Alumni Celebrate 10th Forty Under 40 Class

A Who’s Who of Northwest Arkansas fit into one ballroom to celebrate successes and for the chance to learn from PepsiCo’s CEO.

The Northwest Arkansas Business Journal celebrated 10 years of Forty Under 40 classes at the John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers on Aug. 29.

The event commemorated the 400 members of the Forty Under 40 from the last 10 years, including the class of 2006 and the 12 All-Decade honorees. More than 230 people — mostly Forty Under 40 alumni — attended the event.

Steve Reinemund, chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, was the event’s guest speaker. Reinemund’s appearance was arranged by the Soderquist Center for Leadership and Ethics, an event sponsor founded by Don Soderquist, a former senior vice chairman of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

PepsiCo is the parent company of household name brands such as Frito-Lay, Tropicana, and Quaker brands. In 2005, the company had net revenue of $32.6 billion, making it the world’s third largest food and beverage manufacturer, behind Nestlé and Kraft Foods Inc.

Reinemund shared his insights on business and personal success outlined in a mnemonic-friendly list called “The 7 Ps,” which were: principles, perspective, personal mission statement, passion, persistence, performance and people.

Principles, one’s moral compass Reinemund said, is most important and should serve as one’s true North.

“It’s what you’ve trained yourself to do without thinking about it,” he said. Even though the dinner began with prayer, Reinemund admitted he might offend someone, but thought he would take the risk of sharing where his true North derives – God. Reinemund said he believes principles must come from something larger. For him, it is his Christian faith.

He also shared an example of principles within his company. A PepsiCo executive received a letter from a leak inside Coca-Cola revealing a trade secret. The PepsiCo executive recognized the danger of having the information and immediately returned the letter. Shortly after, the Coca-Cola CEO called Reinemund directly to say “thank you” for the way PepsiCo handled the situation. Reinemund had no idea what the phone call was all about until he later talked with his executives. It was a moment he is very proud of.

Perspective, an appropriate synonym for vision Reinemund confessed, is the second “P.”

“Great leaders have visions,” he said.

One great leader with vision who Reinemund named was Sam Walton.

“When you’re on the road and behind a Wal-Mart truck, you see, ‘We sell for less,'” he said.

That’s the type of vision drives leaders to the top.

Personal mission statement is another ingredient of Reinemund’s model he encouraged. He said people should have aspirations greater than the single project you’re working on at the time. People should give back to the world.

Reinemund’s community service has included serving on the advisory board and as chairman for The Salvation Army. He also served on the board of advisers for The National Council of La Raza.

Passion was the fourth “P.” Reinemund defined passion as “courageous commitment.”

Perseverance, Reinemund said, is the ability to stay on course.

Performance is another word Reinemund used for competence.

People finished off the “7 Ps” list, but it is an essential tenet in Reinemund’s mind.

“People don’t care what you know until they know that you care,” he said.

Much of the success he and PepsiCo reaped came from the sewing of people development, Reinemund said. Mentoring is a vital objective of the CEO’s. He said a great leader gives the ability to new employees to take the company to new levels of success.

Reinemund’s desire and ability to invest in people has paid dividends for PepsiCo. Since Reinemund took control of PepsiCo in May 2001, the company has seen revenues increase by more than $9 billion and net income increase by 70 precent.

On Aug. 14, PepsiCo announced Reinemund’s plans to retire. He will step down as CEO at the end of September. He will be replaced by Indra Nooyi, president and CFO since 2001. Reinemund will continue to serve on the board of directors until May 2007.

He said he learned a lesson from announcing retirement.

“Irrelevance happens very quickly,” he said.

Reinemund said that just a few hours after his announcement, he returned to his office and attempted to check his e-mail but had already lost computer access. As the crowd got a laugh, he said it was an honest accident but it did illustrate his point.

Reinemund said his priorities had influenced his decision to retire. PepsiCo is a company he loves and literally dreams about, but he wants to be able to spend more time with his family.

Reinemund started at PepsiCo in 1984 as senior operating officer of Pizza Hut Inc. He then served as president and CEO of Pizza Hut from 1986 to 1992. Reinemund then became president and CEO of Frito-Lay Inc., and Chairman and CEO of the Frito-Lay Co. in 1996. He was elected a director of PepsiCo in 1996 and served as president and chief operating officer from 1999 to 2001.