Inditex’s chief executive officer Pablo Isla is the new number one on Harvard Business Review’s annual list of the 100 best-performing ceo’s in the world.
The list will be printed in HBR’s November-December issue. The rankings measure performance for the entire period of the ceo’s tenure.
Isla, who became ceo in 2005, is known for leading Inditex on its global expansion. He was ranked number three in 2016’s annual list. On financial returns alone, he is ranked 18, according to HBR. The Spanish firm’s environmental, social and governance performance, which counts for 20 percent of the total score, boosts his ranking to the number-one spot.
Isla, who is also Inditex’s chairman, in 2016 unveiled the firm’s 2016-20 Environmental Strategic Plan, which contains a major initiative to strengthen the retailer’s sustainability commitments.
Inditex is the world’s largest fashion retailer — it is the parent of Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Bershka, Stradivarius and more — and last year was the recipient of WWD’s Global Citizenship Award.
Other fashion ceo’s on HBR’s 2017 list include: Bernard Arnault, LVMH (ranked number 5); Francois-Henri Pinault, Kering (#23); Tadashi Yanai, Fast Retailing (#42); Blake Nordstrom, Nordstrom (#44), and Leslie Wexner, L Brands (#56).