Nespresso’s U.K. CEO champions work-life fluidity over work-life balance

Work-life balance is often perceived as a zero-sum game. Time spent with loved ones comes at the peril of one’s career and vice versa. Increasingly, leaders are pushing back on the myth that either priority has to suffer while rejecting the notion that equilibrium between the two is always possible.

Anna Lundstrom, Nespresso’s U.K. CEO, is one of those leaders who doesn’t believe work-life balance is possible at the top, aiming instead for work-life fluidity.

Running a 650-person team while forging new partnerships (including one with Starbucks), selling some 14 billion capsules annually, and expanding a global retail presence currently in over 80 countries requires a round-the-clock focus on work. It’s very difficult to “switch off,” Lundstrom admits.

Although she delegates specific tasks to deputies, noting the importance of building a robust and capable team, she prefers work-life integration to an inflexible 50/50 split. That approach allows her to weave in work and personal life throughout her day and at her discretion.

“I think when you have this kind of responsibility, of course, you have to always be on. But I quite enjoy that,” Lundstrom tells Fortune. “You almost have to enjoy that kind of activity to do this job.”

Flexible work arrangements are a key talking point in the return-to-office debate. Whether one is pursuing work-life balance or work-life fluidity, the ability to throw in a load of laundry during one’s midday downtime is an obvious perk of the remote and hybrid model.

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But Lundstrom characterizes herself as an “office person,” as many leaders do, with the caveat that she rarely spends a full day in the office: “My days are so varied because it can be in the office for a bit and then I’ll have a lunch or an external meeting,” she says.

She's not the only leader to argue against a so-called work-life balance. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos once called it a "debilitating" phrase. He prefers "work-life harmony," arguing that "balance" suggests an uncompromising tradeoff.

“If I’m happy at work, I’m better at home," he told Thrive Global while still serving as Amazon's CEO in 2016. "And if I’m happy at home, I come into work more energized—a better employee and a better colleague.”

Leadership Tip of the Week

??Before you join the wave of leaders demanding a five-day return to the office this September, chat with your HR head about your recruitment needs. A recent analysis found that fully flexible companies—where employees have complete autonomy over whether they go into the office—grew headcount by 1.9% on average. Employers that were fully in-office grew their headcount by just 0.8%.

Leadership Next

When Mattel, Inc. CEO Ynon Kreiz took over the toymaker in 2018, he was the company's fourth CEO in four years. Mattel's internal culture was rigid and top down, and operating income was at a $343 million loss. Kreiz implemented cost saving and restructuring measures, which included laying off almost 2,000 people and closing five Mattel factories. In 2021, the company recorded $730 million in profit.

In this episode of Leadership Next, Kreiz joins hosts Alan Murray and Michal Lev-Ram to talk about his experience of joining Mattel at one of the company's lowest points and his strategy for turning it around. He also explains why he thinks Mattel's toy brands hold so much promise as larger franchises beyond the toy aisle, so expect a lot of conversation about the Barbie movie.

Listen to the?episode?and?subscribe?to Leadership Next wherever you listen to podcasts, or read the full transcript?here.

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