For the seventh consecutive year, Fortune magazine has named Debra L. Reed, chairman, president and CEO of Sempra Energy to the magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in Business” list.
Reed is ranked No. 20 in 2017, up from No. 22 in 2016.
Fortune’s “Most Powerful Women in Business” was launched in 1998 to recognize the most successful women in the nation.
In compiling the list, Fortune editors consider four criteria: the size and importance of the woman’s business in the global economy; the health and direction of the business; the arc of the woman’s career; and social and cultural influence.
Fortune’s “Most Powerful Women in Business” list is now available online.
Reed, 61, has served as Sempra Energy’s CEO since 2011, as the company’s chairman since 2012, and president since March. She has spent her entire 38-year career with the Sempra Energy companies. Previously, Reed was executive vice president of Sempra Energy. From 2006 to 2010, she served as president and CEO of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas), Sempra Energy’s two California utilities. Reed first joined SoCalGas in 1978 and became the company’s first female officer 10 years later. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Southern California.
Sempra Energy includes SDG&E, SoCalGas, Sempra South American Utilities, Sempra Mexico, Sempra Renewables and Sempra LNG & Midstream.
Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2016 revenues of more than $10 billion. The Sempra Energy companies’ more than 16,000 employees serve around 32 million consumers worldwide.