Now in 2024, Fortune launch it 100 most influential people in business. But how do you measure power, exactly? Income alone does not define it, nor does seniority. Who is more powerful: the CEO who oversees a $20 billion company? Or the AI ​​genius who leaves this bureaucratic monster to found an agile and revolutionary startup? The far-sighted venture capitalist who signs a term sheet to fund said startup? Or the dreaded short seller who bets against the aging tech giant and kicks out the CEO? The answer varies from day to day. Power is nuanced. It’s hard won and easily lost. It’s never static.

We all know that. The question then becomes: how to distill the vague notions of influence and charisma and transform them into something that can be measured? FortuneThe editors rated each candidate on the following criteria:

• Company size the person is running, based on our screen which takes into account the medium term
  (over three years) and short term (last 12 months) revenue and profit growth, profitability,
  and market value.
• Health of the company, based on 12-month measurements of liquidity, operational efficiency and solvency.
• Innovation: Has the person accomplished something that no one else has accomplished and
  competitors followed?
• Influence: To what extent do their words and actions shape the behavior of others?
• Path: Where is the person in the arc of their career?
• Impact: Is this person using their power to make the world a better place?

What you’ll find on this list: Executives from 40 industries, ages 30 to 90. You will meet highly recognizable founders, top business leaders, disruptors and innovators. What you won’t find: fossilized billionaires who are no longer active in business; nor will you find politicians, regulators or second-in-commands. (For our purposes, having a boss in the C-suite was a check on his power that generally excluded you. Some exceptions include companies like black stone And Berkshire Hathaway where a succession plan is well underway.)

Ultimately, people who have earned a spot on the most powerful people list share one essential trait: Their words, actions, and wealth shape what others around them think and do. They can exert their power by shouting in the headlines or by subtle nudging behind closed doors. They could, like Elon Muskhave essentially invented industries where none existed before. They could, like Jensen Huanghave built a company so central to the health and trajectory of other companies that most CEOs would answer his call before the president’s. They could, like Satya Nadella Or Marie Barrahave breathed urgent new life into large companies threatened with stagnation. They could, like Melody Hobsonhave the power behind the scenes to oust struggling CEOs and select new ones. They could, like Sam Altmanhave developed such amazing technology that virtually every other business leader in the world is responding to their invention.

John D. Rockefeller once said, “If your only goal is to get rich, you will never succeed. » We think the same could be said of power. Those who seek it nakedly rarely possess it for long. Those who have it? Well, they earned a spot, at least for this year.

This article appears in the December 2024/January 2025 issue of Fortune.