PepsiCo Beverages North America, Orlando, Florida, is expanding its Returnship program across its South Division, which is an effort to increase representation in the workforce by recruiting female professionals who have taken time off for caregiving. The program is in partnership with career empowerment non-profit Path Forward.
The Returnship program offers 16-week internships to women professionals with a minimum of five years of work experience who have taken at least two years off for caregiving. The program provides professional development workshops, feedback sessions, networking opportunities and mentorship support to returners as they reenter the workforce.
“Programs like these are vital to increasing representation in the workplace and prove that talented women are often hidden in plain sight,” said PBNA South Division President Heather Hoytink. “We're thrilled to be expanding the program to additional markets and positions in the South to enhance our pipeline of future leaders by tapping into a diverse, motivated yet overlooked talent pool.”
After its success in the first year, the company is expanding the program, with 12 to 15 Returnship positions open in supply chain, sales and commercial fields—more than twice the number of positions available in the 2022 program. Positions are open across PBNA South Division hubs including Orlando, Tampa and Atlanta, with Nashville and the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area added this year.
Upon completion of the program, successful participants could also receive full-time PepsiCo job offers; 80% of the 2022 program participants accepted full-time positions after an average of seven years away from the workforce.
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