#empowHER50 – Crystal Guthrie

When women harness their economic power, they don’t just build wealth—they build a more inclusive, creative, and equitable future for all. 

Crystal Guthrie’s journey from financial services to the frontier of technology has been anything but conventional—and that’s exactly the point. With every career pivot, she’s expanded access, challenged the status quo, and helped others do the same. 

Her story with Microsoft began in 2010, when she decided to switch industries and join as a contractor, quickly demonstrating her prowess as an employee and product leader on the then-confidential launch of Surface. Crystal helped scale its accessories and services portfolio across 31 countries, positioning Surface not just as a device, but as a category-defining innovation. 

That spirit of reinvention followed her into cloud, AI, and sustainability, where she helped shape Microsoft’s Cloud for Sustainability data strategy, aligning technical capabilities with the company’s 2030 environmental commitments. Today, she leads programs and pilots to accelerate and scale Microsoft’s Data & AI solutions with Enterprise and SMC customers. 

But Crystal’s vision extends beyond business outcomes. As Executive Advisor to Artrepreneur, a female-founded Public Benefit Corporation, she’s helping bring art into real estate spaces—empowering artists while creating vibrant, inclusive communities through the creative economy. 

“Empowering women to build and leverage their economic power—together.” — Crystal Guthrie 

Through mentorship, speaking, and strategic coaching, Crystal helps women in tech treat their careers like investment portfolios—tools to design the lives they want. She demystifies AI for creatives, ensuring that artists, too, can harness its potential to scale their impact. 

Crystal’s work bridges industries, voices, and ideas. She is building a future where technology, equity, and creativity are not separate ambitions—but a shared reality. 

About #empowHER50 campaign

This campaign celebrates women leaders at Microsoft, past and present, who have been instrumental in democratizing access to technology, opportunity, and growth. By honoring their contributions over the last half-century, this campaign highlights stories of resilience, innovation, and inclusivity. Through digital spotlights, a commemorative coffee table book, live recognition events, and more, the campaign inspires collective action toward achieving equitable societal goals. To learn more about empowHER50, please visit https://womenincloud.com/empowHER50 

To learn about Microsoft 50th celebrations: https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-50/  

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#empowHER50 – Radhika Shukla

True leadership isn’t measured by the heights you reach, but by how many you empower along the way. 

For Radhika Shukla, leadership is not defined by a title—it’s defined by the magnitude of impact and the enduring ripple effect that inspires, uplifts, and empowers those around her. As Sales Director at Oracle, she drives strategic growth across cloud platforms, AI, and data, enabling enterprise clients to modernize, innovate, and scale with clarity and purpose. Her work is rooted in business transformation and digital innovation, but it is her empathetic leadership and people-first philosophy that define her. 

Before Oracle, Radhika spent several impactful years at Microsoft, where she played a key role in accelerating the company’s cloud strategy with excellence and strategic foresight. As a top-performing Sales Leader, she coached and led high-impact cross-functional teams, guiding Fortune 500 clients through complex technical transformations, driving cutting-edge solutions, and delivering measurable business outcomes at scale. Her ability to combine operational excellence with visionary thinking earned her multiple prestigious accolades and global recognition—including the Tech Solutions Excellence Diamond Award (as the sole U.S. recipient)/Top Sales Leader Award, the Gold Standard Excellence Manager Award for Customer Obsession, and the Worldwide Leader Award for Community Impact. Additionally, she was recognized as the No. 1 Woman in Manufacturing and named one of the Top 10 Impressive Leaders Driving Innovation in USA by industry-leading publications. Today at Oracle, she continues to trailblaze with strategic vision, operational rigor, and a relentless focus on customer success—recognized recently with the EXCEL Leadership Award. Each recognition reflects her unique blend of technical mastery, people-first leadership, and an unwavering commitment to driving meaningful, results-oriented transformation across industries. 

