6. Barbara Byrne
Vice Chairman Of Investment Banking, Barclays Capital
Thinking can't be automated. The rise of technology in financial services, and in investment banking and trading in particular, hasn't negated the need for the human element, but rather made it more pronounced, says Barbara Byrne.
As a 28-year veteran of the failed Lehman Brothers, she can attest that around-the-clock markets, warp-speed trading and the risks of an interconnected world exacerbate volatility.
"The biggest change in the last 10 years in finance is the impact of technology on the speed of information processing and delivery, and the ubiquitous access to the information," Byrne says. "But as the past few years have ably demonstrated, full access to information does not equal full understanding."
Believing strongly in the opportunity for advisers to build lasting relationships, Byrne has retained that personal touch in the past four years at Barclays, where she is the global senior client relationship manager for the likes of GE, IBM, Microsoft, Kraft, Williams and EMC.
7. Diane Offereins
EVP, Discover Financial Services; President, Payment Services
This was the year that Diane Offereins truly made Discover a global player in payment services.
Though Discover customers have been able to use their cards overseas since the firm's 2008 acquisition of the international Diners Club brand, Offereins led efforts to expand Discover acceptance even further by extending credit and debit alliances with networks in Puerto Rico and India-which in turn brought popular card brands in the Caribbean and Asia onto Discover's payments grid, including the PULSE ATM network.
More deals such as these are expected to come. They'll complement progress in the U.S. market, where Offereins continues to help forge relationships with merchant acquirers that bring aboard the small to midsize companies that help fuel Discover's growing acceptance.
Last year, Offereins' team increased network sales volume 13% over 2010 to a record $281 billion. Offereins also led Discover's focus on emerging alternative payment offerings-an area with 65% volume growth-by supporting partners like Bill Me Later that give online retailers access to Discover's closed-loop merchant network.
8. Margaret Keane
President And CEO, GE Capital Retail Finance
A paper-averse CEO, Margaret Keane saw the promise of mobile technology and delivered on it.
After GE Capital Retail Bank was folded into her responsibilities last year, the unit introduced mobile smartphone applications that allowed for credit applications, rewards tracking and payments. The hunch paid off with mobile logins topping 1 million a month this year, and for the first time GE is receiving more customer payments online (including on mobile devices) than through checks arriving via mail.
On the regulatory front, Keane responded to the new environment by creating a separate unit for compliance and devoting major resources to getting her team ready to handle the demands of the Dodd-Frank Act.
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