Carly Fiorina Becomes HP’s CEO

Carly Fiorina succeeded Lew Platt as Hewlett-Packard’s CEO in 1999, making her not just the first woman to lead HP, but the first woman to lead a Fortune 50 company. It was a fitting milestone to set following the tenure of Platt, who had made diversifying HP’s ranks a top priority. Still, when Fiorina was selected, it was her skills and not her sex that were emphasized by the outgoing CEO: ”Carly was quite simply the best person to lead H-P into the next century,” said Platt.