WOMEN’S FOODSERVICE FORUM (WFF) HONORS PEPSICO INC.
FOR SUPPORTING AND ADVANCING WOMEN LEADERS
PepsiCo Receives Prestigious New Jackie B. Trujillo SOAR Award
At the NRA Hotel-Motel Show in Chicago
CHICAGO, IL (May 22, 2006) – The Women’s Foodservice Forum (WFF) is pleased to announce that PepsiCo Inc. is the recipient of the new Jackie B. Trujillo SOAR Award. The SOAR award celebrates companies who are the Standard-setters for Opportunity, Advancement and Recognition of women leaders in their organization.
“We congratulate PepsiCo for supporting the industry-wide mission of elevating women leaders in foodservice,” said Paula Marshall, WFF chair. “PepsiCo has successfully created a culture in which female employees are given full, unrestrained access to resources, support and encouragement that allows them to seek and achieve the highest levels of professional and personal success.”
PepsiCo’s leadership in the food and beverage industry has included a demonstrated success in providing opportunities for the advancement of women leaders. Their current board composition is 29% females and 29% minorities and females make up 27% of officer positions. They have demonstrated a strong positive trend to improving gender diversity at senior levels and have a published values statement that specifically calls out diversity, inclusion and respect. PepsiCo has an active Women’s Initiative Network and offer both formal and informal mentoring programs within their organization. Employees also receive regular companywide communication surrounding diversity and gender issues in which a high value is placed on gender diversity as a mandatory business practice. In addition, work-life balance programs are available to all employees and the company has set quantified goals to improve gender diversity in those areas identified as inadequate.
“PepsiCo is proud to accept this prestigious award from the Women’s Foodservice Forum,” said Chris Furman, president, PepsiCo Foodservice. “Diversity isn’t just the right thing to do. It’s the right thing to do for our business, and we’re committed to making diversity and inclusion a way of life at PepsiCo. We are very excited to be acknowledged by the WFF for our work in this area. The WFF is making a significant, positive impact on the foodservice industry by supporting and advancing its mission of Elevating Women Leaders and enhancing the industry’s business performance through gender diverse leadership.”
The Jackie B. Trujillo SOAR Award will be presented each year at the WFF Annual Leadership Luncheon during the National Restaurant Association’s Hotel-Motel Show. Named after a founding member of the WFF and a true pioneer in the foodservice industry, Ms. Trujillo rose from a car-hop to the Chairman of the Board of the largest KFC franchise in their history. She not only spurred women leaders forward in her organization, but opened doors for more women to be elevated in the foodservice industry. The SOAR award is the highest honor an organization can receive from the WFF. It recognizes and measures the efforts that companies are making to elevate more women leaders in foodservice. Doing so will ensure that the industry as a whole continues to thrive, because as research has demonstrated, gender diverse work teams produce better financial results.
The Women’s Foodservice Forum is the premier leadership development community for collective insights and connections that empower women in the Foodservice industry to envision and achieve their highest potential. With more than 3,000 members from all segments of the foodservice industry, including restaurant operations, manufacturing, distribution, publishing and consulting, Women’s Foodservice Forum is committed to helping elevate women leaders. Through highly beneficial keynote addresses and workshops at the Annual Leadership Development Conference, Regional Connect events, mentoring and more, WFF provides members with the tools needed to make a positive difference in their foodservice careers. For more information about Women’s Foodservice Forum, please visit the website www.womensfoodserviceforum.com.
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