By now, most readers probably know that Indra Nooyi is being promoted to the CEO of PepsiCo, a company with $38 billion in revenues. She’s been mentioned several times before on Sepia Mutiny, mainly in response to comments she made at a graduation ceremony at Columbia Business School last year. (There are several other posts on her as well.) And Manish had a solid post on her recent promotion this past Monday on Ultrabrown.
I draw two conclusions from her success. First, you can be a working mother and climb the corporate ladder while raising kids (Indra has two, who are I believe in their early/mid teens). Second, you can get ahead in the American corporate environment without sacrificing who you are culturally.
On the first point, there have been many recent stories about the difficulties facing powerful women. Maureen Dowd, for instance, recently published a book called Are Men Necessary?, where (among other things) she talked about the difficulty some women face in dating and/or marrying men who are less powerful or successful than they are. But a growing number of “power moms” are also flat-out powerful. And they do it without sacrificing their connection to their kids, as I think Indra Nooyi’s Nintendo policy proves:
She views PepsiCo as an extended family and everybody at the company is there to help in every way possible. Sometime ago, when Indra was traveling, her daughter would call the office to ask for permission to play Nintendo. The receptionist would know the routine and ask: “Have you finished your homework? Have you had your snack? OK, you can play Nintendo for half an hour”. She then left a voice message for Indra saying “I gave Tara permission to play Nintendo”. (link)
Have you had your snack? Ok, go play. Momma has to go acquire a multinational or two and pacify the Indian media regarding the recent pesticide allegations.
Secondly, you don’t have to sell yourself out and tell everyone your name is “Bob” if it’s really Balwinder. Nooyi’s story about getting her first job in the U.S. after completing her Master’s at Yale is illustrative:
A story of this determined girl, who while studying in Connecticut, worked as a receptionist from midnight to sunrise to earn money and struggled to put together US$50 to buy herself a western suit for her first job interview out of Yale, where she had just completed her masters. Incidentally, she wasn’t comfortable trying out a formal western outfit and ended up buying trousers that reached down only till her ankles. Rejected at the interview, she turned to her professor at the school who asked her what she would wear if she were to be in India. To her reply that it would be a sari, the professor advised her to “be yourself” and stick to what she was comfortable with. She wore a sari for her next interview. She got the job and has followed this philosophy for the rest of her career. (link)
And she’s not afraid of letting people know she is a practicing Hindu:
She lives with her husband and two daughters in Fairfax county, Connecticut. If you ever visit her Connecticut home, do remember to take your shoes off before entering. If you forget, at least remember to take them off before entering the large puja room where a diya is lit and the inviting air of incense greets you. She keeps an image of Ganesha in her office, and in fact, some PepsiCo officials visited India and received similar images besides being told of the Hindu belief about Ganesh being the symbols of auspicious beginnings. Many of them now keep images of Ganesh in their offices! Nooyi attends PepsiCo board meetings in a sari; for she believes the corporate world appreciates people who are genuine. (link)
Genuine, huh. I haven’t had that experience with the corporate world. 😉 But more seriously, the point is valid. One can acculturate without assimilating; it is possible to get ahead in life without selling yourself out to the image people expect you to inhabit. There’s no reason to be defensive about being a vegetarian, or preferring mango lassi to martinis, or cricket to baseball… and on and on.
Best of luck to Indra Nooyi!
Amardeep, if you had wanted to do a thorough job on this post you would have included pictures or the Friendster profiles of said daughters (assuming they are of marriageable age of course).
Hey, I did Google the daughter’s name to see if anything came up (nothing). But anyway, they’re probably too young for you, dude! 😉
Or you could compromise with a mango martini. Yum. 😉
I gave Ganesha to a few people around my office, they still have it displayed. Of course, the non-brown folks needed explaining on why a Jain Man worships Ganeshas….
“Secondly, you donÂ’t have to sell yourself out and tell everyone your name is “Bob” if itÂ’s really Balwinder”
Unless you’re in the entertainment/film industry.
