How Leaders Learn

Chapter 3

Fill Your Gaps

Learn from people who know what you don’t

One of the biggest leaps I made in my career was moving from chief marketing officer to chief operating officer for PepsiCo’s beverage division. I literally had to beg for the role—because I had zero operations experience. To seal the deal, I told the CEO that if I wasn’t succeeding in six months, he could move me back into marketing with no argument from me, or even fire me.

It was a risky offer. As the head of marketing, I rarely visited operational centers like bottling plants. And when I did, I’d always listen politely to the tour guides and managers and nod as though I was absorbing what they shared. Really, the information would just bounce off my invisible marketing helmet. ...