By Adam Sylvain
20 March 2025
During a leadership career spanning three decades, Joey Bergstein TEE’17 has thrived at building and growing exceptional consumer brands—from Pantene and Captain Morgan to Sabra Dipping Company and Seventh Generation.
Most recently, he led the successful merger of Primo Water with BlueTriton Brands, creating the fourth largest beverage company in North America focused on healthy hydration.
Bergstein says his participation in Tuck Executive Education’s Advanced Management Program (AMP) in 2017 came at an optimal time, as he was about to take the reins as CEO of Seventh Generation following the company’s acquisition by Unilever.
“AMP was the perfect opportunity to get a real refresh,” says Bergstein about the immersive two-week program for executive leaders. “It helped me start to craft and build a new playbook for our business and for me as a leader.”
After earning his undergraduate business degree from the University of Western Ontario, Bergstein entered the business world and never looked back, noting his “MBA” training came through real-world and international experience rather than a formal academic program. AMP provided several frameworks that helped Bergstein think about strategy, innovation, and leadership in a more intentional way.
In particular, Bergstein mentioned the influence of Steven Roth Professor of Management Sydney Finkelstein and his book Superbosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent.
“Throughout my career, leading people has always been critical to driving business growth, but I hadn’t deeply reflected on how I want to show up as a boss,” says Bergstein. “Syd’s research prompted me to think about the bosses and leaders who have had the biggest impact on me and how I can pay that forward.”
The north star for Bergstein was always leading a business, and his experience managing several global brands across different categories has taught him a lot about how to manage through crisis, accelerate growth and to orchestrate successful turnarounds. In the end, he believes business performance starts and stops with people leadership.
“I always try to surround myself with smart, energetic people who are high performers that bring different skill sets,” says Bergstein. “My job is to set the bar high and let people fly, holding them accountable while empowering them to do their best work.”
“I realized my purpose was to spark a powerful force for good in the world,” says Bergstein. “I valued everything I had learned and the people I worked with but felt that I wasn’t leaning into that purpose the way I wanted to. I wanted to have a greater impact through my work.”
He says another key aspect of his role as a business leader is to align the team around a common mission and strategy. Inspired by the former chairman at Seventh Generation, Bergstein read the novel The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown and learned about an analogy in rowing that illustrates what an “in sync” team looks like.
“There’s a term in rowing called, ‘finding your swing,’ which describes the momentum you get from everybody rowing at the same pace,” explains Bergstein. “This means some rowers may need to hold back and row a bit slower, perhaps, than they could otherwise. The whole point is how you’re able to calibrate and work together to achieve the best results.”
Along with identifying and maximizing talent, Bergstein says finding clarity on his personal purpose has also helped him become a better leader. He was serving as senior vice president of Diageo’s global rum business in 2011 when he had the opportunity to examine what he ultimately hoped to accomplish in his life and career.
“I realized my purpose was to spark a powerful force for good in the world,” says Bergstein. “I valued everything I had learned and the people I worked with but felt that I wasn’t leaning into that purpose the way I wanted to. I wanted to have a greater impact through my work.”
This discernment led Bergstein to pivot to Seventh Generation, a Vermont-based company that creates eco-friendly household and personal care products. Before becoming CEO, Bergstein spent six years leading the business’s marketing function, helping to make Seventh Generation a part of popular culture while dramatically growing revenue. Under his leadership, the company further accelerated its growth, impact, and footprint.
“I love building and working with great teams, understanding what motivates people, and building powerful brands,” says Bergstein. “For me, it’s about finding businesses with good bones and a strong mission that have maybe lost some growth momentum and helping them find their next place on the growth curve.”
From there, Bergstein joined The Sabra Dipping Company, another mission-focused company focused on better for you and sustainable snacks, where he led a major operational reset. During his subsequent tenure at BlueTriton, he helped drive business growth while expanding efforts around sustainability and water stewardship.
Bergstein stepped down from his CEO role following BlueTriton’s successful merger with Primo Water. For now, he’s a free agent and excited about what’s next.
“I love building and working with great teams, understanding what motivates people, and building powerful brands,” says Bergstein. “For me, it’s about finding businesses with good bones and a strong mission that have maybe lost some growth momentum and helping them find their next place on the growth curve.”
