Management of diversity in unilever bangladesh ltd

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Bangladesh University of Professionals
Mirpur Cantonment, Dhaka- 1216
Term Paper on
“Management of Diversity in Unilever Bangladesh Ltd”

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LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
24th
April .2020
To,
Dr. Mohammad Tazul Islam
BBA, MBA (Management, CU), PhD (Business Administration, Kobe University, Japan)
Associate Professor
Course Instructor
Management and Organizational Behavior
Faculty of Business Studies
Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP)
Subject: Submission of Term Paper on “Management of Diversity in Unilever Bangladesh
Ltd”
Dear Sir,
It is our immense pleasure to submit the report on “Management of Diversity in Unilever
Bangladesh Ltd” of Unilever Bangladesh Limited as a part of our MBA (Professional) curriculum.
To prepare this report, we have gathered what we believe to be the most complete information
available.
It was a enormous opportunity for us to prepare the report under your instruction, which really was
a great experience for us. In order to make our report most perfect, we have collected various
information from our text books, websites and various newspapers.
We have worked hard preparing this report and sincerely tried to make the paper a comprehensive
one within the given time span. Any lacking or fault may arise as our unintentional mistakes. We
will be always available for answering any query regarding this paper. We believe that the
preparation to prepare our report will help us to work in our career.
……………………………...
Tanvir Ahmed Siddique
Roll: 2023031041
Section: A
On behalf of the Group-04

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Term Paper Prepared by
MEMBERS OF GROUP - 4
Sl No. Name Id No. Signature
1 Kazi Fahim Hasan 1902071
2 Tanvir Ahmed 2023031005
3 Sohely Ahsan Snigdha 2023031013
4 Md. Saiful Islam Khan 2023031037
5 Tanvir Ahmed Siddique 2023031041
6 Zakia Haque Shanta 2023031059
7 Muhammad Alamgir Iqbal Khan 2023031063

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
One of the most pleasant parts of preparing this report is the opportunity to thank
those who have contributed to it. Unfortunately, in any establishment, the list of
expression of thanks-no matter how all-embracing-is always imperfect and
insufficient, this acknowledgement is like other is not Immunity.
At first we want to thank Almighty Allah who gave us energy, patience and also
knowledge for making that kind of report. Secondly we want to express our gratitude
to our course instructor Associate Professor Dr. Mohammad Tazul Islam BBA,
MBA (Management, CU), phd (Business Administration, Kobe University, Japan)
without whose guidance we would be unable to make it.
We are really grateful to the management of Unilever Bangladesh Limited for giving
us a chance to coordinate with us for making the term paper on their esteem
organization. We can never forget the unbelievable cooperation of all the officials
of Unilever Bangladesh Limited, Head Office. We think that, it was impossible for
us to know and finally to make such a descriptive study and a presentable report on
such a wide aspect without their extended helping hands. We also would like to
appreciate and thankful who gave us a full coordination to enquiry and answer of
numerous question.
Finally, we want to thank our friends and course mates who helped us for gaining
information and complete the report successfully.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report contains both qualitative and quantitative analysis about Unilever. It is a
renowned multi-national consumer goods company. Unilever Bangladesh Limited
(UBL) is a household name virtually for every Bangladeshi national. Being a
multinational, no other company has achieved this level of success. It is regarded
that one of the most reputed multi-cultural companies of the world. With its history
of over 70 years globally, UBL, an operating and Brand building company of
Unilever Group has predominantly served the Bangladeshi market with mainly
Home and Personal Care (HPC) FMCG products for last 47 years with limited
presence in the food business with Lipton tea. With dominant brands like Lux,
Lifebuoy, Wheel and Pond’s, growing brands like Sunsilk, Clear and raising stars
like Rexona and Dove, the company now wants to check it’s possibilities in the food
category which globally is the largest business of Unilever ( 54% of total portfolio).
In this report, we focused on the management of the Unilever and tried to make a
comparison what we have learned so far in our Management and Organizational
Behavior course. One of the important fact is that it is a multi-national company and
UBL is only a regional country based part of it. So we couldn’t ignore the existing
international information. We gathered as much information as we could and make
the necessary editing, modification and combination.
Though UBL has a strong brand image in our country, it has some competitors in
our country. As a developing country, we have some consumer company that simply
can’t be ignored. By providing products with a most reasonable cost with the existing
quality it can expand its user group.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL ..............................................................................2
MEMBERS OF GROUP - 4 .................................................................................3
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .............................................................................4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................5
CHAPTER -01 INTRODUCTION...................................................................8
1.1 Background of the Study......................................................................................................................8
1.2 Statement of the research problem: ..................................................................................................10
1.3 Objective of the Study ........................................................................................................................11
1.4 Statement of research questions ........................................................................................................11
1.5 Limitations of the Study .....................................................................................................................12
1.5.1 Shortage of time:......................................................................................................................12
1.5.2 Difficulty in collecting data:....................................................................................................12
1.6 Methods................................................................................................................................................12
1.7 Operational Definition of Terms .......................................................................................................12
CHAPTER 02: REVIEW OF THE RELEVANT LITERATURE ..............................14
2.1 Introduction.........................................................................................................................................14
2.2 Literature Review ...............................................................................................................................14
2.3 Arguments about diversity.................................................................................................................15
2.4 Managing Diversity- A competitive advantage ................................................................................17
2.5 Increasing diversity in the workforce................................................................................................17
2.6 Company Culture and Diversity Management ................................................................................18
2.7 Relationship between managing diversity and strong culture organization ...............................210
2.8 Organizational Practices used to effectively manage diversity………………………………………………………21
CHAPTER 3: OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY ..................................................24
3.1. Introduction: ......................................................................................................................................24
3.2 Unilever Global:..................................................................................................................................25
3.3 History of Unilever: ............................................................................................................................25
3.4 Unilever Bangladesh Limited.............................................................................................................27

