IMG: via Fortune Live Media
It’s only January and Sheryl Sandberg has already had a remarkable year. Facebook’s COO is now the world’s newest billionaire.
Sandberg joined Facebook six years ago when the company was breaking ground on an IPO, hoping to up their stocks’ worth and strengthen their mobile engagement and sales. Sandberg did not disappoint.
Formerly a Google vice-president, Sheryl Sandberg is a striking female force in Silicon Valley, where at 44 she’s one of the toughest, most respected and highest paid women in the industry. The mother of two and Harvard MBA has an impressive record that extends beyond the two Internet giants – she’s served on the boards on Starbucks and (currently) Walt Disney Company.
IMG: via Lean In
In 2010, Sandberg gave one of the most memorable TED Talks on women and business, stating that women unintentionally hold themselves back in their careers for myriad reasons involving fear and failure. She encouraged women to seek challenges and take as many risks as they could until they reached their own personal level of success. Her talk has been viewed millions of times, making her a household name as a business leader looking to help women reach their full potential.
In her current best-selling book Lean In, Sandberg talks about being a woman in business, using her negotiations with Mark Zuckerberg as a prime example of the extra work women have to do to be taken seriously in the boardroom. Lean In is a women’s guide to finding a place in the leadership world, which is still very much dominated by men.
Sheryl Sandberg may be the world’s newest billionaire, but her hard work, dedication and vigor is what makes her one of the biggest female powerhouses Silicon Valley will ever see.
