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Brenda Barnes | Ex-Pepsi CEO, 63

Brenda Barnes, 63, whose decision to leave the top job at Pepsi-Cola set off a national debate about mothers in the workforce, died Jan. 17 in Naperville, Ill., from complications of a stroke.

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Brenda Barnes, 63, whose decision to leave the top job at Pepsi-Cola set off a national debate about mothers in the workforce, died Jan. 17 in Naperville, Ill., from complications of a stroke.

In 1997, Ms. Barnes left her job as CEO of Pepsi-Cola North America to spend full time raising her children. She was both heralded and criticized for rejecting the role of the superwoman who could effortlessly balance family and work.

As her children grew up and readied for college, Ms. Barnes returned to the corporate world, taking an executive position at Sara Lee Corp. in 2004. She became Sara Lee CEO in 2005.

She stepped down after suffering a stroke in 2010.

- AP