Indra Nooyi's One Big Piece of Advice

In October 2021, we were delighted to welcome Indra Nooyi to share her leadership insights at the London Business Forum.

We've wanted to work with Indra for a long time. We've welcomed hundreds of amazing thought leaders and CEOs over the years and many of them often held up Indra as a shining example of great leadership.

Indra's session was full of incredible insights - too many to list here. Towards the end she offered the executives gathered at this virtual event her one big piece of advice for their leadership journey and to better equip them for the future, "Become a lifelong student."

Indra explained that "in today's disruptive world," you need to try to always stay one step ahead. What does this mean in practice? Well, we're biased but you could attend more London Business Forum events! That aside, the worldwide web offers thousands of ways to "retool," as Indra puts it, there's really no excuse. As we look to the future, learning is the only way to avoid being left behind.

Those whose business focus is People and HR already know the benefits for their organisations of instilling a Learning Culture: increasing employee happiness, improving employee retention, reducing hiring costs. In their 2021 report, Upskilling for Shared Prosperity, The World Economic Forum suggests upskilling could "lead to the net creation of 5.3 million jobs by 2030." The warning though is that if individuals don't invest their time in learning and developing specific skills, they will increasingly find they are falling behind their peers. In a changing world, we need to keep changing too.

Elsewhere in our event, Indra explained that it was only through "sheer competence that I powered forward." Indra told us how "it was an enormous time commitment" ensuring that she was always one step ahead, that her knowledge of the topic was the best it could be. She also reflected on her mistakes, making every one an opportunity to become a better leader, better communicator and a better listener. In this way, Indra embodies the spirit of lifelong learning.

The World Economic Forum lists the Top 10 Skills of 2025 here. With advances in technology, it's the human skills that will make all the difference and mean we can still bring value in an age of rapid technological advancement. Time spent developing your problem solving skills, finding your leadership style and taking care of yourself so that you are more resilient and flexible to change will not be wasted in the years to come. Becoming a Lifelong Learner is the best thing you can do for yourself and your career.