The Fortune 500 Europe list launched today, ranking the biggest European companies by revenue.
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00:00When you think about the biggest companies from Europe, you probably think about luxury brands
00:03like LVMH led by this guy, or maybe cute little cars like the MINI. But the reality might just
00:09surprise you. I'm Alex, Fortune's Executive Editor for Europe, and today we are launching
00:14the Fortune 500 Europe list. And here are three things you need to know. At number one,
00:20the list in Europe looks just like the American Fortune 500 did 20 years ago. It's dominated by
00:26car makers like VW, which leads the number one slot on the list, and also oil and gas giants
00:32like Shell and BP. Now the Fortune 500 Europe list represents 14% of the world's GDP, which
00:37might sound huge to you, but here's the problem. Our list is dominated by industries like car
00:43making, oil and gas, and those industries are in long term decline. And at number two,
00:49European CEOs are more international than their American counterparts. We discovered that the
00:54secret to success, if you want a CEO job here in Europe, is having international experience.
01:00Take leaders from Santander, Mercedes-Benz, or Shell. They all had experience working
01:06internationally before they got the big job. And number three, diversity, or the lack of it. Now
01:12here in Europe, we like to think that we're above the rest when it comes to representation in
01:15business, but here's the kicker. We're not. Out of the 500 companies on this year's list, just 31
01:21are run by female CEOs. And it gets worse. Last year there were 35. And before you go, just one
01:27more thing. There's a new addition to this year's list that you might recognize. Legendary Italian
01:32sports car maker Ferrari has joined the Fortune 500 for the very first time at number 492. Those
01:39are my top picks for everything you need to know about the Fortune 500 Europe list this year. For
01:44more, check out fortune.com.