Heiress Lynsi Snyder became President of In-N-Out aged 27. She’s been betrayed by colleagues but refuses to have ’emotional distance’ with her team 

So, while other CEOs may find it easier to make decisions on behalf of their companies from a distance—taking a step back from the emotional aspect of the debate—Snyder says she “doesn’t entertain” such a notion.

Running and owning a food and drink business in 2025 is no easy feat: After years of turmoil because of the COVID pandemic and rising inflation, California caterers then had to contend with rising minimum wage laws. Now, there’s a level of economic uncertainty given the tariff policy coming out of the White House.

This concoction of issues presents business leaders with potentially tough decisions: Will they need to lay off staff, cut certain locations, or change how their office staff operates?

For some leaders it might be easier to make the decision pragmatically, but Snyder said there’s no room for “emotional distance” between her office and staff at In-N-Out.

“I’m a pretty tough person. Now not going to say that I don’t get surprised at times … there’s been a fair share of betrayal and stuff like that, but I’m not going to let the few people that screw me over change the positive and connected close relationships I could have with all the good ones,” Snyder told the ‘How Leaders Lead’ podcast in an episode released late last month.

“Because there are some that will take advantage or hurt me, I’m not going to make everyone else miss out on what we could have,” Snyder added.

Despite working for the chain since the age of 17, Snyder’s induction to the C-suite at In-N-Out wasn’t under ideal circumstances.

In-N-Out was founded by Snyder’s grandparents in 1948. When founder Harry Snyder died in December 1976, the business was led by his sons Rich and Guy.

However Snyder’s uncle, Rich, died in a plane crash in Orange County in 1993. Six years later, Snyder’s father died, leaving her the last blood relative surviving of the burger dynasty aged 17.

By 27, Snyder assumed the President role at In-N-Out and was a billionaire by 35. Now, at 42, Snyder is worth $7.3 billion.

How Snyder leads

Snyder also made it clear that she learned her leadership lessons from her nearest and dearest, referring to the West Coast burger joint team as a “family. “

Despite losing her grandparents, uncle, and father in her teenage years, Snyder, a mom of four, said she has inherited leadership traits from each of them.

“My uncle was super charismatic—out of the three of them, he was the most charismatic, empowering leader. My grandpa was stern, he was passionate … he was a very hard worker, he was probably the one that got his hands dirtiest. He built it up.

“But my grandmother was the nurturer; she was very sweet and loving, and she cared about everyone. She was the one that brought the hugs and [remembered] their kids names and all of that,” Snyder continued.

“My dad was very much the humble leader that wanted everyone to feel like they mattered, whether they were in the store or whether they were in the warehouse, they all mattered,” the CEO added. “He had a huge heart for the people that maybe didn’t get as much attention as the underdogs—and he was also a stickler for quality so he matched his dad with [that].”

Snyder says she has been told by colleagues who worked with her family members that her leadership style is a mixture of the family members which came before her.

“I like that because I love all of them very much and I’d love to think that I have pieces of all of them,” Snyder added, but continued she wanted her tenure to be “servant leadership for all of our people.”

It was a “big undertaking,” Snyder added: “It wasn’t flipping a switch it was turning a ship around.”

Maintaining quality in a more casual culture

Snyder made it clear that although the In-N-Out team across 400 stores are family, she’s far from cosy when it comes to business calls.

Recently, the company announced it will be returning to its roots when it relocates its headquarters from Irvine, Orange County, to Baldwin Park, where the business was founded in the 1940s. The move will take place in 2029.

Some staff will also be moving to new offices in Tennessee as part of the move, as the brand seeks to consolidate its western and eastern operations.

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Growth is deliberate and measured, she said, even sometimes purposefully paused down in order to “fine tune” quality and consistency.

“We’re definitely not afraid to slow down and just make sure if there’s a tune-up that needs to take place, everyone knows like ‘Woah, they’re not opening those two or three stores this year because we really need to refocus and make sure that we’re not forgetting the bun toast is supposed to be this way because Harry wanted it that way,” Snyder addd.

Attention to detail still allows for a more casual environment, she added: “I’m not very tall, and blonde, and there was a time there where I was trying to dress the part maybe. Like I would get some business suits and dress differently. But …. I just found like this is a family business, my uncle wanted to dress top my dad wanted to dress down. I’m just going to do what I feel comfortable with and I’m going to encourage the same.

“So we kind of brought a more casual work environment to our offices, and it’s not the outside—it’s the inside. We want our people to be happy.”