“Nooyi attends PepsiCo board meetings in a sari; for she believes the corporate world appreciates people who are genuine”
This is not as noble sounding as it seems. While this woman gets her due props from me, I think there’s a chance she can be paraded around as the ethnic showpiece, with pepsi claiming “oh look, see how diverse we are.”
This is not as noble sounding as it seems. While this woman gets her due props from me, I think there’s a chance she can be paraded around as the ethnic showpiece, with pepsi claiming “oh look, see how diverse we are.”
She’s running the company though, its not like she Vice President of Cultural Relations. Props to her, originally from Chennai!
Very nice story. One point I would like to make about her background is the south indian cultural aspect (i am a northie myself). In my experience, 80% high-powered indian women in the US that I have met are from South India, Maharashtra and Bengal. But predominantly southern in cultural origin (maybe 50%+ of professional women with serious careers).
Anyone else with a similar experience?
One does not get to become the CEO of a company to be its ethnic showpiece.
Regards,
Congratulations to Indra… I only hope she rectifies the pesticide allegations against Pepsi and not give the Pepsi detractors the finger… 😉
The original desi power-mom.
Spoorlam would be proud. I saw Nooyiji as the featured speaker at the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam’s anniversary celebration 2 or 3 years ago, dropping Vedic science. Isn’t her akka a superstar too?
In my old life in M&A, we sat across the table from her a few times when they considered buying Snapple from our client. Extremely smart, poised and candid person – and I assure you she has no golf game. Couldn’t have happened to a better person.
Congrats Indra – now how about that Indian Pepsi-cide issue? 🙂
she’s not a sellout, and sticks to her roots..
shabash nooyi..shabash 🙂
But what does Senator Allen have to say about a macaca woman taking over this headline American company? Someone please ask him at a press conference. Maybe he’ll say Pepsi should be renamed Macaca-Cola.
Great post, amardeep. “acculturate without assimilating” That’s a great line. Can I borrow it?
Macaca Cola, that’s funny.
Slogan: My Kaka drinks Macaca-Cola
While I disagreed with some of her Columbia – there is no denying that she is kicking serious butt in the corporate world. She saw the future was moving away from fizzy sodas and into health drinks and juices, and now Pepsi has a greater share value than Coca Cola.
Now – how about another Gurinder Chadha film on how Indian culture holds women back?
This is not as noble sounding as it seems. While this woman gets her due props from me, I think there’s a chance she can be paraded around as the ethnic showpiece, with pepsi claiming “oh look, see how diverse we are.”
roll eyes the horrors! a chance that you’ll be offended.
“One can acculturate without assimilating; it is possible to get ahead in life without selling yourself out to the image people expect you to inhabit. ThereÂ’s no reason to be defensive about being a vegetarian, or preferring mango lassi to martinis, or cricket to baseballÂ… and on and on.”
great points. why should the fact that she decides to wear a sari (of her own free will, i assume, without being forced to do so by pepsi) to a board meeting arouse suspicions of exoticization/paraded as an ethnic showpiece etc? if a western female employee of an indian company or the western head of an indian company wears western office wear to a board meeting would we think of them as exoticizing their culture or being paraded as an ethnic showpiece? this idea that the sari or any other piece of clothing, western or otherwise, should be confined only to certain cultural (functions)/geographic boundaries and being seen as “abnormal” outside those settings is strange. it reminds me of the lady who once said in a very patronizing tone that while the sari was glamorous, it was best left in india. meanwhile it’s perfectly ok for western wear to swamp the world and be seen as the “normal” standard.
I admire Indra Nooyi not only for being able to balance an incredibly demanding, time-consuming, and high profile career, but also for having the guts to shatter notions of propriety when she makes statements like she did in her Columbia speech. Among all the roles she plays, she takes the time out to show to the world, literally, that she is a fast thinker/talker, on all fronts, including politics–which I find is inspiring and rarely ever found in female Indian role models.
LOL. Dear God, No.
Hats off to Indra for this fantastic rise to the top. Attending her second career interview and all the Pepsi Board meetings in Saree is like ‘wow’ – how could she pull that off. This is an eye opener for many. I think Pepsi’s corporate setup and its diversity need to be applauded. Hakoona makaka.
