Carolyn McCall, chief executive of GMG, publisher of the Guardian, was last night named the Veuve Clicquot businesswoman of the year.
McCall is the 35th winner of the prestigious award, whose previous recipients have included Body Shop founder Anita Roddick and Linda Bennett of shoes and fashion chain LK Bennett.
Speaking at last night's award presentation, Sally Warmington, brand director of Veuve Clicquot, said: "We are delighted the judges have selected a winner who reflects the unique business character of Madame Clicquot, one of the first great businesswomen.
"Similar to Madame Clicquot, Carolyn McCall, chief executive of GMG, has successfully led the company through a vast range of change and growth, and puts her success down to a forward-thinking attitude, positively embracing innovation in order to anticipate the future," she said.
Guardian Media Group includes the Guardian and Observer, the Manchester Evening News and radio assets including Smooth and Century FM. With the private equity group Apax Partners, GMG has also recently acquired the business-to-business assets of Emap, including Nursing Times, Broadcast and Retail Week. Other assets include Trader Media, publisher of Auto Trader, which is owned jointly with Apax.
McCall, 46, is also a non-executive director of Tesco and a member of the Scott Trust, set up in 1936 to safeguard the financial and editorial independence of the Guardian. McCall has said she wants the Guardian to be the "leading global liberal voice".
She is also chair of Opportunity Now, the membership organisation for gender equality and diversity at work.
McCall has held senior management positions at GMG for more than a decade. She was previously chief executive of GMG's newspaper division and in that role directed the transition of the Guardian and the Observer from broadsheets to the new Berliner format. She oversaw the sale of a stake in Trader Media Group to Apax for £675m last year and acquired the Emap titles, with Apax, for £1bn.
