Sometime in January, my mother called me and said, we’ve received a postal mail from PepsiCo. I did a double take and said maybe I mixed up my permanent and current addresses, my mother said the letter was very much addressed to them. It was a cordial invitation sent to my parents to be a part of PepsiCo family. That gesture really touched me.That an organisation would write to my family and say they are as much a part of the organisation as I am, was very heart warming.
The Beginning
Starting off on such a positive and enthusiastic note, I was excited and geared up for my summer internship at PepsiCo. We had a week long induction process lined up for us. We were thoroughly pampered during this period with great food and stay. The induction process exposed us to the core functions of PepsiCo and gave us a chance to interact with the Executive Committee members. We were sent off on market visit and plant visit to really understand the business and get a well-rounded perspective.
The highlight of the induction process was when we were taken to a government school and we were able to do our bit to beautify the premises. From the second we stepped into PepsiCo, the most palpable thing was that employees were a cheerful lot, they were hardly found to be free, yet they seemed to be having fun. The Talent Acquisition team ensured that our induction had its fair share of jaw-dropping (quite literally) surprises and fun n frolic.
Induction Week Fun!
The CEO Shiva Kumar spent time with us interns on three different occasions in the induction week. He was a dynamic yet very approachable person, who was always all ears to what we had to say.
PepsiCo India CEO D.Shiva Kumar interacting with Interns
By the time our induction came to a close we began to feel home at PepsiCo. The well thought out induction process was very helpful in easing into our roles and projects.
Project Time!
I interned with the Learning and Development team in HR department and was based out of their headquarters in Gurgaon office. It was quite exciting to be working out of the HQ as I got to see all the buzz of PepsiCo products first hand. To think that the brains behind iconic brands like Pepsi, 7UP, Tropicana, Lays and much more were housed under one roof was very thrilling.
I was given two projects, firstly to create a framework for on the job learning at PepsiCo India and secondly, to make a plan to attract talent to the Franchise vertical of PepsiCo India. Both the projects were very challenging and exposed me to areas I had not been familiar with until then. My mentors, guides and buddy made me feel absolutely welcome from day one. I was briefed about my project, scope and deliverables in detail. More than anything, my reporting manager reinforced in me that I was a PepsiCo employee and not just an intern.
There was a great deal of emphasis on our learning and knowing PepsiCo functions in detail. The HR department facilitated knowledge sessions with key HR stakeholders, so that we got a complete overview of all the functions. My reporting manager left no stone unturned to ensure that I received any resources, help, information that I required on time. My colleagues at PepsiCo were also very friendly and helpful and were always on the lookout for helping us in any manner they could.
Culture at PepsiCo
PepsiCo empowers its employees to take decisions and there was freedom of thought and expression across the organisation. I would say bureaucracy and PepsiCo were antonyms to each other, where ever I went, I saw healthy debates and discussions amongst employees across ranks and hierarchies. Everyone was addressed on first name basis, including the CEO himself! I have always felt PepsiCo, true to its motto is indeed a place full of possibilities.
The desks in PepsiCo tell a lot of stories about their occupants, but there’s one common special story that many desks tell. This is a hand-written story written in a familiar handwriting across the organisation.
As already mentioned, PepsiCo’s CEO Shiva Kumar, is a leader who leads from the front and walks with his employees, literally. It was a common sight to see him talking to an employee in the lounge, having his meals in the cafeteria along with his colleagues, and more commonly crack a light hearted joke and make the group erupt into laughter. Shiv as he is fondly called, writes a personal note of appreciation whenever an employee does remarkable work, these are the special hand written stories that adorn the desks of many PepsiCo employees. Shiv truly believes and practices, gaining teachable point of views, he dedicates time out of his busy schedule in taking Master Classes for employees on a variety of topics. From first-hand accounts I learnt that Shiv’s master classes are very highly regarded in the organisation.
As a foods and beverages company, employees are spoilt for choice with unlimited and free access to all PepsiCo products in the office. I also loved their thoughtful gesture of stocking up the pantry with fruits and promoting a healthy lifestyle.
