Next time you're in Washington, stop by the National Portrait Gallery and spend some time with business leader Indra Nooyi, the former Pepsico Inc. CEO who worked to convince the snack food giant to invest in some healthier options, bio-based plastic for its packaging and recycled PET.
Nooyi, who stepped down from Pepsico in 2018 after 12 years as its leader, is one of six people (or 10 if you want to count the members of Earth, Wind & Fire separately) to have their portraits added to the museum on Nov. 17. The oil painting by Jon R. Friedman is part of the Smithsonian "Portrait of a Nation."
In a Q&A with the New York Times, Nooyi noted how she was recruited to Pepsico by its former CEO, Wayne Calloway, who pointed out that the company didn't have "somebody of my ethnicity or international outlook who was female in senior management at PepsiCo." And, she added, businesses still need to address the "leaky pipeline" that discourages women from advancing in the corporate structure.
If you're in Washington on Dec. 5, you can hear from her directly as the museum hosts her in its free Talks & Tours event.