Atlanta: PepsiCo Inc. recently elevated three executives into bigger roles, marking the next wave of leadership at a company that has lost talent at the very top.
Oswald Barckhahn, president of nutrition in North America; Laxman Narasimhan, CEO of foods in Latin America; and Mike Spanos, CEO of the greater China region, all were promoted in September.
While none of the executives is yet seen as a successor to chief executive officer Indra Nooyi, the company is trying to replenish its talent pool after a number of high-level departures. The most recent loss came this week, when PepsiCo disclosed that president Zein Abdalla, who’d been considered a contender to succeed Nooyi, will retire at the end of the year.
Barckhahn, who previously served as senior vice-president of Tropicana North America and general manager for Central Europe, is now responsible for Quaker, Gatorade, Tropicana and Naked Emerging Brands.
Narasimhan is now in charge of PepsiCo’s food brands in Mexico, Brazil, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, reporting directly to Nooyi. He previously was senior vice-president and chief financial officer of PepsiCo Americas Foods and before that was a director and location manager of McKinsey and Co.’s New Delhi office.
Spanos, who’s been with PepsiCo for about 20 years, now leads the company’s food, beverages and dairy businesses in China. He most recently was senior vice-president and chief customer officer for PepsiCo North America Beverages.
Abdalla departure
Abdalla, 56, managed PepsiCo’s European unit before being named president in September 2012, one of the company’s highest posts. CFO Hugh Johnston also is considered a potential successor to 59-year-old Nooyi, who became CEO in October 2006 and hasn’t said how long she intends to continue running the company.
PepsiCo has lost at least two other high-profile executives this year. Brian Cornell, who had run the company’s Americas Foods unit, became discount retailer Target Corp.’s CEO in August. Debra A. Crew, who was president of PepsiCo North America Nutrition, became president and chief commercial officer of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. last month.
The world’s largest snack maker and second-biggest beverage maker didn’t give a reason for Abdalla’s decision, which was disclosed in a regulatory filing.
“Zein’s departure would suggest either Indra is staying for a very long time or Hugh Johnston is the likely successor,” Ali Dibadj, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. in New York, said in an e-mail. “I would bet on the latter.”
Something different
There are no signs that Nooyi is going anywhere, according to a person familiar with the situation. Abdalla wanted to try something different after almost two decades at the beverage maker, though he doesn’t have another job lined up yet, said the person, who asked not be identified because the matter is private.
PepsiCo, based in Purchase, New York, said in an e-mailed statement that Abdalla “poured his heart and soul” into his work there for almost 20 years.
“His leadership has helped us to consistently deliver strong results while also positioning PepsiCo for sustainable long-term growth and value creation,” the company said.
PepsiCo will make more announcements on executive succession before Abdalla leaves on 31 December, according to Jon Banner, executive vice president of communications.
Nooyi has been locked in a confrontation with activist investor Nelson Peltz, who has pressed the company to split its beverage and snack units. After PepsiCo said in February that it would keep both divisions, Peltz, the founder of Trian Fund Management LP, wrote a 37-page letter criticizing the company’s leadership.
PepsiCo’s shares were little changed at $96.80 yesterday in New York. The stock has gained 17 percent this year, compared with a 2.4 percent advance for Coca-Cola Co.
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