In our fireside chat with Indra Nooyi, former CEO and Chairman of PepsiCo, we explore the concept of performance with purpose, the importance of purposeful leadership, and the inevitable challenges of pursuing a career in the highest echelons of business.
Here are six key insights from Indra Nooyi:
1. Embrace Curiosity and Continuous Learning
Nooyi emphasized the importance of being a curious, lifelong learner, especially during rapid change and disruption. She advised leaders to approach new challenges and technologies with excitement and a desire to understand their impact. Stressing the importance of approaching changes with a thirst for knowledge and a love for disruption, Nooyi explained that leaders who continuously expand their understanding can better navigate the rapid transformations shaping the business landscape.
“Look at the next decade or so as a glorious time for the curious, learning individuals, and people who love disruption.”
She also stressed the importance of fostering this culture of curiosity and learning within teams, as it builds a solid foundation for future resilience.
“Everybody has to have a shared understanding. And for those who are not willing to study and get that shared understanding, they don’t belong, because the world demands that everybody invest the time to develop that shared understanding.”
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Approach new challenges with a desire to learn, rather than fear.
- Continuously expand their understanding and knowledge within their field and beyond.
- Encourage a culture of curiosity and learning within their organizations.
2. Align Purpose with Business Outcomes
Nooyi introduced the concept of ‘performance with purpose’ during her time at PepsiCo, significantly transforming the organization and generating incredible success. This idea highlights the need for an organization to directly link its purpose and social impact activities to tangible business results. This strategic alignment helps drive real change and ensures that purpose-driven efforts translate into sustainable value creation.
“If you didn’t work on environmental initiatives, there would be a cost to the company, because we’d be denied a license to operate in certain markets, and somebody would penalize us for using too much water or having a carbon footprint that’s too intensive.”
“I think it would be prudent for everybody to link purpose with business outcomes – short-, medium-, and long-term. If you do that, it’s performance with purpose, not performance or purpose.”
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Understand how purpose-driven actions can impact the company’s operations.
- Approach purpose-driven strategies with a focus on performance, outlining clear business cases and value creation.
- Link purpose initiatives directly to business outcomes.
3. Develop a Supportive Ecosystem
Nooyi credits much of her success to the support structures she built, including a dedicated spouse and family as well as mentors who were invested in her growth. She advises aspiring business leaders to build a strong support structure to enable their career advancement and lean on those who are generous with their support. She did caution that building this structure may be more challenging when balancing a career with personal goals. Especially for women, cultivating this type of ecosystem can be game-changing.
“If you want to rise to the top, think of the support structure you’re going to build. If you’re not able to build a support structure and you still want to have family and kids, just know the rise may be harder to come by.”
“I was lucky that my bosses were not political. They were just straight shooters. So, I think you’ve got to pick your boss carefully if you have that choice.”
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Find people who can be your support structure, including friends, family, and professional peers.
- Carefully choose the company and managers you work with because the right environment makes a big difference.
- Recognize and accept that even with a strong support system, the path to the top may be tougher for women.
4. Focus on Output, Not Gender
Speaking directly to women in leadership, Nooyi reiterated the need to focus on delivering high-quality work and contributions rather than getting distracted by gender-related discussions. While it is inevitable in business spaces, Nooyi encourages women to position themselves as capable, competent professionals first and foremost. The work will speak for itself.
“I think the bar for women is higher than men only because everybody knows the leadership model for males. They didn’t know what the female model was for leadership. So, anybody new coming in would have to outperform the men to earn a seat at the table.”
Nooyi was also candid about how tough it is for any leader the higher up the ladder they go. Leaders who want to reach the top must be prepared to sacrifice and forget “balance”.
“If you want to be in the top two or three layers of a company, all bets are off when it comes to balance because the effort it takes to get to the top of a big company is enormous. On the other hand, if you want to have a good job and maintain it, you can have a decent balance. You have help at home, predictable hours, not too much travel, not too much stress. But you should also realize that somebody from below might want to take your job.”
“Especially with technology changing, you must remain updated with everything. As you move to the top of the organization, the whole ball game changes. It’s a punishing schedule, and anybody who thinks it’s not can think again.”
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Focus on delivering their best, high-quality work, and making an impact.
- Be mindful of how your mannerisms and behaviors might distract from your message and competence.
- Be prepared to make sacrifices as you climb the corporate ladder.
5. Embrace Tough Decisions for the Greater Good
Nooyi shared that she had to make many difficult decisions during her time as CEO of PepsiCo, such as workforce reductions, that were ultimately necessary for the company’s long-term success. She emphasized the importance of making these tough calls with plenty of compassion and focusing on the greater good.
Elaborating on this painful decision of layoffs, Nooyi said: “For the sake of productivity, especially when you introduce new technology, there is going to be a reduction in workforce. Now you can approach it objectively and say, ‘Hey, tough luck, I want to reduce the workforce’, or you can look at it with a little bit of compassion and say, think about how to retrain the workforce for new jobs.”
“Don’t sit here wringing your hands about the 10,000 who have to leave the company. Think of the 145,000 people who are left behind; they have to be successful too,” she added.
Nooyi stressed that tough decisions must be made when running a company and delivering financial results. These decisions are painful and not everyone will like them, but a leader must focus on the bigger picture.
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Approach tough situations with compassion, and a focus on supporting impacted team members.
- Accept that leaders must make tough decisions that may not be popular but are necessary for the organization’s success.
- Maintain a focus on long-term goals rather than getting bogged down by short-term pains.
6. Leave a Lasting Legacy Through Mentorship
Mentorship features heavily in Nooyi’s professional narrative. She places great emphasis on finding a suitable mentor and being a mentor to others. Nooyi takes great pride in the leaders she has personally mentored and developed over the years. Many of them have gone on to become CEOs themselves. Nooyi sees this as a key aspect of her legacy.
She pointed out that leaders who want to be effective mentors must be ready to let their mentees outgrow them and possibly take over their jobs – it is, after all, a form of succession planning. Nooyi also advised that leaders who want to be mentors should be generous with their time. This led her to stress the importance of mentors choosing their mentees. If they’re going to spend the time and effort to mentor someone, they need to be selfless about it.
“Mentorship is an unselfish act because if you mentor somebody very well, they could take your job. When you start thinking about mentoring people, which is your job as a leader, approach it with the company in mind, not your job security.”
Leaders can create a lasting impact far beyond their tenure by investing in the next generation.
Nooyi advises leaders to:
- Take pride in mentoring and developing the next generation of CEOs.
- Be unselfish in their mentorship, invest time, and provide honest feedback to help mentees grow and succeed.
- View mentorship as a key element of your legacy and responsibility as an experienced leader.
*The insights in this article have been edited for length and clarity.
