Purchase, New York-based PepsiCo Inc. has appointed Jane Wakely and Ram Krishnan to senior leadership positions. Wakely will join the company as EVP, chief consumer and marketing officer and chief growth officer of international foods. Krishnan, currently serving as chief commercial officer, will become CEO of international beverages – a newly created role– and chief commercial officer.
Both executives will report to PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta.
Wakely brings to the company a focus on consumers, insights and building best-in-class brand and category growth strategies. As chief consumer and marketing officer, she will focus on driving accelerated growth by elevating PepsiCo’s consumer-centricity, innovation, brand and marketing capabilities. As chief growth officer of international foods, she will be responsible for accelerating the “Positive Choices” pillar of pep+ (PepsiCo Positive), which includes evolving the company’s portfolio into new spaces that are better for the planet and people by developing products with more diverse ingredients, such as plant-based proteins, nuts and seeds and whole grains.
Wakely joins PepsiCo with 28 years of marketing experience at Procter & Gamble and at Mars, where since 2019 she served as lead CMO and CMO of pet nutrition, one of the largest divisions of Mars’ $40 billion portfolio. She was previously global CMO of its chocolate division. She has operated globally and in highly complex product categories, brands and businesses across a variety of growth, turnaround and transformation challenges.
“PepsiCo is a marketing powerhouse known for its commitment to innovation and world-class, consumer-focused brands,” Wakely said. “I look forward to working with my future colleagues to delight consumers with new propositions and purpose-driven brands that bring pep+ to life.”
Krishnan, a 15-year PepsiCo veteran, will focus on driving accelerated growth for the international beverages business, including the company’s international franchise bottlers, with an end-to-end focus on brand-building, innovation, supply chain, digitalization, talent and sustainability. Krishnan will also be charged with leading faster growth for the SodaStream and Beyond the Bottle businesses, as well as the Pepsi Lipton partnership, the company’s joint venture with Unilever.
This move, effective Jan. 1, will bring PepsiCo’s critical beverage expertise and commercial capabilities into one group, with an eye toward optimizing the end-to-end operating model, capital allocations and building new capabilities. Krishnan will continue to oversee the company’s e-commerce business and global commercial capabilities.
PepsiCo generated more than $70 billion in net revenue in 2020, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker, Tropicana and SodaStream.
