Job: managing director, content, BSkyB
Age: 52
Industry: broadcasting
2012 ranking: 45
Sophie Turner Laing heads all of BSkyB's content outside of sport, spanning Sky Movies, Sky Atlantic, Sky1, Sky Living, Sky News and Sky Arts.
The former BBC executive who joined Sky a decade ago has spent the past few years looking to boost the satellite broadcaster's entertainment offerings.
The "fourth leg of the horse", according to BSkyB chief executive Jeremy Darroch – alongside sport, news and movies – entertainment had been "limping a bit", said Turner Laing
It remains to be seen however if the homegrown content drive – £600m by 2014 – will be matched by consistently big audiences..
She oversaw the launch of Sky Atlantic – off the back of the broadcaster's exclusive HBO deal – and ploughed millions more into new content on Sky1, Sky Living and Sky Arts under Sky's director of entertainment channels Stuart Murphy (who reports into Turner Laing and is also on this list).
Turner Laing also oversees Sky's relationship with partner channels, international distribution and broadcast operations.
