Indra Nooyi

Indra Nooyi (née Krishnamurthy; born October 28, 1955) is an American business executive who was the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of PepsiCo.

She has consistently ranked among the world's 100 most powerful women.

Nooyi was born on October 28, 1955, in a Tamil Hindu Brahmin family in Madras (now known as Chennai), Tamil Nadu, India.

Nooyi did her schooling in Holy Angels Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School in T. Nagar.

Nooyi's mother was a home maker.

While not having a formal education herself, her mother devised novel strategic games at dinner that would install great confidence in her daughters.

When Nooyi and her sister were just 8–11 years old, their mother instructed them to write a speech about what they would do if they held a position of power such as president, or prime minister.

That confidence was strengthened by her paternal grandfather, a charismatic judge.

If she fell short in a task she had completed, he would make her write "I will not make excuses" 200 times on a piece of paper.

While completing her studies Nooyi played guitar in a band, and excelled at cricket.

Nooyi received bachelor's degrees in physics, chemistry and mathematics from Madras Christian College of the University of Madras in 1975, and a Post Graduate Programme Diploma from Indian Institute of Management Calcutta in 1976.

In 1978, Nooyi was admitted to Yale School of Management and moved to the United States, where she earned a master's degree in public and private management in 1980.

Beginning her career in India, Nooyi held product manager positions at Johnson & Johnson and the textile firm Beardsell Ltd. While attending Yale School of Management, Nooyi completed a summer internship with Booz Allen Hamilton.

In 1980, Nooyi joined the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) as a strategy consultant, and then worked at Motorola as vice president and Director of Corporate Strategy and Planning, followed by a stint at Asea Brown Boveri.

Nooyi joined PepsiCo in 1994, and was named CEO in 2006, replacing Steven Reinemund, becoming the fifth CEO in PepsiCo's 44-year history.

She was PepsiCo's senior vice president for corporate strategy and development from 1996 until 2000, and as PepsiCo's senior vice president for strategic planning from 1994 until 1996.

Nooyi directed the company's global strategy for more than a decade and led PepsiCo's restructuring, including the 1997 divestiture of Tricon, now known as Yum! Brands.

Tricon included companies like Pizza Hut, KFC, and Taco Bell under its umbrella.

The financial gains from this spinoff allowed the company to increase the pace of its share buyback strategy, thereby giving it more leverage to pursue future acquisitions without as much shareholder backlash.

Nooyi also took the lead in the acquisition of Tropicana in 1998, and the merger with Quaker Oats Company, which also brought Gatorade in 2001.

The $3.3 billion acquisition of Tropicana initially faced opposition from other PepsiCo executives and Wall Street critics.

The Quaker Oats Company's ownership of Gatorade was a positive strategic move for PepsiCo, since Gatorade was responsible for 80% of sports drink sales at the time.

Similar to the Tropicana acquisition, this strategic move gave PepsiCo leverage against Coca-Cola, owner of Powerade – second in the sports drink segment.

PepsiCo's annual net profit rose from $2.7 billion to $6.5 billion.

Between February 2000 and April 2001, Nooyi was senior vice president and chief financial officer of PepsiCo.

Prior to becoming CEO, Nooyi was president and chief financial officer, beginning in 2001, she was also named to PepsiCo's board of directors.

Nooyi was named on Wall Street Journals list of 50 women to watch in 2007 and 2008, and was listed among Times 100 Most Influential People in The World in 2007 and 2008.

Forbes named her the #3 most powerful woman in 2008.

Fortune ranked her the #1 in the list of Most Powerful Women in Business in 2009 and 2010.

On October 7, 2010, Fortune magazine ranked her the 6th most powerful woman in the world.

In 2014, she was ranked at number 13 on the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women and was ranked the second most powerful woman on the Fortune list in 2015 and 2017.

She is on the boards of Amazon and the International Cricket Council.

In 2014, she was ranked #13 by Forbes.

In Fortune 's Most Powerful Women List of 2015, Nooyi ranked second.

Nooyi's strategic redirection of PepsiCo, called Performance with a Purpose, has been largely successful and involved creating long-term growth while leaving a positive impact on society and the environment.

She reclassified PepsiCo's products into three categories: "fun for you" (such as potato chips and regular soda), "better for you" (diet or low-fat versions of snacks and sodas), and "good for you" (items such as oatmeal).

Her initiative was backed up with ample funding.

She moved corporate spending away from junk foods and into the healthier alternatives, with the aim of improving the healthiness of even the "fun" offerings.

In 2015, Nooyi removed aspartame from Diet Pepsi.

As part of Performance with a Purpose, Nooyi also focused on environmental concerns and sustainability, redesigning packaging to reduce waste, conserving water, switching to renewable energy sources and recycling.