Another high flying FOBini in the corporate world is Padmasree Warrior – Chief Technical Officer, Motorola.
I met her once, she was wearing a saree. She has a full family with a kid.
Pagla, glad you liked the phrase, though I’m sure I probably stole it from something or other I read on immigration back in grad school or whatever.
Yes, her getting promoted to CEO is clearly a reward for the two big events she was involved with — the spinning off of Pepsi’s fast food operations, and the acquisition of Tropicana, Gatorade, etc. It’s by no means an “affirmative action” move.
One question I have, though, is why the current CEO is stepping down.
What a beautiful name.
It’s by no means an “affirmative action” move.
my understanding is that AA hires usually get shunted off into PR & HR, and never have any chance of making it to CEO. they exist to beef up the numbers for audits is all.
Amardeep: Reinemund retired and she took over.
where did this talk of an affirmative action move come from – what’s to discuss? Nooyi’s track record there has been VERY public for over a decade.
ROI got her where she is – when we negotiated with her, she hit hard, asked tough questions, held her ground and stung, but with a smile like your favorite auntie.
PS – affirmative action is like an ivy-league degree w/ high GPA, etc. it may get you in the door, but the rest is up to you to fend for and rise up the ladder (with the exception of many bloated, inertia-laden companies).
so can we officially call the glass ceiling a myth?
Remember, affirmitive action and quotas are not expected to hurt the brightest or help the dumbest; they affect the middle class. go indira, yet another sugar momma!
where did this talk of an affirmative action move come from
affirmative action puts a stigma over the achievement. everything has costs.
Kudos to Indra (nee Krishmamurti) Nooyi and her family. What a pleasure to see accomplished women of Indian origin scale corporate peaks and reach the top! And remaining authentic to her Tamil Brahmin roots that she was exposed to and chose to retain all the way through. Carnatic music, temple visits, veggie-dom, puja rooms, etc.
Padmasree Warrior, an IIT-D and Cornell graduate (Chem E), is another to watch in the years ahead. On Corning’s board of directors, …
AFter twenty+ years in Silicon Valley, how can I not mention the most remarkable woman of Indian origin in high tech? Folks, ahve you heard of Jayshree Ullal at Cisco? You can exchange Indra’s script for Jayshree’s and it will read similar page for page, word for word, except that she is very understated and not as well known outside the world of computer networking where she is a goddess. Authentic, an absence of pretensions, a world-class manager and operations executive, a loving mother of two talented daughters, the friend to have around you as a bunker companion, funny, personal, empathetic…
What’s common across all three: remarkable parents that encouraged them a lot, supportive families, high standards applied within their families and in their interactions with the outside world. All of them are of South Indian origin and I’m sure there are plenty others, including Naina Lal Kidwai, from the rest of India to keep up the flame for Indian women professionals.
Fifteen years ago there were very few managers or executives of Indian origin in the business world. Today, we have big name role models including Arun Sarin, Indra Nooyi, Padmasree, Jayshree, Naina Lal, …
I meant to say: All three are of South Indian origin–I wonder what explains the high presence of South Indian women in the tech world–and I’m sure…
My biz prof told us Pepsi’s response to these allegations was that the pesticide laws haven’t take affect yet, and all processed foods in India contain pesticides, so why should Pepsi change their mfr. processs. But I’ve been trying to find a website or news article where Pepsi said that, and I haven’t found any…I’ll ask him about it at class tonight (6-9pm yuck)
3 ain’t statistically sigificant.
to be specific, my impression aligns with pragma’s. but i need more data.
This was a great point. The lesson is never to surrender your soul, your identity to those who hold the power and would like you to change, in this case the celto-WASP american. Being an american citizen is not an excercise in emulation of the WASP, least not in my book.
“why should the fact that she decides to wear a sari (of her own free will, i assume, without being forced to do so by pepsi) to a board meeting arouse suspicions of exoticization/paraded as an ethnic showpiece etc?”
Never said she was forced, but its still an ethnic/nonstandard style of dress. There’s a definite potential there, but as she’s an exec tucked away in some board room, it’s probably not as much as I had originally guessed. But it’s surely done in the case of Night Shyamalan for example, his monstrous last name is kept on as an ethnic eye-catcher, production companies would never let it fly unless they could play off the “oh wow scary movie, by that guy with the cool sounding name” sentiment.
“it reminds me of the lady who once said in a very patronizing tone that while the sari was glamorous, it was best left in india. meanwhile it’s perfectly ok for western wear to swamp the world and be seen as the “normal” standard.
I never said it was OK, just saying that’s how it is.
Apu_is_innocent
TH Lee? Just curious.
I had a desi friend at my old firm who use to wear saris to client meetings too, I thought it was great and she looked gorgeous.
There’s a definite potential there
so? just because god could exist doesn’t mean he does exist. the possibility of evil does not imply that the reality of evil.
there’s a certain type of race fixator who will complain that a corporation (fill-in-the-blank) is ‘lily white’ when white, and ‘tokenizing and exoticizing’ when it has some color. no win situation in the face of the hand-wringer’s compulsion.
“I never said it was OK, just saying that’s how it is.”
i agree.
but what do you mean by his monstrous last name is kept on? why wouldn’t it be up there for all to see? that’s his real name and he’s the director. or are you saying that he wouldn’t get any movies made if his name wasn’t “monstrous” and that the sole reason he gets to make movies is because of his unusual-to-americans last name?
In #7, Al Beruni asked: …80% high-powered indian women in the US that I have met are from South India, Maharashtra and Bengal. But predominantly southern in cultural origin (maybe 50%+ of professional women with serious careers).
My observation based on twenty-five years in tech leads me to agree. High tech (software, systems, networking…), medicine, finance, academia seem to be areas with a high presence of South Indian professional women. In my opinion, here’s why. Please excuse me if the following seem too sweeping as I can’t avoid generalisms in discussing this 🙂 a) those industries place a premium on knowledge, problem solving, results. Education gives someone an edge in all three and South Indians generally place a high(er) premium on education.
b) Role models. The girls just did what they saw their uncles, brothers, cousins do: become proficient in high tech, start/co-found a company, rise up the ranks, etc. And their parents encouraged the girls because the males in the family succeeded/did well and the professions were “safe, respectable, …” c) Lack of alternatives. Starting a business in India historically required a lot of capital; succeeding in Indian business meant you had to be part of the family that owned the business (except in say the Tatas and other firms). Lacking that the South Indians forged elsewhere. What’s noteworthy is the IT industry didn’t require a lot of capital to start a company. That enabled Murty and his team to start InfoSys and there are innumerable others that followed suit.
d) This is a critical one. Modify all of the above to mean “South Indian Brahmin” for it’s the (Tamil/Palakkad/etc.) Brahmin women that have a large presence in the mentioned industries. Other communities tend to direct their professionally-oriented women toward family businesses so we don’t get to see them elsewhere. Contrarily, Brahmins have to get out and work, e.g., in the service industries. They had to be flexible and command better interpersonal skills to get along with a diverse crowd at work. They found critical mass within their own families, extended families, and social circle to reinforce and support their success. All while not ignoring Carnatic music, idly/sambhar, visits to temples, Suprabhatams in the morning 🙂
My two cents…
She views PepsiCo as an extended family and everybody at the company is there to help in every way possible. Sometime ago, when Indra was traveling, her daughter would call the office to ask for permission to play Nintendo. The receptionist would know the routine and ask: “Have you finished your homework? Have you had your snack? OK, you can play Nintendo for half an hour”. She then left a voice message for Indra saying “I gave Tara permission to play Nintendo”.
I think the whole story is really great and I admire her achievements, but (yes, there had to be a but), the above excerpt just doesn’t gel with me. I know it takes a village, or an extended family, or a flock of nannies, but not the employees of a major corporation, to raise a child.
