Who Is Debra Crew? The First Female CEO Of Diageo

Debra Crew was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Diageo, a manufacturer of alcoholic drinks including the Johnnie Walker whisky and Guinness beer. The company took a remarkable decision recently of appointing its first-ever female Chief Executive Officer, Debra Crew.

With the appointment of Debra Crew as CEO, it will become the UK's largest company that is led by a woman. Diageo is the fourth-largest company that makes alcoholic drinks and the seventh-largest member of the Financial Times Stock Exchange Group 100 (FTSE 100) index (UKX). The decision is also notable as it would mean that women will have more than 50% proportion in the executive committee at Diageo. The crew will be succeeding Ivan Menezes who devoted 10 years to the position. Debra Crew is considered a worthy choice and has higher expectations from her. 

Who Is Debra Crew?

• Born on December 20, 1970, Crew went to the University of Denver for her bachelor's degree and then to the University of Chicago Booth School Of Business for her MBA.
• Her business journey began at Kraft in 1997 where she handled various management positions for seven years.
• In 2004 she joined Nestle subsidiary Dreyer's and was promoted to the position of Senior Vice President of the department of Marketing, Frozen Snacks.
• In 2008, she switched her job and joined Mars, Incorporated as General Manager and Chief Marketing Officer of Petcare US.
• During her four-year-long career at PepsiCo, she contributed significantly as the president of the Western European Region and the PepsiCo Americas Beverages President which was a brand new position at the company.
• In 2014, PepsiCo North America Nutrition announced her as General Manager and President
• After two months, Crew quit to join R.J. Reynold Tobacco Company, which she has been a director of since 2013, as its Chief Commercial Officer and president, and by 2017, she was promoted to the COO and later the CEO.
• A frequent name in the 50 Most Powerful Women in the Business list of Fortune, Debra Crew joined the board of Diageo in 2019 as a non-executive director and later became Diageo North America's president in 2020. She will be joining the office as the CEO of Diageo on July 1.

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