Pepsico Inc CEO Indra Nooyi’s has been a trailblazing story. Bucking parental opposition to study at Yale in the US and staying on to scale the highest echelons of corporate America to become the Chairman and CEO of a company whose iconic brands are known the world over, she achieved the quintessential American dream. Her ascent to the top as a woman and an Indian, to have become the first foreign-born CEO of a consumer goods company, happened long before India’s tech titans stormed the software majors in the US. In a sense, Nooyi shattered multiple glass ceilings with her appointment as CEO. As she retires, there’s a lament in the US that the ranks of women CEOs heading Fortune 500 companies is thinning with several high profile CEOs stepping down in the past year: In May, Denise Morrison stepped down as CEO of Campbell Soup and in April, Margo Georgiadis quit as CEO of Mattel. Last year, Mondelez CEO Irene Rosenfeld also quit, perhaps reflective of the challenges CEOs face with the changing taste preferences of consumers in foods.

Nooyi steps down at a time when Pepsi’s core business of carbonated soft drinks is on the decline in its principal market, the US. Consumption of CSDs has dropped to its lowest level in over 30 years as consumers avoid sugary drinks. One can call Nooyi prescient as she probably saw the writing on the wall. During her tenure, when she was a senior vice-president, Nooyi was part of the team which negotiated the company’s acquisition of Tropicana (1998) and Quaker Oats (2000). When she was elevated to the post of president and CFO in 2001, she worked closely with former CEO Steven Reinemund to help Pepsico establish itself in the growing healthy foods segment, a diversification which has stood Pepsi in good stead over the past decade. Her global stature as an Indian-origin success story also stood Pepsi in good stead in India, giving it access which would have been difficult for a multinational.

As CEO, Nooyi became ever more conscious of the deep societal shifts towards healthier foods and articulated her now well-known catch phrases of ‘fun-for-you’, ‘better-for-you’ and ‘good-for-you’ foods and beverages and launched a range of healthier foods with lower sugar quotients. Perhaps Nooyi’s long-lasting contribution in shaping the direction that Pepsico has chosen to grow in is her vision statement of ‘performance with purpose’ which encompasses products, planet and people and emphasises sustainability in everything it does. Ethics and integrity were also important values she fostered in the company and under her leadership, Pepsico consistently made it to a global list of the world’s most ethical companies. Now that’s a legacy worth leaving.

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