5. Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT)
We are starting off our list of companies you didn’t know were run by women with Lockheed Martin, that is a company operating in the aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technologies industries. Formed through the merger of Lockheed Corp and Martin Marietta in 1995, this is a company that employs over 126,000 people throughout the world.
Who runs it all? Marilyn Hewson, the company’s current President and CEO, a woman who was named the 20th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes in 2015.
She started off at Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) back in 1983 and climbed her way up the corporate ladder, holding multiple positions, including President and Chief Operating Officer, Executive Vice President, and more. In November 2012, she became a member of the company’s Board of Directors and in January 2013 she became the company’s CEO.
Under her command, the company doubled its market cap and has made some interesting moves. For instance, in the summer of 2015 they acquired Sikorsky Aircraft, expanding the company’s production capability to helicopters. Overall, the company’s focus has shifted towards building military hardware, which means it could be poised to get a lot more government contracts in the future, with Donald Trump planning to spend heavily on defense.
The company produces quite a few big names in the aerospace field, including the A-10 Thunderbolt II, ARES, the CH-35 Helicopter, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the F-22 Raptor, the F-35 Lightning II, and more.
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