Securing our next generation of top talent: we found a formula that works

When I joined Unilever straight after university my plan was simple – stay for a few years to learn the ropes, then build my own business. But it didn’t work out like that because I kept getting promoted! I got attached to the business having quickly discovered that when a company’s values match your own, it’s the perfect unison and the ideal foundation to achieve everything you want to.

Very recently, I was reminded of those early days at the beginning of my career as an ambitious young graduate who wanted to work for the FMCG industry when we welcomed the latest recruits to our Unilever Future Leaders Programme (UFLP). They came to the European Marketing and Innovation hub in Rotterdam for a two-day induction and to meet our senior leadership team.

I was thrown in at the deep end when I joined Unilever New Zealand for my first job - a marketing role where I was very quickly given a big brand and a big budget to manage. I embraced every minute of it. I always knew I wanted my destination to be at the top, leading. The career path I chose within Unilever has allowed me to achieve that aim.

The next generation of future leaders we met recently are on a similar path. In just three years, UFLP participants are given all the training and experience they need to hold a management position.

Some 174 UFLP participants across Marketing, Supply Chain, Customer Development, Research and Development, Human Resources, Finance and IT have joined us in Unilever Europe this year. They typically come from a range of universities and are spread across 20 countries in our European network. I enjoy each connection I have with our graduates as they challenge and stretch our thinking.

Empowering our future leaders

The UFLP is a critical element in our strategy to ensure Unilever’s future talent pipeline. We believe in the concept of growing within the company; if your future CEO isn’t amongst your new talents, you’ve got a problem.

Why is our UFLP one of the most highly sought after global development programmes out there today? Because it’s the ideal formula and one we have spent time perfecting. It’s all about enabling and nurturing the most talented new recruits with a wealth of hands-on experience that empowers them to make a real difference.

Each Unilever Future Leader completes a structured development roadmap consisting of international rotations/exposure, coaching, mentoring, business and professional training to support them to learn and develop into the best they can be. It develops managers with a depth of functional expertise and skills. The programme is supported by Unilever’s senior leaders from the outset.

Our recruitment process ensures we attract and secure the best of the best. We do this right from the very first touch point with the company as digital plays a central role in our recruitment process for the Unilever Future Leaders Programme.

Three of the four steps in the process are completely online with gaming playing a key part to evaluate certain skills. Better still, no preparation or gaming experience is required!

The best talents who come out on top at the end of the rigorous selection process hit the ground running on a fast track to leadership.

Making a difference in the world

Lots of the young talents I meet these days are driven by a purpose. They want to make a difference. They are the people you want to hire because as Steve Jobs said: ‘Those who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, usually do.’

At Unilever, our future leaders are given a platform to help shape the future of some of the world’s most loved brands. Most importantly of all, however, through these brands they are given the opportunity to have a positive impact on the world.

They are attracted to Unilever for a range of different reasons but our Unilever Sustainable Living Plan is often what sets us apart and what continues to attract the growing number of millennials who want to work for Unilever. It’s a powerful USP that can be fully leveraged in a company that embraces enablers like agile working (working from anywhere) and digital to give millennials the flexibility they also desire.

The ambition is big on both sides. Our goal is to ensure that more than half of our management positions in Unilever will be filled by UFLP graduates by 2020. That’s how critical these people are to our talent pipeline. Could that be you? Find out more about our Unilever Future Leaders Programme here.

Whether you’re looking to start your career in an environment of growth and development, or looking for the next step as an experienced-hire, Unilever offers you the chance to make a meaningful impact. Follow us on LinkedIn to ensure you get the very latest news, insights and opportunities each day.