Age: 42
Occupation: Facebook chief operating officer
Facebook's imminent IPO, which could value the firm at $100 billion, is the biggest tech deal of the year — and nobody has had more of a hand in the company's success than Sandberg. As COO, she has helped take Mark Zuckerberg's social-media behemoth and turn it into an advertising-driven money spinner. That success, combined with her high-profile advocacy for women in the workplace, has made Sandberg one of the most talked-about executives in corporate America.