(FORTUNE Magazine) – FORTUNE's 2000 ranking of America's top women has a record 18 newcomers. Some, like Handspring's Donna Dubinsky (No. 4), have risen in sync with the new economy. But many others are consolidating their authority within the giants of the FORTUNE 500. Take No. 1, Carly Fiorina, who has restructured HP. Or No. 10, Avon CEO Andrea Jung, who won the job after our last list. All 50, though, share one skill: the ability to incite change. Power on.

1 Carly Fiorina Chairman and CEO Hewlett-Packard RANK 1999: No. 1 / AGE 46

She's reinventing HP--killing fiefdoms, overturning traditions, and putting a face (her own) on a company with a faded identity. Her leadership mantra: "Challenge the mind and capture the heart." Her score: The stock run-up has stalled, but observers like Cisco's John Chambers and Oracle's Larry Ellison say Fiorina is doing a great job.

2 Debby Hopkins EVP and CFO Lucent Technologies RANK 1999: No. 6 / AGE 45

"Hurricane Debby," as some who've felt her force call her, strikes fast and hard. Last year she blew apart stodgy Boeing and lifted the stock price. Now she's storming Lucent, whose shares have sunk to a two-year low. Good thing the lady loves trouble. Says her former boss, Boeing CEO Phil Condit, who sits on the HP board: "She could be the next Carly Fiorina."

3 Meg Whitman President and CEO eBay RANK 1999: No. 5 / AGE 44

Although eBay's stock is in a dot-com downturn, Whitman's company defies the Internet odds: It makes money--it has from the beginning--and she's never missed her targets. Talk about influence: She changed the way people buy and sell, and launched a consumer revolution. In 1999, $2.8 billion worth of goods were sold through eBay, and in the first half of 2000, $2.5 billion worth were auctioned.

4 Donna Dubinsky President and CEO Handspring RANK: NEW / AGE 45

The mother of the handheld computer, she co-founded both Palm and Handspring, the market leader's sprightly new competitor. She's a major wealth creator: The two companies' stock market values add up to $37 billion. She's also a revolutionary. Claiming that PDAs will outsell PCs someday, Dubinsky says, "Our mission, tritely, is to change the world."

5 Ellen Hancock Chairman and CEO Exodus Communications RANK: NEW / AGE 57

Survivor! Fired first by Lou Gerstner at IBM and then by Steve Jobs at Apple, Hancock has pushed on to success. She's pumped up Exodus' stock and built its market value to $25 billion. Today it is No. 1 in Web hosting, managing Websites for Yahoo, eBay, Priceline.com, and Merrill Lynch. But as some customers gripe about service and competition rises, she could teeter.

6 Mary Meeker Managing Director and Analyst Morgan Stanley Dean Witter RANK 1999: No. 3 / AGE 41

She's still Queen Mary in Internet financing, market correction be damned. The basket of stocks she follows is down 36% year to date (vs. up 396% for '99)--"my worst year since '91." We beg to differ: Her real power is in shepherding IPOs such as Ariba, Akamai, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, and Homestore.com. She also played a key role in the AOL/Time Warner deal.

7 Shelly Lazarus Chairman and CEO Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide RANK 1999: No. 4 / AGE 53

Simply put, Lazarus is the reigning champion of blue-chip brands such as IBM, American Express, Ford, Kodak, and Kraft. Lately she's won new business from Motorola, BP Amoco, Goldman Sachs, and WebMd. Net new billings exceeded $450 million through June and are on track to reach $1.2 billion in revenues by year-end, up a bit from 1999's $1 billion.

8 Abby Joseph Cohen Chief Market Strategist Goldman Sachs RANK 1999: No. 12 / AGE 48

The Dow is back, right where Cohen said it would be. She's called nearly every twist in the market since the early 1990s. Her voice was temporarily drowned out by Internet hype, but as that quieted down in '99, one thing became clear: Cohen--who still runs with the bulls--continues to be one of the most influential forecasters on Wall Street.

9 Martha Stewart CEO Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia RANK 1999: No. 8 / AGE 59

Stewart's stock took a dramatic fall after her IPO a year ago, but now it's cooking. Her empire, fortified by her lucrative Kmart deal and publications that bring in $146 million in revenues, is worth $1.4 billion. Now on her plate: the Internet. And although Stewart is late to that party, she's got some powerful advisors, like Morgan Stanley's Mary Meeker (No. 6) and Kleiner Perkins' John Doerr, to help make up for lost time.

10 Andrea Jung CEO Avon Products RANK 1999: No. 14 / AGE 42

Avon's is one of the most confounding makeovers in business, since Jung has three million pesky sales reps who want a piece of her profits. Investors are buying Jung's strategy, though: Avon's stock is up 32% since she got the CEO job less than a year ago.

