Fairygodboss Radio: Advice and Lessons Learned from Women Leaders in Tech at PepsiCo

In this episode of Fairygodboss Radio, we sit down with tech leaders at PepsiCo, Angelica Arceneaux, Senior Director of Information Technology, and Martha Roos, SVP of Digital Product Management. With over 32 combined years of experience at the company, these two friends share their insights on how to advance in the tech industry, why PepsiCo is an exceptional place for women to work, and how to navigate challenges and thrive as a woman in technology. Tune in and discover how these two trailblazing leaders are changing the game in tech and paving the way for future generations of women in the industry.

_{[Recorded on February 2, 2023]}

Fairygodboss is proud to partner with PepsiCo. Find a job there today!

^{PepsiCo is an Equal Opportunity Employer: Female/Minority/Protected Veteran/Disability/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity}

 
Angelica Arceneaux – Senior Director of Information Technology

Angelica is an Information Technology Executive with 34 years of experience with a proven track record for building high performance teams.  

Angelica is currently the IT Senior Director in the Corporate and Global Functions team with responsibility for the Financial Planning and Analysis, Controls, Tax, Treasury, Legal, and Payments Services business areas. In her current role, Angelica is responsible for partnering with her business partners to help to shape and drive the global technology strategy.

Angelica has held several positions of varying authority throughout her 17 years at PepsiCo including, IT Director, Finance and Corporate Functions, IT Business Relationship Management Director for Benefits, Kronos, and Payroll, IT Sr Manager for Human Capital Management, and IT Project Manager for IT Capabilities. Prior to joining PepsiCo, Angelica held positions of varying authority at IBM, WRQ, Applied Microsystems and i2Technologies.

Angelica is a published author with articles published in Software Quality Magazine and COTS Journal and has presented papers at several software conferences. Angelica is a Suma Cum Laude graduate of Grambling State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Computer Information Systems. 

Martha Roos – SVP of Digital Product Management

Martha joins us from PepsiCo where she has worked for 15 years. Martha is currently serving as SVP of Digital Product Management in the Strategy & Transformation organization. In this role, Martha leads a team driving all aspects of product management across a variety of business functions, to yield AI-driven solutions which enable PepsiCo’s digital transformation. Prior to this role, Martha held a variety of roles in PepsiCo’s IT organization encompassing enterprise application implementations, inception of the company’s Enterprise Data Foundation, and establishment of Digital Platforms as well as the Cloud Acceleration and Value Office. 

Prior to PepsiCo, Martha worked for Cadbury Schweppes in a variety of roles advancing to VP, Strategy & Planning, Global Solutions. Martha began her career in the management consulting services practice of Price Waterhouse with focus on large-scale, technology-based projects. Martha holds a BBA from Texas Christian University and an MBA from Baylor University. Martha, her husband, and daughter live in Plano, Texas with their three dogs. 

Georgene: Hello everyone and welcome to Fairygodboss Radio. I'm so excited today to be joined by two wonderful women from PepsiCo. Angelica Arceneaux and Martha Roos, welcome to the show.

Martha: Thank you so much. So excited to be here.

Georgene:  Yeah. Well, we'll dive right in. Please tell us Angelica about your career journey. How did you get to where you are today at Pepsi?

Angelica: Thanks Georgene. So my current role at PepsiCo is the Senior Director for Finance and Corporate Function. So I would consider my career journey, I would call it maybe the low road less travel because I had an interesting journey that led me here. So I started off my career as a software test engineer for IBM.

I did software testing, process improvement for many years. Moved into areas around release and change management configuration management. I then moved into program management folks in more process improvement, which led me to PepsiCo where I started in a role as an IT capabilities project manager.

Then I moved there into an SAP release and change manager. and actually then made a switch and moved functionally into an SAP HR functional role. And from there I went into more IT strategy and supported different areas such as payroll, HR benefits, and then moved into the financing corporate function space where I am in today.

Georgene: Great. And what about you, Martha? Can you tell us a little bit about what you do and your career journey?

Martha: Yes, certainly. So I'm currently in a role over digital product management in our strategy and transformation organization. I started my career because, I was very drawn to what technology can do for business, and so that's why I took the route I did to go into business as a major and pursued my MBA.

