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Communicating the Unilever Code
Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of branded products in the foods, household and
personal care sectors. While proud of its multi local entrepreneurialism and sensitivity to the diverse
markets in which it operates, Unilever also strives to ensure that the activities of all employees are
under-pinned by a common set of values and principles.
While the Code is, in effect, Unilever’s contract with society, Unilever recognises that it
lives through its employees, and therefore the Code also represents their employee's ‘contract’
with the business and the wider society in which they work. When Unilever updated their
Code of Business Principles in 2002, circulating a new employee handbook was not felt sufficient
to truly re-engage the commitment of their people to these core principles and values. The result
was a global programme of face to face workshops offering all 247,000 employee the opportunity
to discuss, question and engage with the practical implications of the Code on their everyday
working lives.
The key elements of this communication package were:
1. A flexible ‘roadmap’ designed to help structure people’s introduction to each element of the Code
(in workshops lasting between 2 hours and a full day);
2. A wide selection of scenarios designed to encourage participants to actively interrogate each
element of the Code, and underline practical application.
3. Presentation materials, including video case studies and context setting;
4. An on-line e-learning, support package, constantly updated with new scenarios, examples and
case studies.
Having reached out to every corner of the Unilever organisation, this engagement programme
has prompted an overhaul of local reporting policies, a more comprehensive approach to
assessing the CSR credentials of business partners, and a renewed commitment to embodying
Unilever’s principles of responsible corporate conduct every day and in every part of the world that
Unilever operates.
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