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3.5 Unilever’s Corporate Purpose ...........................................................................................................28
3.6 Unilever at a Glance............................................................................................................................28
3.7 Organizational Structure ...................................................................................................................29
CHAPTER-4 DIVERSITY MANAGEMENT OF UNILEVER BANGLADESH ...........34
4.1 Introduction.........................................................................................................................................34
4.2 Global Diversity at Unilever: .............................................................................................................35
4.2.1 Diversity agenda of Unilever...................................................................................................35
4.2.2 Structuring diversity policies ..................................................................................................35
4.3 Diversity at Unilever Bangladesh Limited........................................................................................36
4.4 Balanced business in UBL..................................................................................................................37
4.5 Gender Balance Policy........................................................................................................................41
4.6 Unilever’s policies & flexible working ..............................................................................................42
CHAPTER 5: RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION ...................................44
5.1. Recommendations..............................................................................................................................44
5.2. Conclusion ..........................................................................................................................................45
BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................46

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CHAPTER -01 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Diversity can generally be defined as recognizing, understanding and accepting
individual differences irrespective of their race, gender, age, class, ethnicity,
physical ability, race Sexual orientation, and spiritual practice and so on. Grobler
(2002:46) also supports this view by adding that each individual is unique but also
share any number of environmental or Biological characteristics.
Diversity can be classified into two dimensions. The primary dimension such as age,
gender, sexual orientation and so on, exhibits the main differences between various
individuals. These primary differences also has the most impact on initial encounters
and can be easily noticed and serve as filters through which people view the world.
The secondary dimensions such as religion, education, geographical location,
income etc. are those qualities that are not noticeable in the first encounter and can
even change throughout different encounters. These qualities are only noticed after
some interactions occur between individuals. (Ashton 2010). Globalization in this
recent time has triggered more interaction amongst people from different cultures
and backgrounds than before. People are now more open-minded in the marketplace
worldwide with competition coming from almost everywhere in the continent.
Diversity can be a problem to an organization but could also be a solution, It also
comes with its disadvantages but also benefits and dangerous but also constructive.
The challenge then is to extract the very essence of diversity and tactically manage
it for the improvement of the people and the organization.
Most organizations in their own perspective, adopt diversity at their workplace or
organization to become more creative and open to change. Increasing and improving
workplace diversity has become an important issue for management in the recent
years due to the recognition of how the workplace is changing. Since managing
diversity still remains a challenge in organizations, managers tend to learn
managerial skills needed in a multicultural working environment and prepares
themselves to teach others within their organizations to value cultural differences
and treat all employees with dignity. For some business leaders and managers point
of view, diversity is a big challenge to them although it knows no organizational
boundary and has no limitations.
Managers are increasingly being asked to boost productivity, quality and customer
satisfaction while also reducing costs. These goals can only be met, however,

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through the cooperation and effort of all employees. By creating positive work
environments, where people feels valued and appreciated, organizations are more
likely to foster the employee commitment and performance necessary for
organizational success.
A report revealed appalling behavior in the Dutch police force: “79 percent of female
employees had been confronted with pin-ups, 55 percent with “dirty gestures”, 38
percent with blue films and 44percent had the feeling of male colleagues “undressing
them with their eyes (Hooghiemstra 1998).
Finally another example cited by Kreitner et al (2002) described Sarah Locker, “a
woman police officer, received pornographic magazines on her desk and literature
making derogatory reference to her Turkish background: she decided to take her
complaints to court. She won her case, but met even more hostility on her return to
work. The episode finally ended in a serious suicide attempt.
Managing diversity however is a sensitive potentially volatile and sometimes
uncomfortable issue. In Europe, as well as in the USA, creating a diverse workforce
is increasingly considered a necessity. Jitan Patel, race equality manager with
HSBC, a major UK bank, declares “for us the idea is true diversity, which means
that we value every individual for who and what they are and we provide them with
the opportunities to meet them full potential within the organization.
However, diversity represents the multitude of individual difference and similarities
that exist between people (Kretiner et al, 2002). This definition underscores three
important issues about managing diversity. First, there are many different