Then jumped into consulting. Consulting was super fun because it's all about getting to apply technology to that business problem, but like a lot of people I wanted off the road after a while. That then led me into industry and I pursued a variety of roles, largely in the consumer packaged goods industry through the years.

So after a few years, I jumped from one CPG company over to PepsiCo and the cool thing about PepsiCo that I have really practiced that I think a lot of people could embrace in their organization is I've tried to be clear about what I don't want to do while staying really open to everything else. And I'm a firm believer that that leads you to opportunities you might not know about. And that's certainly how I've landed in the job that I am today. 

Georgene: Great. Thank you both for that introduction and a bit of context about your careers. When it comes to PepsiCo specifically – it sounds like you worked at CPG companies before, but can you talk a little bit about what about the company attracted you?

Martha: Yeah, for sure. It was the CPG nature of it, but also the fact that the company takes technology very seriously and invests in it consistently as a way to drive change in business value. So for me, it was all about being given the opportunity to continue what really interests me at my core and doing it on a larger scale than the other companies I'd been in in the past.

Angelica: And for me it was really more around, I love process improvement. I'm passionate about continuous improvement. So PepsiCo was actually on a journey. They were bringing in SAP, which was a huge transformation project, and so I had the opportunity to come in and help them to make that transformation, which is something that I'm passionate about.

So that's what drew me to PepsiCo. It was also a new industry for me, and I love a new challenge. I like doing things different. So I was looking for just a new experience and so PepsiCo has definitely provided me those challenges over the years and one of the best decisions I think I've made in my career.

Georgene: Great. Angelica, you started by saying you took the road less traveled, and I'm interested in why you pursued a career in STEM and technology. Because for a lot of women that's enough to be counting as the road less traveled.

Angelica: Absolutely. So I will tell you, when I was in high school, I had determined my major. I was going into business management, and then in my senior year we had our first computer technology class, and I was selected to be in that class. Once I took that class, I was hooked I could say. I changed my major to computer information systems. I would say kind of the risk is history. I love the combination of technology in business. And computer information systems, was that combination which allowed me to seek my passions around learning and continuous improvement and just offers ample opportunities to grow.

And as you said, there are not many women and definitely not many minorities in this field. So it's definitely doing something a little different, but definitely something that was very challenging and rewarding. 

Georgene: Well, I'm glad you stuck with it and can be a role model for others. Martha, what about you? What do you think is sort of most challenging and also conversely most rewarding about being a woman in the tech field?

Martha: Yeah, I think Angelica touched on a couple of really good points. You know, the challenge is there aren't many of us. There still are not many of us. And neither of us are old enough to have really been the trailblazers that made it possible for women, but we're definitely grateful for those who did. We're riding their coattails of opportunity, but there's still just not that many overall in these STEM fields. So I think that's the challenge. It's drawing on one of the points that Angelica said about women have such a strong desire to learn. Well then STEM is great for you because you can constantly learn cause it's constantly growing.

So the challenge is how do we make sure that we're drawing young women into STEM and making them realize that you can once you get here, you can do it. And that's where a company like PepsiCo is so attractive because the company's very dedicated to having 50% women, 50% men. And when we set a goal, we go after it hard.

So I'm not kidding when I say we are serious about women being represented equally here, and as a result of that, there are a lot of us that can support younger women along their career paths. When it gets hard, and we've all experienced it, you're juggling family. You're juggling, perhaps raising a child, you're juggling travel while trying to build a home life, and there's just a lot of women ahead of you in that that will support you. So, that's what you have to balance, and it's both a challenge and an opportunity.

Georgene: Well, it's wonderful that it sounds like it's a supportive environment that realizes that there are other things outside of day-to-day work to take care of. And of course, PepsiCo has a very famous former woman CEO who has been very vocal about gender equality.

Martha, maybe you can talk a little bit on that topic about other women that you've interacted with in your career and who has had some influences on you. 

Martha: I have to be quite honest, felt that women are supportive of other women or sort of self-centered. I don't usually meet women in the middle. Now the majority are supportive, but every now and then you meet a couple that are just for whatever reason, rather ruthless and just all about themselves. But I strongly feel you learn from both of them, right? So what have I learned from the couple that I've encountered that were over here on the bad side of the spectrum? First of all, you don't wanna be that way. Even if you learn, wow, this is a style of leadership I will never emulate, I will never treat people like that, you're still learning, right?