11 Ann Livermore President, Business Customer Organization Hewlett-Packard RANK 1999: No. 13 / AGE 42

"Ann Amazon" (as CEO Fiorina calls her, thanks to a deal with Jeff Bezos' biz) runs the sales arm that brings in $35 billion, 70% of HP's revenues. She's staying (for now) under Fiorina, but Livermore wants to have a CEO job of her own before long.

12 Patricia Dunn Global CEO Barclays Global Investors RANK 1999: No. 11 / AGE 47

Dunn, who sits on HP's board, is pushing the world's largest institutional money manager ($833 billion in assets, up from $675 billion last year) into retail with iShares, index funds that trade like stocks. Some analysts say the $53 billion market could grow to $500 billion over the next five years.

13 Nancy Peretsman EVP and Managing Director Allen & Co. RANK 1999: No. 9 / AGE 46

Her power is her reputation and her Rolodex. Peretsman hasn't set in motion anything huge lately, but she's closed some big deals: the sales of MediaOne to AT&T and CDNow to Bertelsmann. She's a key advisor to Barry Diller, Paul Allen, and now Bill Gates.

14 Karen Katen President U.S. Pharmaceuticals Group Pfizer RANK 1999: No. 16 / AGE 51

Her $14-billion-a-year business must be on Viagra: This year's revenues are targeted to shoot up more than 50% with Pfizer's acquisition of Warner-Lambert. These days cholesterol-lowering Lipitor is fueling the stock. Only GE, Cisco, Intel, Microsoft, and Exxon top its $281 billion market cap.

15 Oprah Winfrey Chairman Harpo Entertainment Group RANK 1999: No. 26 / AGE 46

Last year Winfrey fell from No. 2 to No. 26: Beloved, her movie, was a bust, and her TV ratings were down. Now she's back on top in talk (although still trailing Judge Judy), scoring big with her new magazine, O, and adding more winning books to her club--all 11 titles in the last year have become New York Times bestsellers.

16 Judy McGrath CEO and Chairman MTV Group RANK 1999: No. 18 / AGE 48

You may not listen to Eminem, Sisqo, and N'Sync, but your kids probably do. You can thank McGrath: She makes and breaks bands, and commands the minds and buying tastes of the world's teens. Highly profitable MTV has another winner in MTVi, the No. 1 online music company. With the CBS-Viacom marriage, her power pumps up.

17 Sherry Lansing Chairman Motion Picture Group, Paramount Pictures RANK 1999: No. 15 / AGE 56

She's the most consistently successful studio chief in Hollywood. And this year she Cruised to the top of the summer box office with Mission: Impossible 2--it's expected to do $550 million in worldwide revenues. Paramount has slipped to No. 5 in movie market share this year, in part because Lansing makes fewer movies than most. But she delivers profitable winners.

18 Anne Mulcahy President and COO Xerox RANK: NEW / AGE 47

She became Xerox's president and CEO-in-waiting when chief Rick Thoman got tossed out by the board in May. Some reward: Her task is to turn around a $19-billion-a-year clunker whose stock, as high as $60 last year, now trades at $16. But she feels her power: Older brother Tom Dolan, a Xerox division president, now reports to her.

19 Lois Juliber EVP and COO Colgate-Palmolive RANK 1999: No. 19 / AGE 51

She's been hanging around a long time as CEO Reuben Mark's potential successor, and in March she took another step closer. Now she's COO, but Colgate's stock hasn't been on the same upward path recently.

20 Heidi Miller CFO and SEVP Strategic Planning and Analysis Priceline.com RANK 1999: No. 2 / AGE 47

Miller's defection from Citi, where she was CFO, was a stunner to Sandy Weill and a catalyst for co-CEO John Reed's ouster. She tumbles 18 spots on our list, since Priceline's revenues are 0.6% of Citi's. But here she has clout. Says Priceline CEO Dan Schulman: "She's my business partner."

21 Ann Moore President People Magazine Group Time Inc. RANK 1999: No. 24 / AGE 50

She's the force behind the world's most profitable magazine, People. Moore has built the People Group--including In Style and Teen People--into a powerhouse within Time Inc. and its parent company, Time Warner. Even with this year's shaky launch of Real Simple, Moore is on the short list of potential replacements for Time chief Don Logan--should he retire anytime soon.

22 Judy Lewent SVP and CFO Merck RANK 1999: No. 27 / AGE 51

Impending patent expirations of Prilosec, Pepcid, and other drugs are giving shareholders heartburn. But Lewent has been dealmaking to shore up Merck's $155 billion market cap to great effect. It acquired biotech firm Sibia and paired with Schering-Plough on respiratory and cholesterol meds.

