Social Review 2002
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LISTENING, LEARNING, MAKING PROGRESS 2002 Social Review of 2001 Data FOREWORD FROM THE CHAIRMEN In a rapidly changing world where people are concerned about how multinational companies behave, we in Unilever want to be transparent and clear: our Corporate Purpose and Code of Business Principles express our values and set the high standards of behaviour to which we aspire. This Review shows how our people make a practical reality of those goals, while we listen, learn and make progress as a responsible corporate citizen. The period since our first Social Review 2000 was Unilever’s contribution to society is achieved through the published has been challenging. Our businesses have actions of our people around the world. Our trust in continued to succeed in competitive markets and against them is based on shared values, articulated in our the background of a weakening world economy. To Corporate Purpose and Code of Business Principles. achieve our ‘Path to Growth’ strategy, Unilever people are During the past two years we have updated our Code to engaged in reawakening the spirit of enterprise, a give it greater clarity and it is now being rolled out worldwide effort focused on consumers and simplifying worldwide. While our aims are clear, we acknowledge our business systems. However, results are achieved not that sometimes we may fall short of achieving them. just in business numbers, but also in the way we perform When we do, we will act to put things right. and what we stand for in the minds of our consumers and customers, our people and our wider community As leaders, we are clear that it is not through constant of stakeholders. oversight and the avoidance of risk that Unilever will succeed, but by fostering a culture of transparency and During this time, the debate about globalisation has trust. The progress and developments we report in this continued. Poverty and inequality between nations Review arise from what we have learnt in the day-to-day remain acute. We believe part of the answer is to practice of our business. Practical and down to earth, realise and spread the benefits of globalisation more we hope it gives you an insight into the values that shape widely. We recognise that the changes implied by the company that is Unilever today. globalisation can seem threatening and the benefits remote. But the active participation of business – Thank you for taking an interest in this Review. Please tell responsibly and sustainably conducted – is essential us what you think – we welcome your views. in creating and spreading wealth. Business has a major part to play, in partnership with others in society, in achieving progress towards many shared social and environmental goals. In this Review we report on progress in our corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance since 2000, as we test how and what to measure, monitor and report internationally and locally. We readily accept our responsibility to support and equip our managers to respond openly to the challenge of meeting society’s Antony Burgmans and Niall FitzGerald evolving expectations. We want to share experience Chairmen of Unilever and to learn from each other, inside and outside the business. > Niall FitzGerald (right) learns about Pears products during a visit to Unilever’s development laboratory in Australia > Antony Burgmans (second from right) discusses production line issues at the Conimex food factory in The Netherlands CONTENTS Listening, learning... Suppliers ...and making progress 9. Partners in the local economy Through suppliers, our contribution to local Setting the scene economies is immense 1. Introducing Unilever... Tea: setting standards in the supply chain Our company, its history, values and current How we play our part in influencing performance on challenges environmental and social issues ...and our business Operating performance data to put CSR in context Consumers 2. Our Corporate Purpose and 10. Meeting everyday needs… Many millions of consumers rely on us to meet their Business Principles... basic needs for a variety of food, home and personal How we have revised the framework of standards on care products which our approach to CSR is based ...for consumers everywhere ...and positive assurance process We offer affordable products and serve broad markets The process by which we monitor standards, assure performance and share best practice 11. Committed to quality and safety From manufacture through product use to 3. Unilever’s approach to CSR eventual disposal, human and environmental safety We empower employees to apply our values in is paramount ways appropriate to local communities, all the time learning from experience 12. Responsible advertising and promotion High standards and balancing creativity and Shareholders & wealth creation social sensitivity characterise our approach to product promotion 4. Creating wealth... Profitable growth contributes to a sustainable Society business and rewards shareholders for their investment 13. Civic responsibility We engage with governments and address concerns ...adding value, sharing wealth in society through open dialogue All stakeholders benefit from the value created by the business 14. Investing in communities As a corporate citizen, we make voluntary Employees contributions to local communities through charities and not-for-profit partnerships 5. Investing in people Competitive rewards, good benefits and Environment opportunities for personal development are central to the success of our business strategy 15. Working towards a sustainable future... Our work to make sustainable development a reality 6. A safe and secure workplace… goes beyond manufacturing improvements and is Our worldwide commitment to safety is based on focused on initiatives in agriculture, fish and water training and continuous learning ...by engaging locally, nationally ...and healthy workers Our four-part strategy for the health of our people and globally at work We take forward the commitment to sustainability in partnership with governments, consumers and a 7. Promoting human rights and diversity broad range of stakeholders at work How we put into practice our commitments on Going forward human rights and promote diversity 16. Looking forward, continuing progress Progress achieved on previous ‘milestone’ Customers commitments has been good. Here we signpost the 8. Partnership routes to market journey ahead The wide network of wholesalers and retailers are key partners with whom we work closely External assessment Note: This Review was published in October 2002. The data presented here relates to the 2001 financial year, unless otherwise stated. The commentary covers a longer period, including developments since the Social Review 2000, and was correct up to publication date. In some cases, local performance data has not been presented from all 11 countries in the CSR pilot. This is because information could not be provided, or used inconsistent definitions. Our intention is to provide a balanced view of performance, not selected highlights. LISTENING, LEARNING... In this second Unilever Social Review, we report on our performance in achieving the high standards of business behaviour we have set, and show how we continue to listen and learn as we meet and respond to society’s needs and expectations. In Unilever, we describe ourselves as a ‘multi-local We continue to make progress on diversity in multinational’. Despite the apparent size of the company employment, although more slowly than we would like. – 265,000 employees operating in around 100 countries Our strongest performance is in the internationality of on every continent – we are a hugely diverse company. our management, with 1,600 expatriates from over 70 Unlike other international companies, we are not a single countries in 2001. Over a quarter of managers business system that sources in one part of the world and worldwide are women, but at senior levels progress on sells in another. Most of our products are made in the promotion is still too slow. As a result we have started a country or region in which they are sold to meet the comprehensive programme to address barriers to the different needs and tastes of local consumers. advancement of all talented employees. Our challenge in social responsibility is to live out our During 2001 the worldwide accident rate increased. Traffic-related accidents remain the most common company-wide values and standards of business cause of fatalities. Our goal remains zero accidents behaviour in a way that is both consistent and and we are taking action to improve our performance. appropriate in many distinct local societies. We do this by Following a comprehensive review of worldwide empowering managers to exercise their responsibility in standards, we have introduced a new global health the day-to-day context of operations: providing support, and safety framework. monitoring key areas of performance, learning from experience and reporting the outcomes. Since the last We are working to make transparent the standards of Review we have updated our formal statement of business behaviour we expect from our contracted standards in business behaviour, our Code of Business suppliers: this process is reinforced by industry Principles. The revised Code is now being rolled out to collaborations, such as the Tea Sourcing Partnership, every manager and employee around the world. to share best practice more widely. In this Social Review, we report on the highlights of Good progress is being made in our three sustainable development