Indra Nooyi: Former CEO pf PepsoCo
In 2006, Indra Nooyi became the first woman and immigrant to run a Fortune 50 company. She held the topmost position in PepsiCo for 12 years and grew net revenue by more than 80% under her leadership. Ms. Nooyi has been a renowned champion for diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.
Indra Nooyi is the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo (2006-2019); a Fortune 50 company with operations in more than 180 countries.
In this role, Ms. Nooyi was the chief architect of Performance with Purpose, PepsiCo’s pledge to do what’s right for the business by being responsive to the needs of the world around it. As part of Performance with Purpose, PepsiCo was focused on delivering sustained growth by expanding its portfolio to include more nutritious products, limiting its environmental footprint, and empowering its associates and people in the communities it serves. During her tenure, PepsiCo grew net revenue by more than 80%, and PepsiCo’s total shareholder return was 162% beating the S&P over the same period.
Prior to becoming CEO, Ms. Nooyi served as PepsiCo’s president and chief financial officer and was a member of the company’s board of directors. She was responsible for corporate functions, including finance, strategy, business process optimization, corporate platforms and innovation, procurement, investor relations, and information technology. Between 1994 and 2000, Ms. Nooyi directed corporate strategy and development for the company.
Ms. Nooyi served as a member of the PepsiCo Board of Directors from 2001 to February 2019. Ms. Nooyi is now a member of the board of Amazon, where she chairs the audit committee. She sits on the supervisory board of Philips and is a member of the nominating and corporate governance committee. She also serves on the International Advisory Council of Temasek; is an independent director of the International Cricket Council; and is a trustee at the National Gallery of Art. She is on the Dean’s Advisory Council at MIT’s School of Engineering and serves on the boards of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the Partnership for Public Service. She is also an advisor to several early-stage companies.
Nooyi is the author of the book My Life in Full: Work, Family and Our Future, a memoir that offers insight and a call to action on how our society can blend work and family — and advance women — in the 21st century. My Life in Full is a New York Times bestseller and is available in multiple languages.
Ms. Nooyi is the recipient of 15 honorary degrees. In 2007, the Government of India awarded her the Padma Bhushan, the country’s 3rd highest civilian honor. In that same year, she was named an “Outstanding American by choice” by the Department of Homeland Security/US Citizenship and Immigration Services. In 2019, her portrait was inducted into the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, and in 2022 she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts of Sciences, the Academy of Science, and the American Philosophical Society. She is a revered role model for women and immigrants and is celebrated for her empowering messages on inclusivity.
She holds a B.S. from Madras Christian College, an M.B.A. from the Indian Institute of Management in Calcutta, and a Master of Public and Private Management from Yale University. Ms Nooyi is married and has two daughters.