Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast, Grede said, “Work-life balance is your problem. It isn’t your employer’s responsibility.”
Emma Grede, cofounder of Skims and Good American, believes work-life balance is a personal duty, not a company’s obligation.
Speaking on the Diary of a CEO podcast, Grede said, “Work-life balance is your problem. It isn’t your employer’s responsibility.” She emphasized that candidates should not raise such concerns during interviews. “When somebody talks to me about their work-life balance in an interview process, I’m like, ‘Is something wrong with you,'” she told host Steven Bartlett.
Though she encourages flexibility for tasks like “a haircut or kid’s parent-teacher conference,” Grede argued that top performers often work daily. The mother of four noted she enjoys weekends in Malibu but expects to work Saturdays to lead an “extraordinary life.”
Workplace psychologist Katina Sawyer countered the view, telling Business Insider that framing balance as a personal skill shifts blame onto workers. Skims and Good American didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.