PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi to step down after 12 years

PepsiCo on Monday announced that Indra Nooyi will step down as the CEO of the company after 12-years of leading the food and beverage giant.

President Raman Laguarta was elected as the successor by the board of directors. He will be resuming the CEO office of PepsiCo from October 3.

After 24-years of service with the company, Indira Nooyi will be stepping down. However, Nooyi will remain as the unit’s chairman till early 2019.

Nooyi said, “Leading PepsiCo has truly been the honour of my lifetime, and I’m incredibly proud of all we have done over the past 12 years to advance the interests not only of shareholders but all our stakeholders in the communities we serve.”

“Growing up in India, I never imagined I’d have the opportunity to lead such an extraordinary company. Guided by our philosophy of Performance with Purpose—delivering sustained performance while making more nutritious products, limiting our environmental footprint and lifting up all the communities we serve—we’ve made a more meaningful impact in people’s lives than I ever dreamed possible. PepsiCo today is in a strong position for continued growth with its brightest days still ahead.”

Nooyi continued: “Ramon Laguarta is exactly the right person to build on our success. He is a terrific executive with a long and proven track record of growing businesses. He has a deep understanding of the changing preferences of consumers and other critical trends unfolding around the world and he has demonstrated that he knows how to navigate them successfully. Ramon has been a critical partner in running the company and I’m confident he will take PepsiCo to new and greater heights in the years to come.”

Raman Laguarta, a 22-year veteran of the company, has been the president of PepsiCo since September. Undertaking the role of making corporate strategy, overseeing global operations, public policy and government affairs. Laguarta has served in leadership positions in the European and sub-Saharan Africa divisions.

As per the company, with Nooyi’s departure, the rest of PepsiCo’s senior leadership team will remain unchanged.

There was a slight decline in PepsiCo’s pre-market stock price after the announcement.