My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future

In the last two chapters, Nooyi summarizes the arguments that she presented throughout her work, deftly fusing the memoir genre with her own sociological and economic arguments about worker rights, inclusivity, family life, and the economy. In doing so, she develops her theme of Corporate Ethics and Responsibility, urging people in influential positions to engage meaningfully in the discourse around bias and discrimination, work-life balance, and other pressing issues. She writes, “Real change in the matter of integrating work and family isn’t going to happen without men, especially those in power, helping to drive the discussion and helping implement the solutions” (281). By reiterating the intertwined nature between corporate policy and societal progress, Nooyi motivates corporate leaders to use their influence to enhance human rights and quality of life in their organizations and communities.

For example, she pushes executives to examine their HR practices and ensure that they are not tainted with bias. Nooyi’s own experience of uncovering sexist hiring attitudes at PepsiCo helps her demonstrate the persistent and irrational nature of this bias and how it must be explicitly confronted. She recalls questioning why her hiring team was only considering male candidates, only to be answered with blatant bias:

When I asked why they wouldn’t […] find a woman for the job, given that there were no women yet in the PepsiCo India C-Suite, the answer was a stunner. “If it’s a woman, she’ll end up leaving if her husband gets moved,” I was told. “We can’t take that chance.” Then I asked why the previous CFO had quit. “He is moving because his wife just got a big promotion” (265).

This anecdote exposes the hypocrisy in sexist thinking and persuades corporate leaders and other workers to assertively confront unfair hiring and pay practices, as Nooyi did. The company could have found someone even better suited for the role had they put effort into broadening their hiring practices; by ignoring a large demographic, they lost out on potential talent.

Nooyi also emphasizes corporate responsibility by showing how businesses can create positive social change in their own workplace culture. The #MeToo movement allowed people—largely women—to share their experiences of sexual harassment and assault, to demonstrate how common an issue it is. Time’s Up, as a response, was an effort to raise money for victims of harassment or assault following the exposure of Hollywood director Harvey Weinstein’s crimes. By discussing her own reaction to these widespread women’s rights movements, Nooyi shows how leaders can seize moments of broader social change to institute new policies or programs for employees. For instance, Nooyi set up a complaint hotline called “Speak Up” specifically for employees who needed to report workplace sexual harassment. This effort was a success, as workers who had suffered in silence felt more comfortable speaking up and sharing their experiences. Nooyi was “quick to fire confirmed harassers,” improving the safety and workplace culture at PepsiCo (263).

Similarly, Nooyi’s recommendations also persuade the reader that governments should play a role in supporting work-life balance. She argues that important supports such as paid leave and care infrastructure should not be left to businesses alone to decide; rather, they should be enshrined in the law so everyone can benefit from them, regardless of their profession. These worker rights aren’t as common in American state or federal legislature as they may be in other developed countries, and whether or not to instate them remains a hotly debated topic in politics and media. This forceful and controversial political argument makes Nooyi’s work more relevant and compelling, allowing her to suggest specific solutions to societal and workplace issues rather than simply identify problems. Her positive, hopeful tone about achieving the “moonshot” goals of reliable childcare and eldercare nationwide incites a feeling of excitement and support for the potential of her idea. She writes that her goals are “a commitment to future generations that will lay the foundation for a healthier, more prosperous population” (287).