Padmasree Warrior, chief technology officer, Cisco

A 23-year veteran of Motorola, where she had also been chief technology officer, Padmasree Warrior jumped ship to Cisco towards the end of 2007. At Motorola, she commanded an annual R&D budget of $3.7bn and a 26,000-strong army of engineers. At Cisco she drives the firm’s technological innovation and strategy, focusing also on its strategic partnerships and business model development.

She describes herself as “a strong and vocal advocate” for women and minorities in mathematics, science and engineering and, in 2007, was inducted into the Women in Information Technology International Hall of Fame.

Warrior has a master’s degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University in the US and a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi.