Chennai, India, October 28, 1955, is an American businesswoman born in India. She is currently Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of PepsiCo, having held those positions since 2001 and 2006 respectively. PepsiCo is the second-largest food and beverage business in the world by net revenue.
Nooyi was born in Madras (now known as Chennai), Tamil Nadu, India. She comes from a Tamil-speaking family. She was educated at Holy Angels Anglo Indian School, the highest secondary school in Madras. She received a bachelor’s degree in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics from Madras Christian College in 1974 and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management (MBA) from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta in 1976.
Beginning her career in India, Nooyi held product manager positions at Johnson & Johnson and the textile firm Mettur Beardsell. She was admitted to the Yale School of Management in 1978 and earned a master’s degree in Public and Private Management. While at Yale University, she completed her summer internship with Booz Allen Hamilton.
After graduating in 1980, Nooyi joined the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), and later held strategy positions at Motorola and Asea Brown Boveri.
Nooyi joined PepsiCo in 1994 and was named President and Chief Financial Officer (but not CEO) in 2001. She has led the company’s global strategy for over a decade and oversaw the restructuring of PepsiCo, including the 1997 sale of its restaurant business to Tricon, now known as Yum! Brands. Nooyi also spearheaded the acquisition of Tropicana in 1998 and the merger with Quaker Oats Company, which also brought Gatorade into PepsiCo.
Since she began as CFO in 2001, the company’s annual net profit has grown from $2.7 billion to $6.5 billion. In 2006, she became the fifth CEO in PepsiCo’s 44-year history.
While serving as CEO of PepsiCo in 2011, Nooyi received total compensation of $17 million, including a base salary of $1.6 million, a cash bonus of $2.5 million, pension value and deferred compensation of $3 million. In 2014, her total compensation had grown to $19,087,832, including $5.5 million in stock compensation.
She is considered one of the hundred most influential women in the world. In 2014, she ranked 13th on Forbes’ list of the 100 most powerful women in the world, and in 2015, she ranked 15th.
She has received the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of Laws from Babson College in 2004, and from the University of Warwick and the University of Miami in 2011; honorary degrees from New York University in 2008, Duke University in 2009, and North Carolina State University in 2013; Honorary Doctorate in Humanities from Pennsylvania State University in 2010 and the State University of New York at Purchase in 2015; and Honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Miami in 2011.
Pratibha Patil, former President of India (2007–2012), awarded her the Padma Bhushan in 2007. She also received the Barnard College Medal of Honor in 2009. She was ranked as the third most powerful woman in business by Fortune in 2014.