Betsy Holden 23 President and CEO Kraft Foods RANK: NEW / AGE 44

When her boss, Bob Eckert, quit in May to go fix Mattel, Holden was promoted to run Kraft's domestic foods. It's a full pantry: $17.5 billion in sales from brands like Maxwell House and Jell-O. And it'll expand with Kraft's buyout of Nabisco.

24 Linda Sanford SVP and Group Executive Storage Systems IBM RANK 1999: No. 23 / AGE 47

Sanford keeps running around IBM--from mainframe boss to sales honcho to chief of the data- storage systems unit. This new job, which puts her in charge of $3.6 billion in revenues, is an important proving ground. With her Shark storage server, she's out to ravage market leader EMC.

Dawn Lepore 25 Vice Chairman and CIO Charles Schwab RANK 1999: No. 36 / AGE 46

Who made Schwab No. 1 in online stock-trading? Co-chiefs Chuck and Dave (Pottruck) credit Lepore. Her chant these days: Wireless! To get customers buying stocks on their Palms and cell phones, she's adding 1,000 techies to her team of 3,600.

26 Pat House EVP Siebel Systems RANK 1999: NEW / AGE 46

When she and Tom Siebel left Oracle in 1989 to start a software company, who knew it would sprout to a $43 billion market cap? House, who handles Siebel's 647 alliances with the likes of IBM and Compaq, passed when Tom offered her the COO job. She knows what she's good at, she says.

27 Gail McGovern President Personal Investments Fidelity Investments RANK: NEW / AGE 48

Once AT&T's highest-ranking woman, McGovern hit the ceiling under CEO Mike Armstrong. So she jumped to Fidelity, where she was recently promoted to run the core retail division. She's chasing Schwab in the brokerage business and turning Fidelity into a broad financial-services leader.

28 Cathie Black President Hearst Magazines RANK 1999: No. 22 / AGE 56

Her high point: The O-so-successful launch of Oprah's magazine. Her low point: Let's not Talk about it. Black's 18 titles--including Cosmo, Esquire, and Good Housekeeping--are big names but far less profitable than Ann Moore's (No. 21).

29 Jan Brandt President of Marketing AOL RANK 1999: No. 39 / AGE 49

She's doubled AOL's subscriber base to 27 million in the past two years, holding off the biggest threat, the free ISPs. Her boss and booster, Bob Pittman, will gain power in the pending AOL/Time Warner merger--and so, probably, will Brandt.

30 Dina Dublon CFO Chase Manhattan RANK 1999: No. 31 / AGE 47

With the recent H&Q and Flemings acquisitions, and now Chase's upcoming buyout of J.P. Morgan, Dublon's empire is quickly expanding. The stock's been flat going on two years, but the heft alone keeps her aloft on this list.

31 Stacey Snider Chairman Universal Pictures RANK: NEW / AGE 39

Promoted last fall to head Universal's big movie studio, she's delivered a string of hits, including Erin Brockovich, Gladiator, and Bring It On. Measured by profits and clout, she pales next to Sherry Lansing (No. 17). But Snider's star is rising, and Universal is back in the black after several bad years.

32 Jeanne Jackson CEO Walmart.com RANK 1999: No. 41 / AGE 49

Having turned around Gap's Banana Republic, she landed on headhunters' short lists for CEO jobs at Levi Strauss and Mattel. In March she opted for Walmart.com. "I run a company that makes no money," says Jackson. "Randy in the Mountain View [Calif.] store does more business than I do." Don't discount her: She's making progress with help from VC investor Accel Partners.

33 Amy Brinkley President Consumer Products Bank of America RANK: NEW / AGE 44

The list's only recipient of a Crystal Hand Grenade Award--for giving a presentation in a body cast to CEO Hugh McColl--Brinkley leads a division that earned $1.5 billion on $6 billion in '99. B of A now has the most online banking customers--and they're her charge.

34 Cristina Morgan Co-Director Investment Banking Chase H&Q RANK: NEW / AGE 47 While Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have invaded her tech territory, Morgan's still one of the most hands-on nurturers, taking CrossWorlds Software and Websense public this year.

35 Patricia Sueltz EVP, Software Systems Sun Microsystems RANK: NEW / AGE 48

She's Sun's new software queen, in charge of Java, Solaris, and Jini. That's huge: This year, Java is "enabling" 100 million smart cards, five million Amex Blue cards, and Motorola's wireless devices. "Virtually every server we ship has her software in it," adds Sun CEO Scott McNealy.

36 Sue Bostrom SVP, Internet Business Solutions Group Cisco Systems RANK: NEW / AGE 40

Cisco CEO John Chambers says Bostrom's in-house consultancy "represents the next major move for our company." She's been teaching Web strategy to GE's Jack Welch and Ford's Jac Nasser and recently presented to GE's top 500 women. "She absolutely stole the show," Welch says.