“True success isn’t scaling the summit alone; it’s lifting others while you climb, leaving behind a positive imprint on the lives you touch. Fame fades, but the difference you make lasts forever.” — Radhika Shukla 

But Radhika’s leadership extends far beyond the boardroom and into the broader fabric of community and purpose. She is the founder of the R.I.S.E. Foundation, a board member for four nonprofits, and a proud recipient of the 2024 Presidential Gold Volunteer Service Award. Her influence extends across tech forums, global conferences, and executive panels, where she serves as a keynote speaker, STEM mentor, and podcast guest. She is also a four-time national beauty pageant winner, using her platform to champion women’s empowerment, education, and inclusivity. 

Whether empowering women in the workforce, mentoring future leaders, or raising two children while pursuing her passions in yoga, dance, and advocacy, Radhika leads with intention, authenticity, inclusion, and heart. 

From IBM to Microsoft to Oracle and beyond, Radhika Shukla exemplifies that true leadership is not just about conquering the summit—it’s about illuminating the path and lifting others along the way. 

About #empowHER50 campaign

This campaign celebrates women leaders at Microsoft, past and present, who have been instrumental in democratizing access to technology, opportunity, and growth. By honoring their contributions over the last half-century, this campaign highlights stories of resilience, innovation, and inclusivity. Through digital spotlights, a commemorative coffee table book, live recognition events, and more, the campaign inspires collective action toward achieving equitable societal goals. To learn more about empowHER50, please visit https://womenincloud.com/empowHER50 

To learn about Microsoft 50th celebrations: https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-50/  

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#empowHER50 – Kate Behncken

When funding meets community, innovation becomes empowerment, and opportunity reaches every corner of the world. 

 
As Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Philanthropies for the last 6 years, Kate Behncken has led one of the most ambitious missions of our time: ensuring that no one is left behind in the digital economy. Her work is driven by a clear conviction that technology, when paired with trust, strong partnerships, investment, and global collaboration, can lift lives, unlock potential, and create lasting systems of opportunity. 

Since 2021, Kate’s team has helped over 12.6 million people build digital skills, 80% of whom come from underserved communities. From partnerships with 430 organizations in nearly 200 countries, her work scales what matters most—access, inclusion, and local impact. 

Whether supporting national education ministries or grassroots changemakers, Microsoft Philanthropies has bridged global vision with local leadership. In India, partnerships reached over 2.4 million learners in under a year. In Mexico, over 600,000 students gained access to AI education. Kate’s team is also empowering educators as force multipliers of digital equity, training millions of teachers across Brazil, Korea, and beyond. And in Thailand, a bold initiative aims to skill 4 million educators by 2027.  

Microsoft Philanthropies, through the Technology for Social Impact program, has also collaborated with 375,000 nonprofits, providing $4.7 billion in donated and discounted technology. If you compare this to the size of foreign aid budgets around the world in 2024, Microsoft would rank as #13th largest, between Switzerland and Spain!  

At the community level, the TechSpark Fellows Program is building new pathways for economic growth—securing $177 million in funding in 2024, reaching 48,000 community members, and supporting job creation and skills development in 37 regions. 

“The combination of emergent technologies, resources, and opportunities offers us immense hope for the future and the power to create change in the present.” — Kate Behncken 

Microsoft Philanthropies is helping to showcase how philanthropy can be scalable, collaborative, and deeply human. By putting technology in the hands of those closest to the world’s challenges—and possibilities—they are helping build a future where everyone has the skills, tools, and support to thrive. 

About #empowHER50 campaign

This campaign celebrates women leaders at Microsoft, past and present, who have been instrumental in democratizing access to technology, opportunity, and growth. By honoring their contributions over the last half-century, this campaign highlights stories of resilience, innovation, and inclusivity. Through digital spotlights, a commemorative coffee table book, live recognition events, and more, the campaign inspires collective action toward achieving equitable societal goals. To learn more about empowHER50, please visit https://womenincloud.com/empowHER50 

To learn about Microsoft 50th celebrations: https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-50/  

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#empowHER50 – Manuela Papadopol

When access to knowledge is paired with the courage to climb, true transformation begins. 

For Manuela Papadopol, innovation isn’t just about building products—it’s about unlocking human potential. Manuela has devoted her career to expanding access to technology, opportunity, and leadership—especially for communities often left behind. 

