Two Thai women are among the 20 dynamic CEOs named to the Forbes Asia’s Power Businesswomen 2023 list published by the American media enterprise.  The dynamic Thai women lead hospitality firm Dusit International and beverage company Sappe.

“Undeterred by new economic realities, these trailblazers are truly unstoppable,” Forbes wrote about the women on its list. They ranged “from top executives at leading business and financial institutions — who are, in many cases, the first woman to take on these roles — to those driving their family businesses to new heights or starting their own.”

Thailand has long been known for the high number of women who hold executive positions in business. While various analysts have published different figures, according to Grant Thornton, about a third of CEO and managing director positions in Thailand’s private sector are held by women, while Credit Suisse ranked the Kingdom the second in the world for percent of women in senior management.

The two Thai executives who made this year’s Forbes list are Suphajee Suthumpun of Dusit International and Piyajit Ruckariyapong of Sappe.

“Since Suphajee took the helm as Group CEO in 2016, Dusit’s hotels and resorts have grown from 27 properties in eight countries to about 340 across 20 countries. She also established new lines of business including property development as well as food production and catering, and aims to list Dusit Foods by early 2025,” Forbes wrote.

“Piyajit Ruckariyapong is focused on turning Thai beverage maker Sappe into a globally recognized brand,” Forbes wrote. “After 15 years as an investment banker, Piyajit joined the family business in 2012 as chief financial officer and later became CEO. Since 2015, she has more than doubled the number of Sappe’s export markets to 98, following a strategy of gradual, low-key entry into new markets and savvy digital marketing geared to young, trendy consumers.”

Photo courtesy of
https://www.dusit-international.com/en/management/board-of-directors/, https://www.sappe.com/en/board-of-directors-en/