Natalie Cummins, CEO, Zenith UK

Natalie Cummins (44) is CEO of Zenith, a media agency that is part of Publicis Groupe. She has risen through the ranks of the organisation since graduating in 1998 and became CEO in 2018. Natalie was named in The Drum Digerati list 2018, the industry guide to the most influential people.

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As a champion of flexible working Natalie plays a key role in building a positive work-life blend at Zenith. A sole parent, she is most proud of her three greatest achievements – her three children: John (10), Albert (8) and Agatha (4).

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Each of my three mat leaves were very different experiences; the first one was easily the worst. I took about 14 months off with John, my eldest, and I was nervous about returning because I was going back to a brand-new client for the agency which I knew would be all encompassing for the first few months, as all new clients are. My first three or four weeks back were a blur of working till midnight every night and feeling deeply stressed, emotional and unhappy. Because I was new to the account and fresh back to work I also made a couple of obvious mistakes in these early days which knocked my confidence and made the transition even harder. This baptism of fire taught me how important it is to acknowledge and prepare for the possibility that returning to work will be difficult. But, as I found out, this really is only for a brief period and once I let time do its thing working life became a lot easier and more enjoyable.

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When I came back to work after my third child (again to a new client) my experience could not have been more different – it was so much more positive, partly because I had my eyes wide open to the reality of returning and I was prepared for it.

Looking back, my three maternity leaves had an overwhelmingly positive impact on my career – I don’t think I would be CEO today if hadn’t have had children and time away from the business. Without having the breaks I would have probably stayed in my comfort zone and carried on doing a good job for the same clients. However, each return from maternity leave meant I was taken out of the familiar and catapulted into difficult situations in which I had to prove myself and be the best I could be – real sink or swim scenarios. Having time out also meant that, especially with my latter two children, I received really positive client feedback around why I would be missed on the account, which clearly demonstrated my value to the business. Every one of my three mat leaves forced my stakeholders to review me and my worth with fresh eyes and this was invaluable to my career trajectory.

Even though I was working five days a week after my first mat leave I remember feeling that I had fallen behind, and that others were somehow working harder and were not taking me that seriously because I had been away. Contrast this with my second mat leave when I returned initially three days a week, but took more control over what I was doing and how. I decided after about a year post my second mat leave that I didn’t just want to work on one client, so I put my hand up to lead several pitches and got promoted as a result.

Post my first mat leave I was very emotional about leaving my baby – I was tearful both at work and at home. I remember feeling envious of some of my other NCT friends who were going back part time – or not at all – and I felt like my choices meant I was somehow giving up being a mum. Looking back, if I had been given the option to stay at home I think I would have bitten someone’s hand off for it.

I had to go back for financial reasons so there wasn’t really any choice in returning. But I found that in time it all came good – I got into a routine at work and at home which, for the most part, suited everyone. I also got to the stage where I was determined that life as a working parent was not going to get the better of me and so I pushed on through those first few weeks despite the challenges.

Accept that coming back to work is going to be a bit of a shock – no one prepares you for this. You may feel like your employer has moved on a bit and forgotten about you. The reality is that agency life (and probably most environments these days) moves at a fast pace and whilst you’re away business carries on. You may feel a bit in the background but accept that this probably isn’t the case and that you are hyper-sensitive to how others make you feel amid the turmoil of returning after such a life changing experience. You will get back into it and after a while you will realise that you have a new life – that of being a mum and a professional. I would also say that if you are fundamentally good at your job you don’t need to spend so much time worrying because it really will turn out to be ok in the end.

By being really clear to their employer about what they would like their return to look like but, crucially, know how far to take this. Yes, be clear on what you want and make sure what you get is absolutely fair, but recognise that there are other pressures at play which may mean that, in an agency world at least, you are not able to return to the exact same set of circumstances as before and that you may have to go where the business needs you. In my experience though this was an opportunity for me to demonstrate what more I was capable of.

I know Zenith inside out and have personal 'credit in the bank' here which means I have a certain amount of freedom to operate as I want – this is part of the reason it works and if I took a CEO role at another agency it might be a different matter.

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Excellent and reliable childcare is also a must. Over the years I have used a nursery, au pair and nanny and a combination of all three – I have adapted over time to suit what is going on at home and at work. As a sole parent though it can be hard when the unexpected happens and there is no back up plan.

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Probably the single most important factor in making it work though is that I have become increasingly better at getting to the answer really quickly. I don’t have time to boil the ocean anymore or spend days deliberating so I rely much more on my experience, my gut instinct and my team to cut the nonsense and get to a result quickly.