Unilever 2011 Annual Report Download - page 5

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Report of the Directors About Unilever
CHAIRMAN'S
STATEMENT
Against the backdrop of a continuing tough economic
environment, Unilever delivered a good performance in 2011.
We have a stronger business, with a compelling vision, a sharper
organisation and an increasingly effective performance culture.
In a year marked by natural disasters
and political turmoil, Unilever’s
performance stands out all the more.
Beyond delivering solid results, the
Group has been taking the right actions
for the long term, building a sustainable
growth model for our business.
This model reflects the values that are
central to Unilever’s approach to doing
business – knowing it can only prosper
if the societies and communities in
which it operates similarly benefit from
its presence.
We also see good governance as an
essential foundation for the long-term
success of the Group, and your Directors
firmly believe that acting with integrity
and upholding the highest standards of
corporate governance form an essential
component of the delivery of the Group’s
strategy. You will find a description of
Unilever’s corporate governance
structures and procedures, along with
an explanation of the work of the Boards,
beginning on page 36. Together these
should give you a sense of how Unilever
seeks to achieve these aspirations.
2011 was another busy year for the
Boards, with a number of key initiatives
undertaken.
Board evaluation
Following our internal evaluation of the
Boards’ activities and effectiveness in
2010, we appointed an external
consultancy in 2011 to carry out the
evaluation. Their report was presented
to the Boards in December and
concluded that overall the Boards were
operating effectively. The report made a
number of valuable recommendations
and, as a result, Board meetings will
now build knowledge-sharing sessions
into the agenda where Directors can
discuss experiences on specific topics
of relevance to Unilever.
Understanding the business
During 2011 the Directors went out into
the business and visited operations in
Jakarta, Indonesia, and Rome, Italy. In
both locations the Directors visited local
markets and consumers in their homes.
Rome is particularly important as the
global centre for Unilever’s ice cream
business. Visits such as these give
Non-Executive Directors the opportunity
to meet senior managers across
Unilever and help them to gain a deeper
understanding of the Group.
Diversity
At Unilever we have long understood the
importance of diversity within our
workforce because of the wide range of
consumers we connect with globally.
This goes right through our organisation,
starting with the Boards.
The subject of gender diversity at Board
level is receiving considerable attention
within the EU. In nominating directors,
Unilever considers diversity in terms of
nationality, race, gender and relevant
expertise and directs that, wherever
possible, the Boards should reflect
Unilever’s consumer base.
I am pleased that already 25% of
Directors on our Boards are women, and
we will continue in our aim to increase
that percentage. However, Unilever feels
that gender is only one part of diversity,
and Unilever Directors will continue to
be selected on the basis of their
wide-ranging experience, backgrounds,
skills, knowledge and insight.
Changes to the Boards
Jeroen van der Veer retired as a
Non-Executive Director at the end of the
2011 AGMs in May and, on behalf of the
Boards, I would like to thank him for his
valued contributions as Vice-Chairman
and Senior Independent Director, and as
Chairman of the Nomination and
Remuneration Committees.
At the same AGMs Sunil B Mittal was
elected as a Non-Executive Director
bringing experience in developing
markets that will further strengthen
the expertise and independence of the
Boards as well as broadening their
diversity.
It remains for me to thank our 171,000
employees across the world for their
hard work in delivering good results in
such a challenging environment.
Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2011
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Michael Treschow
Chairman