Ever hear the old expression “Children are better seen than heard?”
Neither has the Gajrawala family.
This past Friday, Jefferies analyst Kaumil Gajrawala brought his teenage daughter, Milena, and his son, Kamran, to his office for “Bring a Kid to Work Day”.
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During earnings calls with PepsiCo and Keurig Dr. Pepper, the CEOs of the companies were surprised not only by the voices of children on the phone but also by the quality of their questions.
“So what do you think about the launch of GLP-1 oral medications coming to market next year?” asked Milena.
“Awesome,” answered Pepsi CEO Ramon Laguarta. Then, reports Bloomberg, he went into full CEO speak about the weight-loss and diabetes drugs that threaten soda and snack sales. “Obviously, we’ve been transforming the portfolio and we’ll continue to give the consumer offerings that help them in any sort of dietary preferences that they have,” Laguarta said.
Milena’s brother Kamran got in on the action, too. During a call with Keurig Dr. Pepper’s CEO, Tim Cofer, he asked about Dr Pepper’s new blackberry soda. (His exact question was not reported on.)
“I think it’s my first-ever question from a young person,” Cofer replied. “I appreciate it, Kamran. And I hope Kamran’s a big fan of Dr Pepper Blackberry.” Bloomberg reports that much like Laguarta, Cofer then dove into business-speak, discussing the “full-funnel marketing activation” of the new drink.
Afterwards, both CEOs gave high marks to their unexpected questioners. “Families are important to us at PepsiCo,” said Laguarta in a statement, adding that he thought Milena “asked a great question.”
Jane Gelfand, senior vice president of finance at Keurig Dr Pepper, said of Kamran, “We were delighted to get a question from a fan and budding analyst yesterday,” and thought he “did a great job and brought smiles to our whole team.”
Bloomberg reports that long-time financial analyst Gajrawala brought his kids to work so that they could “get a feel for the job,” and says that this was his first time he had them join an earnings call.
Seems like they not only got a feel for the job—they can step right in and do it.
