By David Spector | Fox Business
Pepsi has become the latest company to significantly roll back its DEI policies, announcing it will be eliminating its role of Chief DEI officer and ending representation goals in hiring.
“We are revising our DEI program, as 2025 marks the conclusion of our five-year strategy. We see an even bigger opportunity to more deeply embed inclusion throughout the business as a key driver of business growth and will be introducing a new Inclusion for Growth strategy,” PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta said in an employee letter first reported by conservative activist Robby Starbuck.
The letter states that Pepsi will be “transitioning our Chief DEI Officer into a broader role” and that “Inclusion is the responsibility of all leaders at PepsiCo.” A slate of significant DEI rollbacks were mentioned in the letter, including sunsetting “aspirational representational goals” in hiring and centralizing “employee resource groups (ERGs).” Pepsi currently has a number of affinity groups centered around employees’ identity, including groups for Black and Hispanic employees.