Make a difference and success follows

I can’t believe we’re in our 30th year of Her World’s annual Woman of the Year (WOTY) awards. Every year, shortlisted candidates set higher benchmarks with their impressive achievements and innovative spirit, notably making a deep impact in their respective industries and, ultimately, holding themselves to the highest of standards.

Making an impact is exactly one of the many criteria our esteemed judging panel of nine think about when it comes to deciding the winners for WOTY and Young Woman Achiever (YWA).

This year’s WOTY winner Jessica Tan, co-CEO and executive director of China-based insurance company Ping An Group, was the brains behind numerous technology breakthroughs to power her company’s growth into a global financial service mammoth, including developing a telehealth app offering free online medical consultations during the peak of the pandemic last year.

Under her stewardship, Ping An Group has impacted the lives of 210 million retail customers and 560 million Internet users. Last year, Jessica, a mother of two girls, was named second in Fortune magazine’s Most Powerful Women list outside of the US, right behind New Zealand’s Prime Minister.

Our YWA 2021 winner Lin Fengru isn’t a scientist, but is now cofounder and CEO of biotechnology firm Turtletree Labs, which creates cell-based milk without mammals, through a process that utilises less land, water and energy. Her inventive idea paves the way for a more sustainable future.

How’s all that for impact?

Woman of the Year Jessica Tan heads a global insurance giant, pg 83

Young Woman Achiever Lin Fengru’s sustainable future biotech start-up may change your life, pg 90