with multiple Director positions held at different corporations, positions of management and advisory management, and more.
She also has a Ph.D. in industrial and organizational psychology, so she’s in the best position to talk about work-life balance and professional efficiency.
It gets even better when you look at her recommendations, where many people praise her advice and offer thanks for her long-standing efforts and even personal mentoring.
She also appears to be a humble person, which is always good to see.
11. Sara Blakely – 2,195,901 Followers
Sara Blakely is the founder of Spanx, the intimate apparel company with leggings and pants. You may or may not have heard about it, depending if you’re from the US or not.
Her LinkedIn page is super simple, short, and not special in any way. I’d call it a reserved and chill profile page that only provides the necessary information.
She does post quite often (about once a week) about social and cultural events.
Her About section says that she’s a “Mother of 4. Inventor of Spanx. Afraid to fly. Refuse to give up my scrunchie. Believe it’s my calling to support women.” It’s good to see someone who’s not afraid to name her flaws and embrace her perks.
Miss Blakely was also awarded a spot in Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2012.
12. Susan Cain – 2,006,108 Followers
At the top of Susan Cain’s LinkedIn page, you can see that she’s a bestselling author of Bittersweet and Quiet, a top 10 LinkedIn influencer, and an award-winning speaker.
She’s particularly renowned for her popular opinion about the systemic underestimation of introverted people in the Western world.
This may, in fact, hold water, being somewhat of an introvert myself and going through various phases in my development as an adult.
On her LinkedIn page, you’ll also find various posts that she either shares or creates about cultural norms, advice on how to proceed in certain social situations, and insights into psychological underpinnings. Quite the interesting posts, if you ask me.
13. Shradha Sharma – 1,803,626 Followers
Shradha Sharma is an Indian journalist and the founder and CEO of YourStory Media, which is the largest Indian media tech company for entrepreneurs, investors, startups, and innovators.
The impact of YourStory on the marketing industry of India and the rise of its entrepreneurial culture is unmatched.
Miss Sharma’s LinkedIn profile page shows many articles related to Indian startups and budding entrepreneurs, as well as talks at various venues.
She has won many awards and honors due to her efforts, including a spot in the Fortune 40 under 40 in 2016.
She’s one of the most promising and talented entrepreneurs I’ve seen on LinkedIn, in fact.
14. Jessica Alba – 1,802,643 Followers
We all know Jessica Alba for her acting career. But what you may not know is she’s the founder of The Honest Company, a digital-first consumer goods company. It was valued at around $550 million in 2022, so quite profitable.
The lack of a profile picture on Miss Alba’s LinkedIn page shows me that she doesn’t care too much about social exposure on the platform. That or there’s been a bug I’m not aware of.
Her LinkedIn page is pretty short, to the point, and straightforward, with no extra and unnecessary elements, added.
She also doesn’t post too often on her LinkedIn page, which is quite understandable. She must be a busy woman, after all.
All in all, her LinkedIn profile page reveals a woman who isn’t very fond of social media. Or doesn’t like LinkedIn too much. Or doesn’t have time for it 😀
15. Whitney Johnson – 1,792,144 Followers
Whitney Johnson is the CEO of a tech-enabled talent development company called Disruption Advisors. She also has a podcast called Disrupt Yourself which she promotes on her LinkedIn page.
Whitney is generally perceived as an innovative speaker who talks about innovation (pun intended), and she’s been named one of the top ten business thinkers in the world once.
On her LinkedIn page, you’ll find plenty of articles related to leadership advice, professional and personal development, as well as business insights.
Her page is a long list of achievements, skillsets, licenses and certifications, volunteering awards, recommendations, and so on.
With almost 1.8 million followers, Whitney Johnson is the 15th most popular woman on LinkedIn in 2023!
16. Dr. Dambisa Moyo – 1,620,615 Followers
Meet the Baroness Moyo of Knightsbridge, an investor, author, board member, and economist who has written about global affairs and macroeconomics.
She’s been on several boards, including for Barclays, 3M, and Chevron, and has worked for Goldman Sachs and the World Bank.
Quite the resume, indeed. Her LinkedIn page shows several of her articles in the New York Times, posts she shares with her followers, as well as a resume of her education, experience, publications, and more.
She’s earned much of her reputation after profound research and discussions on technology, macroeconomics, geopolitics, and millennial themes.
Some of her books include: “Edge of Chaos: Why Democracy is Failing to Deliver Economic Growth-and How to Fix It“, “How the West Was Lost: Fifty Years of Economic Folly and the Stark Choices Ahead“, and more. Interesting titles, I have to say.
17. Indra Nooyi – 1,447,939 Followers
Indra Nooyi is the former CEO of Pepsi CO. and the author of “My Life in Full“, and has been consistently ranked as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world.
The Indian-American businesswoman has led Pepsi through some of its toughest times and took Pepsi to its ultimate form after acquiring several new brands and obtaining better sustainability for the company.
Her LinkedIn page shows that she hasn’t posted anything recently (or at all), about her experience, education, and interests.
There’s nothing too detailed here, which makes me think she’s not that interested in socializing on social media.
Hers is a story of confidence, courage, competence, and communication skills that she took to a whole other level throughout her career.
I feel like there’s something to be learned from Miss Nooyi’s journey :d
18. Barbara Corcoran – 1,417,522 Followers
You must recognize Barbara Corcoran. She’s one of the Sharks in ABC’s Shark Tank, as well as an author, public speaker, podcast host, and the founder of The Corcoran Group, a licensed real estate brokerage firm.
Barbara’s story is one of fighting tooth and nail to obtain her success, of illustrious achievements and pitfalls that she learned from.
Ultimately, her brazen confidence, remarkable intelligence, marketing acumen, and hard-earned skills made her the woman she is today.
Her LinkedIn page shows some of her achievements, experience, and various articles that she shares weekly.
She’s mainly focused on the Shark Tank involvement and lately, she’s been celebrating Women’s History Month.
A relaxed, fresh, and trustworthy LinkedIn profile, if you ask me.
19. Allie K. Miller – 1,411,306 Followers
Allie K. Miller is currently the global head of AI learning business development for startups and venture capital for Amazon Web Services.
She’s an AI investor, and advisor, and knows pretty much anything about AI and the way AI works.
Her LinkedIn page is chock-full of Ai articles, events, AI technology launches, and everything AI-related. Geeking out on AI technology is quite cool, in fact.
She’s a part of many organizations, including the Modern Angels, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Advancing Women in Product, and more. Many woman-related organizations, I see.
She’s also received many recommendations on LinkedIn from users and other businessmen and women who appreciate her efforts in her domain. Quite nice to see.
20. Vani Kola – 1,366,885 Followers
You may or may not have heard about Vani Kola, but she’s followed by over 1.3 million followers on LinkedIn. Apparently, she’s the managing director at Kalaari, an early-stage venture capital firm.
She’s posting about random stuff on her LinkedIn page, including funny videos, flights, technology-related information, and random bits of trivia. Nothing too spectacular.
Her entrepreneurial experience is pretty legendary, apparently, due to her more than 30 investments at Kalaari in gaming, healthcare, e-commerce, digital content, and more. She’s also become an influential voice in India’s startup ecosystem.
Last, but not least, she’s been listed as Fortune India’s Most Powerful Women in Business. She does post quite regularly on LinkedIn, so she’s more socially active than other entrepreneurs on this list.
And that’ll be all for this article. You’ve just met the 20 most powerful and popular women on LinkedIn, so I hope you’ve learned something new. See you at the next one!