So you gotta say, what's the cup half full that I can get out of this? On the positive side, there's so many women that I've encountered who have really helped bring me along, have taught me from their personal stories, how they've manage work and life and have just been really candid about the struggles.

You know, some of the struggles are still sadly there, and it's to be always heard. If you're in a room full of men, you're the only woman at the table, which we so often are. You're usually listened to, but sometimes you still have to fight condescension. So phrases like, did that make sense to you, Martha? Did you understand what I'm saying? I just call men out on that. Like, sure, I understood it perfectly. Have you asked every man in the room if they also understood it? You know, you gotta push back when people do that because I truly think they're not even aware. It's an ingrained bias of how they treat and talk to women that they don't even know they're being condescending, but if we don't stand up for ourselves and for every other woman behind us, you know it won't stop. So you don't need to be rude about it. You don't need to be condescending back. I try to do it in a kind of lighthearted, but very direct manner and just call on that. So those are examples of things I've learned and observed from other women that I just try to, you know, file away.

Another one is in kind of the same vein. Don't be shy about saying who you are and what you're capable of doing right up front. I think putting yourself out there and saying, I've done this, I've done that in the conversations is important, and then they're like, oh, wow, I wouldn't have thought that. So just be bold.

Georgene: That's great. I do agree that there's a lot of unconscious behavior going on that often just needs a little bit of a wake up nudge to sort of change, and I heard a term about that the other day that I'd never heard before. Benevolent sexism. You know, it's not just unconscious, but sometimes people are even trying to be well-meaning, but still making assumptions. Angelica, what about you? You were one of the only women in the room, one of the only minorities in the room. How do you pay it forward in terms of mentoring and supporting other women, and what benefits do you feel from mentorship? Because I know it's not just giving. Mentorship can give you back a lot as well. 

Angelica: Absolutely. So I do several things in the mentoring realm. So I have some women who are mentored formally, which means we have like monthly meetings where they can bring any issues, challenges, ask for advice on their career. So I have a more formal program with them.

I have several women who I mentor I would say informally, which means they reach out as needed. So I'm having an issue with my manager or, hey, I need to make this critical career decision. I don't know which way to go. And so they reach out as needed. And we have those conversations at that time. And then I also support several of the PepsiCo employee resource groups.

So for example, last year I was one of the co-mentors for a week we called Women's Mentoring Circle. So there are a group of seven women that we met with on a monthly basis for about eight months. And we had several topics that we mentored, kind of the group of women. So it's kind of a group mentoring experience, which is actually unique and challenging experience as well.

So those are some of the ways that I actually give back. Then PepsiCo, I also mentor people outside of PepsiCo as needed. Anyone that comes for advice, I'm always, you know, willing because I wish, you know, I had more mentors myself when I was younger. 

And what do I get out of it? I would say the best thing I get out of it is satisfaction of seeing them mature and grow and be successful in their careers. There's nothing like seeing someone that came to you for advice and you just kind of helped walk them through it or gave them, you know, some pointers or tips and you see them take it and run with it and then be successful in their careers. There's just nothing like that feeling. 

Georgene: Yeah. And it sounds like you're really involved. That's a lot of – That's a lot of mentoring haha. I wasn't expecting so many examples. And you know, I guess through your mentorship, you probably have also seen Angelica that the last few years have probably raised new issues and changed people's lives. I mean, are you doing anything differently as a result, and are you giving advice differently? We've seen that women in the Fairygodboss community go through a lot of ups and downs. We're obviously out of the very initial shocks of the pandemic, but it caused a lot of self-reflection about how we live our lives, and so I'm interested in what you've seen. 

Angelica: Absolutely. So I would tell you one of the biggest things that I've seen that I've had to provide mentoring and advice on is turning your camera on and being present in meetings, right? Because we're in this new virtual world where you're always on and that can really burn you out mentally. And so I had a lot of women who were struggling with that. They're saying, you know, I'm at home, the kids are here, there’s things going on in the background. You know, can I still turn on my camera? You know, would that be appropriate? Is that professional? 

