Book Review - My Life in Full

By Samir Shukla

My Life in Full - Work, Family and Our Future
Author: Indra Nooyi
(Portfolio/Penguin)
In her new memoir, Indra Nooyi, former CEO and Chairman of PepsiCo, talks about her life, early struggles as a woman trying to establish a career in India and rising to the highest post in the company.

It's quite an intimate telling of her story, a quintessential tale of humble beginnings in India, education, hard work, perseverance, and achievement of reaching the top of an iconic American company. Nooyi served as CEO and chairman of PepsiCo from 2006 to 2019 and was the first woman of color and immigrant to run a Fortune 500 company.

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My Life in Full is a poignant memoir written with humility. Throughout the book she chronicles her journey and events that shaped her life, her close-knit family, education in 1960s India to the Yale School of Management, marriage and raising a family while working to advance her career.

Her memoir is inspiring from her firsthand telling of the progress in her career and the personal sacrifices it so often demanded. She worked as a corporate consultant and strategist who worked to rise to the top. Her strategy at PepsiCo was to maneuver the company toward healthier products, a more sustainability profile, and inclusivity.

She talks about her strategies for the company, changing consumer preferences and behavior while managing a large, global workforce. She writes in honest details about the resistance she received as well as the support from people in the industry and outside, while trying to manage her family life and career.
She worked for and continues her efforts with business and government for what she believes are necessary for a healthy and productive society - paid leave, work flexibility, child and eldercare ecosystems and community support.
Nooyi has been awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honor, the U.S. State Department's award for Outstanding American by Choice, and 15 honorary degrees. She is married to Raj Nooyi and has two daughters, Preetha and Tara.