New Delhi, Aug 7: PepsiCo Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Indira K Nooyi will step down on October 3 after serving for 12 years as CEO of the global food and beverage company.
PepsiCo Board of Directors on Monday unanimously elected Ramon Laguarta to succeed Indira Nooyi. Laguarta will become the sixth CEO in PepsiCo’s 53-year history.
She will remain Chairman until early 2019 to ensure a smooth and seamless transition. Laguarta was also elected to the company’s Board of Directors, effective October 3, 2018.
“Growing up in India, I never imagined I’d have the opportunity to lead such an extraordinary company,” Nooyi said in a statement. “PepsiCo today is in a strong position for continued growth with its brightest days still ahead.”
Chennai-born Indra Nooyi not only broke the glass ceiling in corporate America when she was named CEO of global beverage giant PepsiCo in 2006 but, through her journey, inspired millions of young Indians who dreamed of and aspired to emulate the success the India-born woman achieved in America.
Nooyi, one of the most powerful and influential business leaders in the world, was regularly featured on the power lists compiled by Forbes and Fortune magazines. She was also among the few female executives to lead global corporate giants.
Apart from being a prominent face of women leadership across the world, she was also the epitome of success for the millions of young Indians who aspired to be like her as they watched her journey through the ranks of PepsiCo and eventually leading the global conglomerate. She was among the first of a handful of India-born executives to helm global corporates.
She was appointed as CEO in 2006, becoming PepsiCo’s fifth chief executive in its 41-year history, and the first woman. MasterCard’s President Ajay Banga, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Google CEO Sundar Pichai were all named to the top jobs in their companies in the years that followed.
