PepsiCo makes a leadership shift by announcing Jagrut Kotecha as the new CEO

This shift came after making PepsiCo India CEO Ahmed El Sheikh the CEO of the Middle East Business Unit from March 2024

Jagrut Kotecha, the current Chief Commercial Officer for PepsiCo in Africa, Middle East, and South Asia (AMESA), is set to take on the position of CEO for PepsiCo India. This strategic leadership transition, aligned with PepsiCo’s proactive and progressive global strategy, has been carefully planned. The announcement was made to employees in the India office yesterday, as part of a broader series of leadership changes happening across AMESA.

Having joined PepsiCo in 1994, Jagrut Kotecha brings a wealth of experience, particularly in sales and brand management, with a focus on end-to-end profit and loss (P&L) responsibility. His contributions as the Vice President of PepsiCo India in 2018 were pivotal, where he played a significant role in overseeing innovative changes and transformations for well-known products such as Lay’s and Kurkure, tailoring them to better cater to the preferences of Indian consumers. Additionally, Kotecha successfully led the launch of Doritos, a new snack, in 2017.

Jagrut Kotecha said, “Having been part of the PepsiCo family for the past 30 years, I have witnessed firsthand the unwavering commitment of PepsiCo India to excellence and innovation.”

Jagrut Kotecha commenced his career in the sales division of Cadbury India from 1992 to 1994. In 1994, he transitioned to PepsiCo India, where he initially served in Sales and Marketing, progressively taking on various roles.

His journey in PepsiCo has been as follows:-

1994: Various roles in Sales & Marketing at PepsiCo
1997: Regional Sales Manager
1999: Marketing Manager – Western Snack
2000 – 2002: Director Sales- Foods- ASPACD
2006 – 2010: Commercial Director- Philippines and General Manager- Malaysia / Singapore / Brunei / Pacific / Mongolia
2011 – Sep 2016: General Manager- Country Manager Thailand
Oct 2016 – May 2019: VP-Snacks Category India Region
Jun 2019 – Dec 2019: VP Global Affordable Platforms- Foods
January 2020: Senior Vice President Chief Commercial Officer -Amesa
2024: Chief Executive officer

PepsiCo has recently revealed that Kirk Tanner, the current CEO of the company’s North America beverage business, will retire on February 2. In light of this, Ram Krishnan has been appointed as the new CEO for PepsiCo Beverages North America. Tanner’s retirement marks the conclusion of an impressive 32-year career at PepsiCo.

Adding to these notable leadership changes, PepsiCo has disclosed plans to expand its Global Business Services Centre in Hyderabad. This expansion involves a substantial increase in employee numbers, growing from the current 250 to an impressive 4,000. This move underscores PepsiCo’s strong commitment to the Indian market and signifies a significant investment in its operations in the region.