Top CEOs to Watch in 2025: Watchlist of Great Leaders

Top CEOs to Watch in 2025

By Robin Hartill, CFP – Updated Aug 6, 2025 at 1:09 PM | Fact-checked by Frank Bass

Key Points

Dr. Lisa Su revived AMD, driving shares up 4,660% by focusing on CPUs and GPUs.
Brian Niccol aims to rejuvenate Starbucks by enhancing store efficiency and the menu.
Marvin Ellison improved Lowe's e-commerce, benefiting from a surge in online sales.

The best chief executive officers (CEOs) in the world typically aren't the flashiest ones. They think beyond tomorrow's share prices or the next earnings call to create lasting value. Here are seven top CEOs for long-term investors to watch as they build great businesses with shares that are worth holding for decades.

1. Lisa Su, AMD

Estimated net worth: $1.2 billion

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3. Marvin Ellison, Lowe's

Estimated net worth: $93 million

crop_Marvin_Ellison_Lowes_CEO.width-500.jpg — Image source: Lowe's.

On his first day as the CEO of Lowe's (LOW +0.01%) in 2018, Marvin Ellison skipped the welcome celebrations. Instead, he headed straight to the contractor's desk in a store to better understand pain points for customers. In February 2020, Ellison publicly told CNBC about another customer pain point, describing the company's website as so "clunky … you may not get the whole way to checkout." Ellison's push to improve e-commerce came just in time for the COVID-19 pandemic. Online sales surged by 111% in the company's 2020 fiscal year.

While DIY was big business during the pandemic, that segment has cooled off. More recently, Ellison has focused more on growing its professional contractor business, particularly small- and mid-size contractors, which tends to be a higher-margin part of the business. With demand for home improvement and renovation expected to stay strong given the ongoing shortage of new housing in the U.S., Ellison's vision could be compelling to long-term investors.

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4. Mary Barra, General Motors

Estimated net worth: $48 million

mary barra GM CEO — Image source: General Motors.

General Motors (GM -0.67%) isn't the electric vehicle maker that the world is talking about. But anyone who believes that the future of cars will be fuel-free should pay close attention to CEO Mary Barra's plans for GM. Barra unveiled an ambitious plan in 2020 to invest $27 billion in electric vehicles through 2025, with a stronger emphasis on achieving profitability and operational efficiency. She later announced GM’s goal of going all electric for light-duty vehicles by 2035. The company plans to invest almost $7 billion to build a new battery plant and overhaul its existing plant in Orion, Mich., to manufacture electric trucks.

However, GM has since scaled back that goal. It recently announced it would put $4 billion toward mostly gas-powered vehicles as demand for EV has dropped and federal incentives have dried up. That's just one example of how Barra, who joined GM in 1980 as an 18-year-old intern, has adapted to changing times.

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5. Satya Nadella, Microsoft

Estimated net worth: $1.1 billion

MS-Exec-Nadella-Satya-2017-08-31-22-683x1024.width-500.jpg — Image source: Microsoft.

Microsoft's (MSFT -1.60%) market cap has smashed the $1 trillion ceiling. One of the key drivers of Nadella's success was focusing on Microsoft's then-fledgling cloud services as the new core of the company's business and eventually ditching plans for a Windows smartphone. The company under Nadella has delivered plenty for investors, with the Microsoft share price increasing more than 200% under his leadership.

More recently, Nadella has established Microsoft as an undisputed leader in AI. The software behemoth has integrated AI into its core products, like Office, Azure, and Teams, and is investing tens of billions of dollars in AI. It's also formed a partnership with OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, and is a major investor in the startup. Given the heated competition in the AI space, long-term investors should watch Nadella to see if Microsoft can maintain its dominant position.

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8. Tim Cook, Apple

Estimated net worth: $2.4 billion

Apple has pioneered game-changing devices, like the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, as well as digital ecosystems, like the iCloud and Apple Pay network. But it's seen as lagging behind competitors like Microsoft and Alphabet in the AI race.

In 2024, Tim Cook, who has been Apple's CEO since 2011, introduced his vision for a privacy-focused Apple Intelligence that will be integrated into iOS apps. But many in the tech industry were less than impressed, with critics arguing that the vision comes too late, is less than innovative, and is overly dependent on OpenAI's ChatGPT, which has faced mounting privacy concerns.

Catching up in the AI race isn't the only challenge Cook faces. iPhone sales account for about half of Apple's annual revenue, and smartphone sales are slowing worldwide. At the same time, Cook must navigate a growing U.S.-China trade war and uncertainty surrounding Trump's tariffs.

9. Greg Abel, Berkshire Hathaway

Estimated net worth: $1 billion

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About the Author

Robin Hartill, CFP, is a contributing writer at The Motley Fool. Robin’s work has also been published by Yahoo Finance, USA Today, and Penny Hoarder. She is a graduate of the University of Florida.

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Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Robin Hartill has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices, Berkshire Hathaway, Intel, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Starbucks. The Motley Fool recommends CME Group, General Motors, and Lowe's Companies and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft, short August 2025 $24 calls on Intel, and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.