And basically what I shared with them is, if you're not turning on your camera, people aren't getting to know you. Your brand is not getting out there, so you are not being present in the moment, so you're not truly being who you are. I'm like, we're all in the same situation, but you just need to make sure that you are present. Bring your full self to the table and let them get to know and see the true you, because that's the one thing that I saw most women struggle with during the pandemic.

Georgene: You know, many Fairygodboss users say, not just now, but you know, I think this is like an evergreen topic. And Martha, you raised it earlier, responsibilities of your work and your personal life. In balancing those two things, you know, how do you think about this topic for yourself personally, and what would you say to women who are struggling with this? 

Martha: Yeah. For me it's all about prioritization. You give long, hard thought to what is important to you in your life and that's what you go for. And what does that mean? That means there's a lot of things you need to let go, but if you are very focused on what's important to you and you stay laser focused on that list, you let those other things go, that gives you a higher chance of being your very, very best on those things.

So I'm a firm believer once you decide you're gonna do something, you give it your very best. But also, it's sometimes hard to let those other things go. If you do, though, I think that you have to be generous to yourself in saying, nope, I let those go. I'm not gonna beat myself up because I decided not to do it. Like get it out of your mind space. So it's prioritization. It's prioritization at work. You gotta be very, very rigorous on what is your to-do list and what do you need to knock out today, this week, and the next month. You've gotta manage your time, but same thing at home. 

So a trick I used years ago that really applies this was as a working mom, I realized I couldn't make like these middle of the morning coffee planning meetings for PTA at my daughter's school. I tried a couple of times. Was very hard and then I'll be honest, when I got there, the inefficiency of those meetings drove me nuts. Just nuts. I decided I'm gonna change this. I am gonna prioritize the time I spend at my daughter's school on activities where she can see me. So I did lunch duty, so I wasn't with her a lot, but she'd see me over there cleaning the tables or whatever. I'd wave, she'd wave. I would try to do field trips, right where she'd see me at the front of the bus or whatever, and that was a prioritization decision for me. That really worked. I made my mind up on that, and that's what I did, and I try to just be that way, both in my work life and my personal life. 

The letting things go is important. Giving your very best on the things you have decided and not being afraid to do things that might be a little different for other people. So saying, no, these PTA meetings aren't working for me. I totally respect those of you that are running it. I'm thankful for that, but it's not for me, and I'm gonna step away from this and go do this other thing.

Georgene: I love the specificity of the examples and also your whole approach makes me smile because I have a product background as well. And in product you have to ruthlessly prioritize and drop things off the list, right? You can't build all the features, fix all the bugs at the same time. That’s right. And a wonderful woman I know has written a book called Drop the Ball and the whole message is around being comfortable doing that because oftentimes we feel like we have to really get everything right and be perfect and check off all the boxes. But that leads me actually to the fast, fun section of our conversation. I guess we could start with you, Angelica. What's your favorite way to practice self-care?

Angelica: That's easy for me. Mine is prayer and exercise, so I literally get up at 4:00 AM every morning. I'm at the gym by four 30 and I exercise. It's my quiet time, it's my time to meditate, and it's just a great start to my day. It's my me time, I would call it.

Georgene: That's great. Martha? 

Martha: It's working out and I try to consistently meditate so I don't claim to be a meditation success. I may be a bit of a meditation failure, but I try cause I think both that physical working out and getting your blood flowing when we sit so much of the day in front of the camera is important, but the mental aspect of it as well, just allowing your brain to relax so that you can come back and be your best brain going forward is important.So for me, it's finding some cardio and finding some meditation time. 

Georgene: Great. Any books, podcast or resources you'd like to recommend? 

Martha: Yeah, I have one that I think is worth everybody reading here at the first of the year. We discussed this internally recently as a management team, and it's a report by a group called the Eurasia Group. E U R A S I A, the Eurasia group, and what they do every year is a risk report. They do it at the beginning of the year, and it's global. It's global risks. It's not anything related to any one company or anything like that. It's a fascinating read. It's about 30 pages. You can skim it and get an idea, or you can go deep into some of ‘em. But I think any person on the planet, in business or even not would probably find it interesting. So it's eurasiagroup.net, and you can go pull that report. 

