40 under 40

39. Carolyn Everson

Microsoft spent a year vetting candidates for this newly created position before picking Everson to lead its aggressive push into advertising through media properties like Bing and Windows mobile. A seasoned media exec who was most recently executive vice president of U.S. ad sales for MTV Networks, she faces high expectations from CEO Steve Ballmer, who has said he wants advertising to account for 25% of Microsoft's revenue. For Everson, that means taking a $3.3 billion business to $15 billion.

Pets: Everson and her family have three dogs, a guinea pig, a rabbit, and four frogs.

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Last updated October 14 2010: 1:25 PM ET