Israeli woman tops list of ‘Top 100 Innovation CEOs’

World Biz Magazine recognizes CEOs Hamutal Yitzhak of Else Nutrition, as well as Shahar Fogel of Rookout, for their innovation and insight.

By Abigail Klein Leichman, ISRAEL21C

World Biz Magazine chose two Israeli chief executive officers — Hamutal Yitzhak of Else Nutrition and Shahar Fogel of Rookout – to receive “Top 100 Innovation CEO” awards for 2021.

The award recognizes product, service, functional, strategic, and managerial innovation as well as “exceptional commercial insight and market integrity.”

As No. 1 on the list, Yitzhak was the subject of a multipage cover story for her role in “reshaping infant nutrition.”

She spent years working with a team to develop Else Nutrition, the first plant-based, globally patented dairy-free and soy-free baby formula, which hit US store shelves last March.

World Biz Magazine Editor in Chief Mike Walters said: “We received over 40,000 entries for our 2021 awards. To be selected #1 is a testament to Hamutal’s contributions to raising standards in infant and child nutrition. In the face of overwhelming barriers to entry, she has brought a real alternative to the market; one that is cleaner, healthier and better for the environment. Else Nutrition has successfully disrupted its space and is on the cusp of global expansion, providing an exciting opportunity for investors.”

Fogel, CEO of Rookout – recently named a Gartner Cool Vendor in monitoring and observability — has spent the last two decades leading data-driven businesses, products, and R&D teams, from early-stage startups to government organizations.

Rookout enable software developers to debug actively running code without the need for writing more code. It’s a nonintrusive way to aid rapid problem identification and resolution of service-impacting issues.

“I believe the future of technology lies in the ability to innovate quickly. With the adoption of tools that give developers real-time solutions, the industry – and companies themselves – will be able to have greater insight and understanding into their code, redefining the new standard of how engineers work in modern environments.” said Fogel.