Georgene: I've read that. Not this year. A hundred percent agree. It's very eye-opening. The topics you don't normally think about every day. What about you, Angelica? Anything to share?

Angelica: The book I would recommend people to read the most called What Got You Here, Won't Get You There, which really talks about what are the things you need to stop doing as you look to move up in the next levels. Because I think a lot of people think I'm doing a good job. If I just keep doing these things, I'm gonna get promoted. I'm gonna move up the ladder. That's not true. Right? So I think people need to come to grips with the fact that you're gonna have to stop doing some things and change how you do some things if you want to grow your career. So I think it's kind of a mind opening for people to read that and learn that it's, again, it's okay to stop doing some things because that's how you're gonna learn and grow and to be successful in your career.

Georgene: What a great title. It's very appealing. Okay, so at Fairygodboss, we have a tradition based on the fact that it's been researched and well documented, that there is a self-promotion gap. Sometimes called a bragging gap. And it's really about taking ownership of the amazing things that we've achieved but may not feel comfortable talking about. Martha, you've mentioned earlier, it's important to talk about “I did this, I know how to do this,” and I think that's another way of saying what we see happening with women in particular. So could you both share something that you're proud of achieving professionally or personally, or both? 

Angelica: Absolutely. I will start. So one of the things that I'm most proud of is I do like a challenge. I talked about being, you know, curious and very passionate about learning. So when I moved into one of my roles at PepsiCo where I took over Cronos Workforce Management, which is kind of one of our key areas. I saw an opportunity to take that role global.

I came up with a strategy, pitched it to a couple people, was told that, you know, you'll never make it work. You'll never be able to do that. All of your predecessors have tried and they were not successful. I did not listen. I continued on. I developed a global strategy, consolidated multiple sectors into one single global contract saving PepsiCo 3 million annually.

I went on to sever our support relationship with our North America provider. And to use that funding to fund a global support model for new global capability. And I'm happy to say today that 90% of PepsiCo is now up and running on the global solution that I was told could not happen.

Martha: Yay. Awesome. I love that. I love that Angelica. That's amazing. So mine's very personal. It's my daughter, so she just turned 18 and she has been accepted at her college of choice, which is American University in D.C., which is very far from Texas. But I'm so proud of the fact that she's turned into such an amazing woman while I've been able to continue my career. I had a lot of people along the way that supported me in that I was able to travel with her as soon as I came back to work. She actually made gold on American Airlines when she was 10 months, cause I toted this little infant back and forth to the UK with. 

Back to prioritization. You know, she's always been my priority, but the unlock that I've just recently realized talking to her is the things that I gave myself guilt about, she learned from and found motivating. And I think that's what we as moms have to remember, like, don't beat yourself up that you're working after she goes to bed, or you know, you're doing what I talked about on the lunch duty thing instead of some of the others. Like give yourself the grace of saying, wow, maybe what I'm actually doing is setting a great role model for her. So that's paid off and I'm super, super proud of her. She's my proudest accomplishment. 

Georgene: Well, congratulations to you both. We’ve reached the end of our conversation, which I really enjoyed. So what's the number one piece of advice you want to leave our audience with today? Martha? 

Martha: So I use this phrase called embrace grace. And it's give yourself grace like I just talked about, but it's also give others grace. Take the time to realize, and this is so true coming from COVID, that everybody's dealing with something we don't know what it is. So if somebody is extra tense or extra snippy, or missed a deadline or whatever the case may be, extend grace to them. And I think nine times outta 10, you'll find out they're dealing with something that's extra hard and that grace will really, really pay off. So extend it to yourselves regularly, but also make the effort to consciously extend grace to other people and just embrace grace. That's my mantra.

Georgene: Simple but wonderful. Thank you. Angelica?

Angelica: I would say it's run your own race and be authentically you because no one can beat you at being you. I see so many people try to be someone else, right? They try to do things that are not normal or natural for them, and you can't be successful trying to be someone else, right? So run your own race. Don't look at what other people are doing. Be the best you you can be because nobody can beat you at being you. 

Georgene: Wonderful. Thank you for your time, your advice, and for sharing your stories with us. 

Martha: Thank you so much. Super fun. 

Angelica: Thank you.