UNILEVER CHIEF COMMITTED TO SOCIAL IMPACT

FLOURISHING communities are largely dependent on the industry around them and the socioeconomic growth and employment it creates.

As it employs 8 percent of the country’s workforce, a large number of Durban’s workers depend on Unilever for their livelihoods.

The adage “happy employees make highly productive employees” was put to the test when I was taken on a tour through the sprawling campus of Unilever SA, in the heart of umhlanga, by its chief executive, Luc-olivier Marquet.

A hairdresser, a gym, a crèche and other home away from home amenities, including an impressive view of the ocean, make this space hard to leave.

Luco, as Luc-olivier is popularly known, has an innate French charisma that works its charm from receptionist to executive. But that is not why Unilever is a giant in the Kwa-zulu (KZN) business arena.

It’s the leadership and passion that Luco and his executive team bring to improving the lives of the communities they operate in as they continue the legacy of their founding fathers, whose vision for the world was broader than their business more than a century ago. They used their brands, as the world’s largest consumer goods company, to address the social issues of the day.

Luco stands firm in his understanding in carrying the vision of the company forward by being a force for good.

“We are at a time where the cost of doing nothing is higher than the cost of doing something,” he says.

“We believe there is no sustainable economic growth without creating a positive social impact. How can we perform while around us the levels of unemployment are so critical?

“How can we work in South

Africa having such levels of poverty and children going to school on empty stomachs without doing something about it? This business was founded with a sense of purpose and it shapes the way we do business today.”

To unearth a chief executive of a major multinational who is not only a decisive visionary, but committed to creating value, motivating a conscious culture and infusing passion and purpose within the business environment is as rare as hen’s teeth. I left Durban hopeful that there are conscious leaders in the country and I had just been inspired by one.

Brenda Kali is chief executive of Conscious Companies and the Founder of the Conscious Leadership Academy.