Yale

Susan D. Wellington has excelled in her climb to the heights of the corporate ladder. Only 13 years after her Yale graduation - where she captained the women’s swim team, was named an All-American swimmer and plagued softball - she became vice president of marketing for US Gatorade by the parent Quaker Oats Company. In that position, she led the brand to sales of $1.3 billion annually - an increase of more than 60% - in four years, and helped to establish Gatorade’s unique “sideline presence” at major sporting events.

Promoted to president of Gatorade in 1998, she continued to increase revenue past the $2 billion mark, with annual profits exceeding $300 billion. To do this, Wellington presided over the introduction of new product lines, expanded manufacturing capacity with new plans, and deepened the coverage and efficiency of Gatorade’s sales organization. Wellington was a leader in the merger of Quaker Oats with PepsiCo, responsible for sale discussions, solicitation of government approvals, and organizational integration of the massive firms, before leaving Gatorade in March 2002.

Wellington has been a trustee of the Women’s Sports Foundation since 2000 and a director of the CDW Corporation since 2002. Among her honors are Top 10 Most Powerful Women in Sports by the Sports Business Journal, Sport Business Woman of the Year, Power 50 by Brand Week, and Top 100 in Advertising Age.