PepsiCo has announced that its North American CEO Al Carey will retire at the end of March 2019 after three years in the role and nearly four decades at the company, and his role will be split in two.
In his current role, Carey serves as the head of both the North America Beverages unit – which includes brand such as Pepsi, Mountain Dew, and Gatorade – and as the head of the Frito-Lay North America snacks unit, as well as the head of its Quaker Foods North America unit.
Vivek Sankaran, who currently serves as president and chief operating officer of Frito-Lay North America, will now become its new CEO; while Kirk Tanner, who currently serves as president and chief operating officer of North America Beverages, will become its CEO.
These appointments come just a few months after former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi announced she would be leaving her position after 12 years at the helm. She was succeeded by Ramon Laguarta, who assumed his role as PepsiCo CEO on 3 October 2018.
Regarding Carey’s retirement, Laguarta said: “Al has been an invaluable leader, colleague, advisor and friend, and will be missed by all of us at PepsiCo and all of the customers and partners he worked with over his exemplary career.
“Al’s unique combination of style, skill, entrepreneurial spirit and executional excellence has helped make PepsiCo one of the most admired businesses in the world, and raised the bar for our current and future associates.
“We wish him all the best in his next chapter. While Al leaves big shoes to fill, I have every confidence in our North America businesses under the skilled leadership of Vivek and Kirk in these critical roles.”
Carey added: “PepsiCo has been like family to me for almost 38 years, and to say this was a difficult decision for me is an understatement.
“I am so proud of the many accomplishments we achieved as a team along the way, especially with our customers and our front-line associates.
“PepsiCo has a bright future and I’m excited about the compelling growth agenda Ramon is bringing. I look forward to watching PepsiCo’s continued success for many years to come.”
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