PepsiCo India Holdings Chairman and Chief Executive Officer D Shivakumar has resigned, nearly four years after he took charge, The Hindu reported on Monday. He will be joining the Aditya Birla Group as the president of corporate strategy and business development.
The current Senior Vice President and General Manager for Pepsico Egypt and Jordan, Ahmed El Sheikh, will take over as the Indian Chief Executive Officer from November 1, the beverage maker said.
Shivakumar is expected to leave on December 31. He will then report directly to Aditya Birla Group Chairperson Kumar Mangalam Birla. The conglomerate has businesses spread across sectors including telecommunications, cement, chemicals, mining and textiles in 36 countries.
Shivakumar’s exit from PepsiCo comes at a time when the soft drinks industry is facing high taxation and losing consumers because of their preference for healthier drinks. During his four years at PepsiCo, Shivakumar was instrumental in leading the transformation journey of the company, the firm’s Chief Executive Officer (Asia, Middle East and Africa) Sanjeev Chadha was quoted as saying by Mint.
“Notably, he has been a key driver for portfolio transformation and helped develop our nutrition business, launching winning innovations with our Quaker and Tropicana brands,” Chadha said. Under Shivakumar’s leadership, PepsiCo also deepened consumer engagement with its flagship brands, he added.
Shivakumar was overseeing PepsiCo’s operations in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. He was also responsible for organising the firm’s planned Rs 33,000-crore investment in India between 2013 and 2020.
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