The Way to Enough

"Who competes with us around the world?" Rønningen asks. The list is daunting and includes the likes of Exxon and Royal Dutch/Shell. That, he says, is why Hydro must move faster than ever before. Global cost competition creates severe pressure for companies that try to take care of their employees.

"Until now, we may have been naïve about meeting challenges," Rønningen says. Then he adds, only half-jokingly, "Ragnhild [Sohlberg] is the dream. I am the reality."

Yet Rønningen also acknowledges that Sohlberg's dream isn't so crazy. To compete against the world's best, Hydro must attract and keep the best people -- and not just in Norway. "So how do we keep the best people?" Rønningen asks. "We need to offer new challenges. We need to give people flexibility and options."

The question, then, is this: As the global marketplace becomes a single economy, will Hydro abandon its defining Norwegian spirit? Will it forsake balance for performance? Or will the rest of the world meet Hydro on its terms?

Sohlberg, naturally, expects that the world will discover what Hydro is already learning. "Hydro may be ahead of the crowd," because of its Norwegian heritage. "But this search for a more effective workplace and a better society is a global issue."

If Sohlberg and Hydro are right, balance is an economic imperative. Long-term competitiveness may require balance, just as it requires speed, sensitivity to customers, and profits. And if competitiveness requires balance, the 21st century will look much different from the 20th century.

Charles Fishman (cnfish@mindspring.com) is a contributing editor to Fast Company. In a modest experiment in work-life balance, he took his wife and son with him to Norway. Instead of bringing along a laptop, he packed an eight-day supply of baby food. You can visit Norsk Hydro on the Web (www.hydro.com).