Case Study: PepsiCo Mexico—Promoting Gender Equity and Women’s Leadership: Creating Inclusive Environments and Developing Female Talent

PepsiCo Mexico’s mission of sustainability is termed “Desempeño con Sentido,” or “Performance with Purpose.” As part of this mission, the company is dedicated to respecting, contributing to, and supporting the communities in which it operates. Diversity and inclusion (D&I) is a critical part of achieving this vision, particularly as part of the ‘talent’ pillar, which forms part of Performance with Purpose.

In Mexico, the prevailing cultural norm is that a woman’s role is to marry and care for her children and family. This societal expectation often has the effect of making family and career mutually exclusive concepts, as domestic responsibilities take precedent over professional lives and lead many women in Mexico to leave the workforce. Recognizing this challenge, and the impact it has both on individual women and on the available talent pool, PepsiCo Mexico began to promote the inclusion of women in all areas of its business. The company has implemented a series of robust and diverse strategies, ranging from work-life to succession planning, to address this problem and reverse the trend.