On Monday, PepsiCo announced that Indra Nooyi will become CEO on October 1, making her the company’s first female CEO in its 41-year history. Nooyi’s promotion places her among the elite group of 11 women CEOs who run Fortune 500 companies. Nooyi, 50, is currently president and chief financial officer of the firm. After Nooyi assumes her new role, PepsiCo will be the second-largest firm based in the US with a woman for CEO; the largest is Archer Daniels Midland, where Patricia Woertz is CEO.
Nooyi’s accomplishments in the corporate world are significant; Forbes ranked her No. 28 in its list of the “World’s Most Powerful Women.” During her time at PepsiCo, she and the current CEO acquired Quaker Oats, Gatorade, and Tropicana. She also helped lead PepsiCo’s spin-offs of its fast-food chains, including Pizza Hut, KFC, and Taco Bell. Nooyi was born and raised in India. She holds an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta and did post-graduate work in management at Yale University.