37 Carolyn Ticknor President, Imaging and Printing Systems Hewlett-Packard RANK 1999: No. 35 / AGE 53

Ticknor lost a CEO title and sales responsibilities in HP's reorganization. But she gained the other half of the company's printer business, which accounts for 60% of profits. CEO Fiorina sees printers as "Web-enabled information appliances."

38 Marge Magner SEVP and CAO, Global Consumer Group Citigroup RANK 1999: NEW / AGE 51

Sandy Weill keeps giving Magner bigger slices of Citi's $10-billion-a-year profit pie. Her new job puts her in charge of the North American branch network and Primerica Financial Services. Now she's bringing in $1 billion in earnings on some $4 billion in revenues.

39 Patricia Woertz President, Chevron Products Chevron RANK 1999: No. 32 / AGE 47

This is big oil: Her $21 billion in revenues--from refining, transporting, marketing, and selling at the pump--are up by $5 billion in a year. Profits, however, have tanked 43%.

40 Jeannine Rivet CEO UnitedHealthcare RANK 1999: No. 37 / AGE 52

Rivet's revenues were flat at $12 billion last year, but her profits were up. Parent UnitedHealth Group, with total revenues of $19 billion, sprang to life, and the stock doubled.

41 Linnet Deily Vice Chairman President, Retail Charles Schwab RANK: NEW / AGE 55

Deily, who shares the vice chairman role with CIO Dawn Lepore (No. 25), has spearheaded services (free online research, investor workshops) that have helped Schwab rise to No. 3, after Merrill Lynch and Salomon Smith Barney, in total client assets.

42 Judy Estrin CEO Packet Design RANK 1999: No. 21 / AGE 45

This year Estrin quit as Cisco's CTO to start her fourth company with husband Bill Carrico. Packet Design's purpose: to solve the Internet's infrastructure problems. FORTUNE 500 bosses are high on her too: She's on the boards of FedEx, Disney, and Sun.

43 Indra Nooyi SVP and CFO PepsiCo RANK: NEW / AGE 45

The Indian-born Nooyi is a key advisor to CEO Roger Enrico. She helped him make the right moves, like the spinoff of PepsiCo's restaurant and bottling businesses. She also pushed hard for Pepsi to buy Tropicana. It's all paying off. After several flat years, the stock is fizzing.

44 Marion Sandler Co-Chairman and Co-CEO Golden West Financial RANK 1999: No. 46 / AGE 69

Sandler was one of the first women to break through the FORTUNE 500's glass ceiling, though Golden West fell off that list this year. Her stock sure isn't falling: As lending booms, shares are up 42% since January.

45 Vivian Banta CEO, Individual Financial Services Prudential RANK: NEW / AGE 50

Her division produces $15.6 billion in revenues--61% of Prudential's total and enough to place it, if it were an independent company, at No. 111 on the FORTUNE 500. That's enormous, but the jury's still out: Banta was only named CEO in March.

46 Jamie Gorelick Vice Chairman Fannie Mae RANK 1999: No. 38 / AGE 50

The numbers are impressive: $3.9 billion in net income, $19 billion in revenues, and $1.3 trillion in assets. She's one in a trio at the top, but the mega-mortgager's stock has been drifting for a while because of regulation worries.

47 Orit Gadiesh Chairman Bain & Co. RANK 1999:No. 48 / AGE 49

Who'da thunk it? An old-economy consulting firm that suddenly got e-smart. Bain fended off upstart e-consultancies, hooked up with Kleiner Perkins, and created an incubator, Bainlab. Brainy and flexible, Gadiesh keeps driving revenues up 20% annually.

48 Vanessa Castagna EVP and COO, Stores J.C. Penney RANK: NEW / AGE 49

A former top merchandiser at Wal-Mart, Castagna hoped to get the Penney CEO job this summer. Not yet--she needs operating experience, especially to steer this troubled $32.5 billion ship.

49 Safra Catz EVP Oracle RANK: NEW / AGE 38

She is Larry Ellison's EVP and chief of staff, "akin to being COO," he says. He adds that Catz, whom he recruited from DLJ last year, is one of two candidates to replace him "in the next four years." Take it with a ton of salt: The high-control Ellison has never shared power at Oracle. Show us, Larry, and we'll move Catz up the list.

50 Betty Cohen President Cartoon Network RANK: NEW / AGE 44

She built the Time Warner property from scratch, and it was the No. 2 cable network this past summer (behind Nickelodeon). She resuscitated Scooby, hired Bugs Bunny as a spokesman, and launched the Powerpuff Girls--kiddie faves and an adult cult hit that's expected to bring in $300 million in revenues this year. Her leader Ted Turner speculates, "Maybe Betty will replace Jerry [Levin] one of these days."

*Stock prices as of 9/22/00.

REPORTER ASSOCIATES Grainger David, Christopher Tkaczyk, and Alynda Wheat