Mary T. Barra

Notable work and positions

General Motors Company — Chair and Chief Executive Officer (2014– ); Chair of the Board (2016– )
Board of Directors — The Walt Disney Company

Biography

Mary Teresa Barra, born December 24, 1961, has served as chair and chief executive officer of General Motors since January 15, 2014, becoming the first female CEO of a major global automaker. She began her career at GM in 1980 as a General Motors Institute (now Kettering University) co-op student at the Pontiac Motor Division, graduating with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1985, and earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1990 through a GM fellowship. Before becoming CEO, she held roles including vice president of global manufacturing engineering (2008–2009), vice president of global human resources (2009–2011), senior vice president of global product development (2011–2013), and executive vice president of global product development, purchasing and supply chain (2013–2014). She was elected chair of GM's board of directors on January 4, 2016. Barra has led GM's push toward electric, autonomous, and software-defined vehicles, and has served as a director of The Walt Disney Company. She was named the most powerful woman in business by Fortune multiple times, including in October 2024 and May 2025.