Antoine de Saint-Affrique at HEC Mornings: “bringing calm when everything is spiraling out of control”
Guest at HEC Mornings on Friday, April 17, the CEO of Danone shared his vision of leadership: listening, staying the course, and remaining connected to the field.
At a time when the world is as excited as it is concerned about AI, could the real “augmentation” actually come from food? This opening question of the morning, following the portrait of Hortense de Roux, was raised by Bruno Despujol, Partner at Oliver Wyman. A perfect prompt for Danone CEO Antoine de Saint-Affrique, who replied: “we are what we eat,” reminding us that our food is a major driver of health, growth, and longevity.
Since taking office in 2021, he has been committed to refocusing Danone on its mission, “health through food,” with a model “rooted in science” and oriented toward “the consumer or the patient.” A way of reminding us that the company—one of the French public’s favorites—does not only sell yogurts (Activia, Danone) and mineral water (Evian, Volvic), but also medical nutrition products (Fortimel, Nutrison), infant nutrition (Gallia, Blédina), and solutions related to aging (Fortifit).
Pierre-Henri de Menthon, Editorial Director of the weekly magazine Challenges, who moderates the discussion, looks back at the turbulence that marked the end of Emmanuel Faber’s tenure. How do you rebuild a company as disoriented as Danone was in 2021? Antoine de Saint-Affrique highlights three best practices. First, listen—extensively—to teams, partners, and also those who rarely speak up. Then, clarify: set a clear and understandable direction. Above all, keep your composure. “A leader must be countercyclical—that is, challenge teams when they grow complacent, but bring calm when everything spirals out of control,” summarizes the 61-year-old CEO.
Long recognized for its B-Corp commitment, Danone now operates in a climate less favorable to strong ESG narratives, as illustrated by the shift among major asset managers such as BlackRock. Nevertheless, the ESSEC and Harvard Business School graduate believes that sustainability is not merely a moral stance, but a strategic necessity for his company. “If in five years there is no water, we no longer exist.” The environment as a condition for industrial survival.
The same humility applies to relationships with suppliers: “without farmers, there is no more Danone.” The group highlights the implementation of multi-year contracts that provide better income visibility, support for the transition to regenerative agriculture, and assistance for young farmers setting up their operations. Here again, the logic is less philanthropic than economic: protecting upstream to secure downstream.
While Danone promotes values of responsibility and exemplarity, the group has not been immune to controversies over plastic pollution or, more recently, its decision to withdraw from the Nutri-Score label (which gave Actimel a D rating—the same as a soda). On packaging, Antoine de Saint-Affrique is in favor of deposit-return systems, citing Germany and Poland as examples. The system works, he says, even if its broader rollout in France faces challenges due to historical choices in waste collection.
Unsurprisingly, the audience also questioned him about AI and its impact. At Danone, all employees are reportedly equipped with Microsoft Copilot, including those working in factories. Industrial planning, marketing, and content production already offer convincing use cases. But the real challenge lies in transforming jobs. It will require “rethinking knowledge pyramids” and investing heavily in upskilling. “Planning such a transition is far more complex to manage than negotiating a redundancy plan, which has a clear beginning and end,” notes the executive, who started his career at Unilever.
With the presidential elections a year away, a representative from Les Petits Chaperons Rouges, a partner of the event, asked what advice he would give to political leaders. Antoine de Saint-Affrique advocates for leadership “by example,” grounded in proximity, and urges decision-makers to engage with reality. “When you put on your boots to meet a farmer and observe his livestock, you learn a great deal.” A message of common sense that his illustrious predecessor, Antoine Riboud, would likely have endorsed.
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Published by Thomas Lestavel