Alistair Bramley is Senior Director, Systems Innovation, at PepsiCo. He spoke to us about systems thinking and the role of design in innovation
Design is at the heart of PepsiCo’s business transformation, influencing everything from packaging and brand identity to how the organisation approaches growth, systems and impact. We asked Alistair Bramley why systems design matters, how it’s reshaping innovation and what it takes to turn intention into infrastructure.
PepsiCo’s design capability spans everything from packaging to breakthrough innovation. How is that role evolving across the business and what does that signal for the wider CPG industry?
Alistair: At PepsiCo, design plays two distinct roles. First, the familiar brand design covers everything from brand identity, packaging, strategy and storytelling. We do that at an incredibly high level, with a hugely talented brand design team. We were named Red Dot: Agency of the Year 2024, the first in-house team to win.
Alongside that sits our industrial design capability, across packaging, equipment and the broader physical experience of our brands. That’s a really important part of how design delivers value for our users, and for PepsiCo.
Then there’s the second, equally important side: design-led innovation. This is about using design as a strategic tool for driving growth, exploring new opportunities, creating value in new ways, and shaping what the next generation of PepsiCo products and experiences might look like.
Together, these two expressions of design signal a broader shift across the CPG industry. Design is no longer just about how things look. It’s about how businesses grow, and how they do that in a way that is positive for the planet.
Can you share an example of how systems thinking has led to breakthrough innovation at PepsiCo and what that looks like in practice?
Alistair: Systems thinking begins by understanding the full value chain– from farm to fork and sips to bites — and the behaviours and interconnections that shape it. Without seeing and empathising with those connections, we can’t meaningfully influence the system. It also requires understanding the feedback loops that explain why things happen. This reveals where the system can be shifted toward better outcomes and what conditions must be designed for innovation to take hold.
A good example is the rigid paperboard SnackBox launched in the Netherlands for Lay’s and Doritos. By replacing plastic multipacks with a recyclable paperboard outer box, it fits local recycling systems, reduces material complexity, and shifts consumer expectations around responsible convenience.
That same systems lens led us to identify packaging platforms critical to PepsiCo’s future; platforms that move us toward a north star for packaging that is reusable, recyclable, biodegradable, and made from waste- or atmospheric-carbon. These platforms also elevate consumer experience, strengthen brand perception and support PEP+ commitments. This work ultimately enabled the creation of a dedicated business unit to scale them across categories and markets.
For CPG leaders trying to embed systems design and innovation into their organisations, what’s one thing they should start doing and one thing they should stop?
Alistair: Start by designing for the whole system, not just the consumer.
Breakthrough innovation happens when you understand how the entire value chain works, from farm to factory to shelf to home, and what actually enables or blocks change. CPG leaders should start using design to map the system, build relationships across R&D, supply chain, procurement and commercial, and create solutions that work for everyone in that chain. When design plays this role, it becomes the integrator across desirability, feasibility, viability and sustainability, helping the organisation move coherently toward the future.
Stop assuming user-centricity alone leads to breakthrough innovation.
User insight matters, but it’s not enough. Many teams stop at “what consumers want” and then watch ideas die elsewhere in the system. To deliver real change, leaders must design against all four lenses: desirability, feasibility, viability and sustainability.
If you ignore any of them, innovation won’t scale. User-centricity is the starting point, not the finish line, and treating it as the whole answer is what stops organisations from making real breakthroughs.
You’ve said “intention without infrastructure is just theatre”. What has PepsiCo done to make breakthrough innovation possible and what’s been harder than expected?
Alistair: That phrase comes from experience. I’ve seen plenty of organisations talk about innovation without changing the systems that make it possible. If your business is built only to exploit what exists, it won’t suddenly deliver breakthrough innovation.
At PepsiCo, we built systems that let innovation run alongside the core business, not inside it; different structures, processes and people focused on longer-term, higher-risk bets. In a large CPG company, that dual structure is the real signal that you’re serious about change. One engine runs the core business, while another explores what’s next.
The hard part is balance: protecting innovation so it can flourish, while still creating pathways to bring successful ideas back in. Get that right, and innovation stops being theatre and starts driving transformation.
One last quickfire question: what book would you recommend to anyone wanting to understand the mindset behind systems design?
Alistair: If I had to pick one, it’s Thinking in Systems by Donella Meadows. It’s the foundational text. Once you understand how systems behave, everything else about innovation and design starts to make more sense. It’s a reminder that innovation is never linear. It’s about understanding how systems behave, then using design to shift them for good.
Written by Toby de Belder.
