Vivek Sankaran

Biography

 Vivek Sankaran is president and chief operating officer (COO) of Frito-Lay North America, where he leads PepsiCo’s $15 billion snack and convenient foods business. Vivek’s leadership of Frito-Lay began in 2016, after serving as COO where he was responsible for marketing, customer (retailer) sales and go-to-market transformation functions, and oversaw PepsiCo’s commercial agenda in North America and across the PepsiCo customer teams. Prior to that role, Vivek was chief commercial officer for PepsiCo, where he led the company’s cross-divisional performance across its North American customers. Before joining PepsiCo in 2009, Vivek was a partner at McKinsey and Company, where he served various Fortune 100 companies bringing a strong focus on strategy and operations. He co-led the firm’s North American purchasing and supply management practice and was on the leadership team of the North American retail practice. Vivek has an MBA from the University of Michigan, a master's degree in manufacturing from Georgia Institute of Technology and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Chennai.

Research Interest

 food processing and technology