As Executive Director of the Microsoft Alumni Network, one of her most impactful initiatives in 2024 was launching an AI skilling program in partnership with Microsoft, empowering alumni worldwide and their extended communities with free access to AI education through platforms like Microsoft Learn, Udemy, Coursera, and LinkedIn Learning. Designed to meet learners where they are, the program reached 3,500+ individuals globally, with 42% reporting better job prospects or increased earning power. 

Her belief is simple and powerful: 

“Every challenge—whether climbing a mountain or navigating a career—requires resilience, knowledge, the right tools, and a strong community. My mission is to help others reach their summits, unlocking new heights of potential through access to knowledge and opportunity.” — Manuela Papadopol 

Manuela’s impact doesn’t stop with technology. She launched a Microsoft Alumni Hackathon with Microsoft Garage, fostering mentorship and real-world innovation. And as a tech entrepreneur, in 2018 she co-founded Designated Driver, a bootstrapped software company that powered mobility solutions for Ford, Verizon, and Terabase Energy. Though the startup closed in 2022, her commitment to growth and reinvention continued. 

In 2023, she founded Mantra.Today–a platform focused on mountaineering, skiing, and climbing education for women, blending outdoor leadership with executive development. She’s guided women of all ages to summit iconic peaks like Mt. Rainier and Mt. Baker, using the mountains as a metaphor for resilience, risk-taking, and transformation. 

Manuela’s journey reminds us that real leadership is forged through challenge—and that when women rise, they lift entire communities with them. 

About #empowHER50 campaign

This campaign celebrates women leaders at Microsoft, past and present, who have been instrumental in democratizing access to technology, opportunity, and growth. By honoring their contributions over the last half-century, this campaign highlights stories of resilience, innovation, and inclusivity. Through digital spotlights, a commemorative coffee table book, live recognition events, and more, the campaign inspires collective action toward achieving equitable societal goals. To learn more about empowHER50, please visit https://womenincloud.com/empowHER50 

To learn about Microsoft 50th celebrations: https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-50/  

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#empowHER50 – Nitasha Chopra

By empowering young and diverse leaders today, we’re not only influencing their paths but unlocking limitless possibilities that will drive progress for generations to come. 

As Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Business Applications at Microsoft, Nitasha Chopra is a recognized champion of inclusive innovation. Her career has been defined by a mission to democratize access to technology and opportunity—ensuring individuals from all backgrounds have the tools, mentorship, and confidence to thrive in the digital economy. 

Nitasha has led transformative initiatives that simplify complex technologies and make them more accessible to those without traditional technical backgrounds. Her work bridges the gap between innovation and equity—scaling impact through user-friendly solutions, inclusive design, and strategic partnerships that drive real-world change. 

Inside Microsoft and beyond, she has championed inclusive talent pipelines, mentorship programs, and leadership development initiatives. At Intel, she led a global initiative to foster connection and inclusion across a 2,000+ person organization during the height of the COVID-19 crisis, grounded in the principle that “inclusion is how we build the best products.” This bold and human-centered approach earned her team the prestigious “Diversity and Inclusion Team of the Year” award. 

“When we empower the next generation to lead, we don’t just shape careers—we shape the future of innovation” — Nitasha Chopra 

Nitasha’s passion extends into STEM education. As a Board Member of SciTech Institute, she supports the Chief Science Officers (CSO) program, empowering 1,000+ students across the U.S., Kenya, Kuwait, and Mexico to become STEM leaders and advocates in their communities. Many of these student leaders are young women who, through mentorship and real-world problem-solving experiences, now see themselves as future innovators. 

Driven by the belief that innovation flourishes when everyone has a seat at the table, Nitasha’s leadership has helped redefine what’s possible—cultivating pathways for future innovators, dismantling systemic barriers, and inspiring the next generation to lead boldly and inclusively. 

About #empowHER50 campaign

xThis campaign celebrates women leaders at Microsoft, past and present, who have been instrumental in democratizing access to technology, opportunity, and growth. By honoring their contributions over the last half-century, this campaign highlights stories of resilience, innovation, and inclusivity. Through digital spotlights, a commemorative coffee table book, live recognition events, and more, the campaign inspires collective action toward achieving equitable societal goals. To learn more about empowHER50, please visit https://womenincloud.com/empowHER50 

To learn about Microsoft 50th celebrations: https://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-50/  

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