PepsiCo definitely practises what it preaches, their latest Mirinda ‘release the pressure’ campaign focused on reducing the burden on students. At office, employees could avail free massage services to ease themselves of the office pressure.
One other thing that caught my eye at PepsiCo was their commitment to diversity. PepsiCo has a shadow board called ‘Y-Comm’ comprising of millennial employees elected by popular vote. This board is constituted with a vision to reverse mentor the senior leaders, and enable a smooth transition into the digital fuelled by the young ‘Y-Comm’. PepsiCo is also committed to gender diversity and diversity of people with special abilities and skills. The physical infrastructure at PepsiCo also supports and complements their diversity initiatives. Be it the vocal announcement system and accessible floor keys in the elevator or sanitary pad dispensers in the washrooms. PepsiCo takes care of every little detail to make sure that all employees feel equal and comfortable at workplace irrespective of their backgrounds. These seemingly little things are the once that send out loud and clear messages to employees and make them feel home at workplace, and something I deeply respect about the organisation.
Memories to cherish
My project involved a great deal of primary data collection and hence I needed to interact with many stakeholders during the process. Employees at PepsiCo were always forthcoming in providing their inputs to help me.
I had a 15 minute interview scheduled with an Executive Committee member, the meeting was clearly going beyond time, but he did not mind this at all, in fact he spoke at length to me and patiently explained every little aspect to ensure that I had no doubts. His passion towards his job, and commitment to helping me, was really inspirational. This is a meeting I will remember forever and I hope to inculcate some of the splendid traits he exhibited that day, and be as good as a manager he is.
I will also always remember how some colleagues readily and actively helped me in organising focus group discussions across PepsiCo offices. I saw people being committed to an organisation’s mission and going out of their way to help colleagues during this time.
During a casual conversation, one lady employee told me how the crèche at PepsiCo played a very important role in her career. She recounted how she had to make a hard choice between looking after her toddler and taking a break from work. At this time, PepsiCo set up a crèche at work, and she said this facility was so convenient and the ease of usage made so effortless that she was able to work and take care of her baby. This account of hers made a strong impact on me, and taught me how a well thought out and executed policy can have a profound impact on employees’ careers. PepsiCo was one of the few companies that had a 6-month maternity leave policy even before the government mandated it. As mentioned above, PepsiCo is a trend setter and forward looking organisation, that walks its talk.
Gurgaon was an alien city to me, it was with the help of my fellow interns was I able to adjust to my new surroundings. I am thankful to the camaraderie they brought into the otherwise hectic two months.
PepsiCo 2017 Management Summer Interns
I was fortunate to witness the first Pep talk organised by PepsiCo India in their new premises. The guest was none other than Harsha Bhogle himself, watching him eloquently speak about cricket, leadership and the future trends that would determine the composition of teams (corporate and sports both) was an absolute pleasure. The Hyderabadi in me was overjoyed to see a fellow Hyderabadi share his love for the city on the stage! :D
My most memorable time at PepsiCo was undoubtedly the conversations I had with my superiors and specially my reporting manager. They were truly enriching, engaging and full of learning. They took out time from their busy schedule, out of their personal time, at times and guided me. These were the times in my internship I reflected on my work, my habits, my weaknesses and how I could go about improving them. These conversations have given me invaluable knowledge and wisdom that have had a strong impact on me.
Summing up my PepsiCo Journey
I was told that ‘summer internship is not a 100 metre race, but like a 400 metre relay race’. It’s an exciting fast paced adrenaline packed two months, some laps I ran the race like an ace and some I stumbled and fell face first. I am grateful for the patience with which my follies were taken and presented to me as learning opportunities by my superiors. Internships apart from being potential full time employment opportunities are avenues for students to get practical experience in their field of study, testing grounds for their skills and a window of exposure into the corporate life. PepsiCo provided me with all of these, amongst all these, the one that I hold close to heart is knowledge of my own blind spots which I would have otherwise not known, if not for the people and organization I was part of.
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