Polman shares the story of the shift to long-term strategies during his time at Unilever, the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the long-term mentality, the importance of corporate-investor dialogue and engagement, and lessons learned from Unilever founder Lord Lever.
Amid today’s evolving global business environment, corporate-level long-term thinking is more important than ever. Paul Polman, Co-Founder and Chair of IMAGINE, former CEO of Unilever, and FCLTGlobal Strategic Advisor discusses the need for long-term perspectives in many professional capacities. Polman shares the story of the shift to long-term strategies during his time at Unilever [1:16], the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the long-term mentality [28:40], the importance of corporate-investor dialogue and engagement [32:00], and lessons learned from Unilever founder Lord Lever [34:34].
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About Paul
Paul is Co-founder and Chair Emeritus of IMAGINE. A leading proponent that business should be a force for good, Paul has been described by the Financial Times as “a standout CEO of the past decade”. As CEO of Unilever (2009-2019), he demonstrated that a long-term, multi-stakeholder model goes hand-in-hand with excellent financial performance. Paul was a member of the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel which developed the Sustainable Development Goals and as an active SDG Advocate he continues to work with global organisations and across industry to push the 2030 development agenda. He is Chair of the B Team and Saïd Business School, Vice-Chair of the UN Global Compact and honourary Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce, which he led for two years.
Paul’s book, Net Positive: How Courageous Companies Thrive by Giving More Than They Take was released in October 2021.