PepsiCo has appointed Ram Krishnan as the chief executive officer of PepsiCo Beverages North America.
Krishnan will succeed Kirk Tanner, who will retire from PepsiCo on 2 February, after 32 years with the company, it noted in a statement.
Currently, Krishnan serves as chief executive officer of the company’s International Beverages unit and chief commercial officer for PepsiCo.
In these roles, he oversaw the company’s Global Concentrate group, franchise operations, Global Beverage group, SodaStream, Beyond the Bottle, and the global commercial organisation, which includes customer strategy, revenue management, go-to-market, e-commerce, Lipton, Beyond Joint Ventures, and the PepsiCo Venturing Group.
Krishnan joined the company in 2006 and has served in several senior leadership roles, including CEO of PepsiCo’s Asia-Pacific, Australia/New Zealand and China (APAC) Region, senior vice-president and general manager of PepsiCo’s global Walmart Customer Team, and chief marketing officer of Frito-Lay North America.
Before joining PepsiCo, Krishnan spent six years at Cadillac, the company noted.
‘The Ideal Leader’
Commenting on the appointment, Ramon Laguarta, PepsiCo chairperson and chief executive officer, said, “Ram is the ideal leader to take the helm of our North America[n] beverage business. [...] His vast experience leading International Beverages and our global commercial agenda, paired with his roots in North America[n] senior executive roles, make him a force to accelerate our beverage growth agenda. He is an innovator at heart, who keeps people at the core of every decision, and I look forward to seeing his inspirational leadership in action.”
Kirk Tanner
Tanner joined PepsiCo in 1992 and held several top roles across sales, operations, customer marketing, distribution, and channel development, working in many US and international locations.
He stepped in as the CEO for PepsiCo Beverages North America in 2019.
In this role, his responsibilities included serving as president of PepsiCo Global Foodservice, senior vice-president and general manager of Frito-Lay’s West Business Division, vice-president of sales at PepsiCo UK and Ireland, and multiple vice-president roles with Frito-Lay North America.
Laguarta stated, “Kirk’s leadership across our organisation and, most recently, as our North America[n] beverage business CEO, has driven strong performance, underpinned by a commitment to serving our customers, operational excellence, and a continuous innovation pipeline.
“I’m grateful for his contributions to our business, and our people, and we will carry forward the tenacity and team-first mentality he embedded in the organisation.”
Tanner will join the Wendy’s Company as chief executive officer following his departure from PepsiCo.
