What it does: Unilever specializes in producing consumer goods such as soap, food condiments, cosmetic products, ice cream, and so many more. The company is also involved in research. Unilever's operations are divided into Home Care, Food & Refreshments, and Personal Care.
Mission: The company’s mission is the creation of a better future for its customers, to help people look better, feel better, and attain a higher quality of living with its products.
Size and presence: Unilever employs more than 6,000 workers across its offices and factories in the UK. the company has six offices in the UK. Its main office is located in London, and this also serves as the global headquarters.
Best known for: Unilever is best known for being the parent company of numerous household brands such as Lipton, Knorr, Dove, Lux, Lifebuoy, Omo, Sunlight, etc. The company is so popular in the UK that up to 98% of families in London use a product produced by Unilever or its subsidiaries.
The good bits: The company has excellent welfare for its employees. The work is not difficult. The management is easy to work with.
The not-so-good bits: There’s high work pressure.
Unilever came into existence thanks to a merger between Lever Brothers and Margaret Unie in 1929. During the 30s. The business was going well, and the company began to acquire other firms. A notable acquisition is that of the United African Company, a company renowned for overseeing British industrial interests in the area that’s currently known as Nigeria. In 1957, Unilever acquired Frosted Foods and renamed it Birds Eye. The company faced severe competition from Procter & Gamble, and this forced the firm to diversify. In 1971, Unilever acquired Lipton, which marked its divestment into beverage manufacturing. By the end of the 1970s, Unilever gained a significant market share in the Western market for ice cream. 1982 was a significant year for the company as it restructured into a consumer goods corporation. In 1986, Unilever divested into skincare through the
acquisition of Chesebrough-Ponds. In 2001, Unilever divided its business interests into two arms; one for Home & Personal Care while the other was for Food.
Unilever is a purpose-led and employee-oriented organization. The company's culture is established on four core principles which include Be the Catalyst, Go Beyond, Brilliantly Different Together, and Purpose Power. The company has a laid-back work environment and no strict dress code. Employees can dress casually as long as they look responsible and smart. Unilever believes in the equality of humans in society regardless of their religion, race, perspectives, ethnicity, social and educational backgrounds, sexuality, and gender. The company also brings its stance of equality into the company by welcoming diversity and inclusion. Fresh graduates and interns can thrive in this organization.
Unilever adopts a digital-oriented recruitment process to select its employees. The process
includes the following:
● Profile assessment (to assess the candidate’s social, emotional, and cognitive traits)
● Digital interview - this involves a series of interviews
● Virtual Discovery Centre (this will involve project meetings, meetings with team
colleagues, and a face-t0-face meeting with the line manager)
● The job offer
Graduates fresh out of the university and enterprising interns will be pleased to know that Unilever has great programs committed to professionally developing its employees. Its Early Careers programs include Summer Placements, Apprenticeships, and Internships, which are targeted at high school leavers yet to gain admission into the university. There's also a career program for graduates called the Unilever Future Leaders Program. This is the company's primary leadership development program for its entry-level professionals. Aside from these programs, freshers in the company can also learn on the job from their more experienced colleagues.
The average annual salary of a fresher working at Unilever is £30,000.
● Health insurance
● Parental leave
● Job training
● Educational assistance
● Sick leave
● Pension.
Unilever UK is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions into the environment on or before 2039. The company is also actively supporting reforestation to enhance environmental sustainability.
Unilever was reportedly involved in a pension dispute, but there's no widely published controversy so far.