And please, before anyone jumps on me, I’m not implying that she’s a bad Mom or anything like that, she sounds like a terrific woman with her head and heart both in thr right place, so I’m guessing she’s a good Mom too. It’s just that it rubs me the wrong way, like someone higher up than you at work asking you to get their dry cleaning.
HMF, I agree with Whose God is it anyways — what you’re saying is a little paranoid.
If Bobby Jindal ever becomes president (unlikely, I know — bear with me), by the same logic you could say a) he only got there because he calls himself “Bobby” instead of “Piyush,” and b) “they” let him keep his last name, “Jindal” because it sounds “exotic.”
The simple truth is that most people who succeed at the level of a Shyamalan or a Nooyi do so because they are immensely talented, driven people. There is no conspiracy either helping them or hurting them. Some people are a-holes about Indian names (Macaca, anyone?), but the goal is to rise above it.
Insipiting stuff. She is a woman of substance, like Femina Miss India 🙂
Wantok – TH Lee? Not sure I understand your question. TH Lee was one of the people looking at buying Snapple, along with Pepsi, but Cadbury bought it from us in the end.
To Indra Nooyi’s credit, she recognized the limitations of Pepsi’s distribution, wrt a specialty distribution play like Snapple. Quaker Oats famously f–cked up their purchase of Snapple, but she ain’t one to go out like that.
The woman is a real visionary in packaged goods/consumer and really knows the numbers and distribution realities. I am not worthy…
PS – Pragma, add Radha Basu to your list of top shelf indian women execs (plus the desi MD who runs the cancer drug co. – name?).
PPS – razib, you are usually on it, but per #38, what on earth are you talking about sometimes? please write more clearly/completely – or optimize your blogosphere commitments for quality over quantity.
razib, you are usually on it, but per #38, what on earth are you talking about sometimes? please write more clearly/completely – or optimize your blogosphere commitments for quality over quantity.
there is a certain element which will always try to spin a “brown person oppressed by the man” angle. the facts don’t really matter, oppression is a given. in this case, the oppression is potential, but whatever.
I just wanted to say thanks for the great post! I really enjoyed reading about Indra’s journey to the top. I have to admit that I didn’t know much about her before. But now I definitely have a better idea of who she is and why she’s an important role model.
“But what do you mean by his monstrous last name is kept on? why wouldn’t it be up there for all to see? that’s his real name and he’s the director. or are you saying that he wouldn’t get any movies made if his name wasn’t “monstrous” and that the sole reason he gets to make movies is because of his unusual-to-americans last name?”
No, I’m not claiming exclusivity. I’m saying his name is used by disney, warner, et al as a selling point for his films, it’s kind of like cream on the top, so to speak. It’s a weird phenomenon actually, I think it sort inverts at some point.
If you’re a small fish in whatever business (but I think it’s heightened in the film/media biz, where image & marketing is key) then youre expected to shunt your culture, tow the line, assimilate completely… but once you reach a milestone point, or a point of any kind of power in the public eye, then the powers that be will milk the cultural background if it sells. For example, they’d never do it for African culture because, the powers that be were responsible for destroying, at least a part of it.
So could pepsi sell more cans by having a high ranking indian in a sari? Probably not, well perhaps to India, but they can definitely boast to the business community about how diverse and committed they are to being “color blind”
Pragma:
There are too many stereotypes in your Post 40. Stereotypes are OK in jokes (e.g. the first paragraph of hairy_d’s comment), but for serious analysis, you need to have figures, e.g., how many women are you considering, what communities they belong to and so on.
the problem with brown stereotypes is that they derived from personal experience, and that experience is often highly biased by our origins. so yeah, you number some numbers, confidence intervals, chisquare tests, etc.
Sure, Radha Basu fits in as does Paulette Altmaier (IIT-M, Syracuse grad) and several others I know over the years.
PG Wodehouse: my comments were not the result of a sociological study. I don’t have the numbers and breakdown by community nor have I defended this in front of an academic committee to have any basis other than, as Razib said, an “impression“. That’s the right word: impression. Perhaps there’s a PhD somewhere in there for someone else.