Business Insider / Skye GouldWomen are having a bigger effect on our world than ever before.
In the past year, women have taken on serious new leadership roles around the world: Janet Yellen became chair of the Federal Reserve, Park Geun-hye became president of South Korea, and Angela Ahrendts was tapped to become the head of Apple's retail stores.
These moves are redefining women's roles and empowering younger generations of women to step up.
From tech to finance to retail, we've found the 30 women who are changing the world.
Melia Robinson contributed to this story.