This is “Taking on the Pepsi Challenge: The Case of Indra Nooyi”, section 12.1 from the book An Introduction to Organizational Behavior (v. 1.1). For details on it (including licensing), click here.


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12.1 Taking on the Pepsi Challenge: The Case of Indra Nooyi

Figure 12.1

She is among the top 100 most influential people according to Time magazine’s 2008 list. She is also number 5 in Forbes’s “Most Influential Women in the World” (2007), number 1 in Fortune’s “50 Most Powerful Women” (2006), and number 22 in Fortune’s “25 Most Powerful People in Business” (2007). The lists go on and on. To those familiar with her work and style, this should come as no surprise: Even before she became the CEO of PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP) in 2006, she was one of the most powerful executives at PepsiCo and one of the two candidates being groomed for the coveted CEO position. Born in Chennai, India, Nooyi graduated from Yale’s School of Management and worked in companies such as the Boston Consulting Group Inc., Motorola Inc., and ABB Inc. She also led an all-girls rock band in high school, but that is a different story.




Discussion Questions

  1. Indra Nooyi is not a typical CEO. How does she differ from your idea of what a typical CEO is like? How do you think your current image of CEOs was created?
  2. Indra Nooyi is touted as being “unusually collaborative” for someone in charge of a Fortune 500 company. Why do you think her level of collaboration is so unusual for top executives?
  3. Do you think Nooyi’s story represents a transition of American companies to a different type of leader or simply a unique case?
  4. Pepsi-Cola dates back to 1898 and officially became PepsiCo after merging with Frito-Lay in 1965. What are some challenges the CEO faces today that were not an issue at that time? What are some aspects that make the position easier in modern times?
  5. If you were in Indra Nooyi’s shoes, what direction would you take the company, given the success you have had thus far? What are some challenges that could arise in the near future for PepsiCo?