The CEO of the massive consumer goods company, Hein Schumacher, disclosed in a call with investors the company's intention to refocus its sustainability goals so that they are less aspirational and more concrete. He pointed out that some long-term, broad objectives of his and other companies haven't really worked.
Unilever's action is a tacit admission that business objectives and sustainability have evolved in the modern world. The current global financial and non-financial turmoil, along with the anti-woke backlash companies have faced on both sides of the Atlantic, is compelling businesses to reevaluate the extent to which sustainability bolsters productivity and profits. If not, it is called into question and, in Unilever's case, rethought.
The declared goal of Unilever is "to make sustainable living commonplace." That language is a holdover from the company's 2010 Sustainable Living Plan, which was met with much excitement (from sustainability leaders) and considerable puzzlement (from analysts and business executives). The strategy outlined 10-year company targets for everything from global poverty and nutrition to water use and carbon emissions.
The project enhanced Paul Polman's reputation for environmental leadership. He was CEO from 2009 until 2019. Since resigning, Polman has emerged as one of the most influential figures in the field of sustainable business, having recently concentrated on the ideas of "net positive" corporations and "courageous" leaders who take on the world's most pressing environmental and social issues. The change at Unilever isn't shocking in a lot of respects. Following Polman, a growing chorus of irate activist investors has put more pressure on the corporation to show how its sustainability strategy helps shareholders. Twelve of Unilever's biggest shareholders were questioned by Reuters last year, and while most applauded the company for prioritizing sustainability concerns, half expressed their hope that the company's leadership would be more transparent about how it would strike a balance between sustainability and financial performance.