Ivan Menezes Net Worth, Diageo CEO, Biography, Death & More

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Ivan Menezes is a prominent business executive in the beverage industry. He was born on October 8, 1958, in India. Menezes is best known for his role as the CEO of Diageo, a multinational alcoholic beverages company.

Menezes began his career with Diageo in 1997, initially serving as the finance director for the Guinness Brewing Worldwide division. Over the years, he held various leadership positions within the company, including President and CEO of Diageo North America, Chief Operating Officer, and President of Diageo North America, Europe, Russia, and Turkey.

In 2013, Menezes was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of Diageo, succeeding Paul Walsh. Under his leadership, Diageo has expanded its global presence and achieved significant growth in key markets. Menezes has been instrumental in driving innovation, investing in brands, and fostering strategic partnerships to propel the company’s success.

Throughout his career, Menezes has been recognized for his business acumen and leadership skills. He has received several accolades, including being named as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential People in Business” by Fortune magazine.

Menezes is known for his disciplined and strategic approach to business, focusing on delivering strong financial performance and enhancing shareholder value. He has steered Diageo through various market challenges and positioned the company as a leader in the global beverage industry.

Outside of his professional endeavors, Menezes is involved in various philanthropic initiatives and serves on the board of several organizations. He is committed to driving positive social impact and sustainability in the communities where Diageo operates.

Ivan Menezes’s leadership and contributions have made him a respected figure in the business world, and his guidance has been instrumental in shaping the success and growth of Diageo.

Ivan Menezes Net Worth

Ivan Menezes has a net worth estimated to be about $5 million as of 2023. Ivan Menezes has had a successful career as the CEO of Diageo, a multinational beverage company, and has made significant contributions to the company’s growth and success.

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Ivan Menezes Death

Ivan Menezes, the former CEO of Diageo, the owner of Johnnie Walker and Smirnoff, has passed away at the age of 63 after a brief illness. The company announced his death, noting that he was surrounded by his family at the time. Earlier this week, Diageo had revealed that Ivan Menezes was undergoing emergency surgery in the hospital.

Debra Crew, the former chief operating officer, has been appointed as the interim chief executive following his passing. She was originally set to take over as CEO of the company on July 1, when Ivan Menezes was scheduled to retire.

Ivan Menezes had a remarkable 25-year career at Diageo, serving as the chief executive for a decade. His contributions were instrumental in shaping Diageo into one of the most successful and respected consumer companies. His leadership played a significant role in the company’s growth and its position as a trusted brand.

Javier Ferran, the chairman of Diageo, expressed deep sadness over Ivan Menezes’s passing. He acknowledged Ivan’s exceptional leadership qualities and the pivotal role he played in the development of Diageo. Javier Ferran extended heartfelt sympathies to Ivan Menezes’s wife, Shibani, and their two children, Nikhil and Rohini, during this difficult time. The loss of Ivan Menezes is deeply felt by the company, its employees, and his many friends and colleagues.

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Ivan Menezes Facts

Ivan Manuel Menezes was born on 10 July 1959, in Pune, India. He held UK and US citizenship, and Overseas Citizenship for India.
Ivan was one of Britain’s longest serving and most respected FTSE Chief Executives, transforming Diageo into the world’s leading premium drinks company and which accounts for 10% of the UK’s total food and drinks exports.
Ivan joined Diageo at its creation in 1997 and held many senior positions in a career spanning over 25 years at the company. He had been the Strategy Director for Guinness plc. When Diageo was subsequently created through the merger, Ivan was appointed Group Integration Director tasked with integrated this ‘merger of equals’.
He became Global Marketing Director, UDV, in 1998 and was responsible for developing the now iconic, ‘Keep Walking’ campaign for Johnnie Walker.
He subsequently held several senior positions in Diageo including Chief Operating Officer; President, Diageo North America; Chairman, Diageo Asia Pacific; and Chairman, Diageo Latin America and Caribbean.
Ivan was appointed to the board as an Executive Director of Diageo in July 2012 and served as Chief Executive Officer since July 2013. He was due to retire on 30 June 2023.
During his decade as CEO, Ivan oversaw an outstanding period of change, growth and high performance. Diageo made huge strides towards his ambition that Diageo should become one of the best performing, most trusted and respected companies in the world.
Now selling over 200 brands in more than 180 markets, today Diageo is the number one company by net sales value in Scotch whisky, vodka, gin, rum, Canadian whisky, liqueurs, and also tequila¹, a category in which only eight years ago the company had no substantive position.
Ivan was particularly proud to announce in December 2022, that Guinness was ranked the number one selling beer by value for the first time in the on-trade in Great Britain.
Having steered Diageo through the Covid-19 pandemic, Ivan delivered a company with net sales value 36% larger than in 2019.
Ivan was an inspirational champion for both women and ethnic minorities in business. In 2008 there were no women on Diageo’s Executive Committee, today over half are women, including his successor as CEO, the CFO and the Presidents of Diageo’s largest Markets – North America, Europe and India, and almost half of the Executive Committee are ethnically diverse.
Over 40% of Diageo’s senior leadership positions globally are held by women, while 37% are ethnically diverse, well on the way to his target to achieve gender parity in senior leadership and 45% of our leadership to be ethnically diverse by 2025.
Diageo was ranked the number one company in Britain for female leadership representation in the final Hampton Alexander Review in 2021, and ranked number one in the UK, and number two globally, in Equileap’s 2023 Gender Equality Report. In February 2023, Diageo was named the top company for female representation at board level in the FTSE Women Leaders Review.
Ivan was determined to be a pioneer on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, committing Diageo to deliver a positive impact on society everywhere the company operates. Diageo halved carbon emissions in absolute terms under his leadership – even as the company significantly increased production and sales – and water efficiency also improved by almost half.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Diageo produced more than 10 million bottles of hand sanitiser for healthcare workers around the world, including the NHS – with the Secretary of State for Health commenting that “Diageo rode to the rescue” when supplies were low.
Ivan also announced the $100 million “Raising the Bar” programme to help pubs and bars around the world reopen their doors safely again, providing PPE, sanitation, equipment for safer outdoor socialising spaces and staff training.
During the past decade, Diageo’s total shareholder returns have strongly outperformed the FTSE100, and the Company has continued its progressive policy to increase dividends every year.
Beyond Diageo, Ivan was Chairman of ‘Movement to Work’ between 2017 and 2020, a UK voluntary collaboration of businesses committed to tackling youth unemployment, in partnership with government, unions and charities, delivering 100,000 structured work placements for young people in the UK, with over 55% of participants securing permanent jobs.
Ivan had a long involvement with the Pratham charity as an ongoing donor. Pratham is a charity which promotes literacy an provides education to underprivileged children in India.
Ivan is a Non-Executive Director of Tapestry Inc.; Chairman of the Council of The Scotch Whisky Association; and a member of the Global Advisory Board at Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.
Prior to his career with Diageo, Sir Ivan worked across a variety of sales, marketing and strategy roles for Whirlpool in Europe, Booz Allen & Hamilton in North America, and Nestlé in Asia.
In January 2023, Ivan was awarded a Knighthood for services to Business and to Equality in His Majesty The King’s 2023 New Year Honours List.