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dimensions or components of diversity. This implies that diversity pertains to
everybody. It is not an issue of age, race or gender. It is not an issue of whether one
is heterosexual, gay or lesbian; or indeed Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, Celestian or
Muslim etc. Diversity also does not pit’ White males” against all other groups.
Diversity pertains to the host of individual differences that makes all of us unique
and different from other. Secondly, diversity is not synonymous with “differences”.
Rather, it encompasses both differences and similarities. This means that managing
diversity entails dealing with both simultaneously.
As Price, (2004) puts it, people are different. They vary in gender, culture race,
social and psychological characteristics. He affirmed that our attitudes towards their
differences could be negative or positive depending upon individual perspectives
and prejudices.
1.2 Statement of the research problem:
Diversity as it is, is a sensitive potentially volatile and sometime unconformable
issue. It is therefore not surprising that organization encounter significant problems
when trying to move forward with managing directly. The following is a list of the
most common problems to implementing successful diversity programs.
i) Inaccurate stereotypes and prejudice-this problem manifests itself as weaknesses.
In turn, this promotes the view that diversity hiring will mean sacrificing competence
and quality.
ii) The problem of ethnocentrism, which represents the feeling that one’s culture
rules and norms are superior or more appropriate than the rule and norms of another
culture.
iii) Poor career planning which is associated with the lack of opportunities for
diverse employees to get the type of work assignments that qualify then for senior
management positions.
iv) An unsupportive and hostile working environment, which excludes diverse
employees from social events and the friendly camaraderie, that takes place in most
offices.

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v) Fears of reverse discrimination. Some employees believe that managing
diversity is a smoke screen from reverse discrimination. This belief leads to very
strong resistance because people feel that one person’s gain is another’s loss.
The need to revamp the organizations performance appraisal and reward system.
Performance appraisals and rewards system must reinforce the needs to effectively
manage diversity. This means that success will be based on a new set of criteria.
Employees are likely to resists changes that adversely affect their promotions and
financial rewards.
1.3 Objective of the Study
The study is aimed at managing diversity in multinational organization. Hence the
following are the specific objectives:
i). To determine the techniques that lower costs and improve employees attitude in
multinational organization.
ii) To improve multinational organization recruiting efforts from enhanced
productivity.
iii) To increase group problem solving and productivity.
iv) To increase sales, market share and corporate profits
vi) To deal with those problems encountered in the process of managing diversity
and to show the relationship exist between diversity management and organizational
productivity.
1.4 Statement of research questions
i) What role does communication play in managing diversity effectively?
ii) How can diversity be effectively managed?
iii) Is there any significant relationship between diversity management and
multinational organizations?
iv) Can diversity management contribute to multinational organization?
v) Can equal opportunities and the management of diversity be distinguished
in any organization?

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1.5 Limitations of the Study
We are lucky enough to get a chance to prepare a report on “Diversity Management
in Unilever Bangladesh Ltd.” We tried heart & soul to prepare a well-informed
report. But unfortunately we faced some difficulties when preparing this report. We
tried to overcome the difficulties. In spite of trying our level best, some difficulties
that hamper our schedule report work:
1.5.1 Shortage of time:
Within a short time, we need to prepare some other courses’ reports for in this
session. For this reason, we could not get a fluent time schedule for the report.
1.5.2 Difficulty in collecting data:
Many employers of the organization were not well known about all information that
we asked them. Many of them failed to answer the questions. These things hampered
the information collection.
1.6 Methods
For making any report most of the data should be taken that reflect actual situation.
For our report we have collected data from different sources.
i. Unilever Bangladesh Ltd. official web-site
ii. Annual Reports
iii. Prospectus
iv. Brochures
1.7 Operational Definition of Terms
Diversity: means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our
individual differences. These can be along. the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender,
sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs,
political beliefs, or other ideologies.

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Managing Diversity: This entails enabling people to perform up to their maximum
potential. It focuses on changing an organization’s culture and infrastructure such
that people provide the highest productivity possible
Affirmative Action: This focuses on achieving equality of opportunity in an
organization and it often mandated by national or super national laws.
Recruitment Practices: This focuses on attracting job applicant at all levels who
are willing to accept challenging work assignment. This focus is critical because
people learn the leadership skills needed for advancement by successfully
accomplishing increasingly challenging and responsible work assignment.
Discrimination: This refers to unfair treatment of an individual or group on grounds
of their sex or race.
Culture: This is predominant value-system or ethos of an organization usually a
mixture of implicit beliefs, values and explicit statement.
Performance Appraisal: The process of assessing the performance of an employee
in his job, appraisal can be used for salary review, training, needs analysis and job
improvement plan for example
Management: The process of working with the through others to achieve
organizational objectives effectively and ethically.

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CHAPTER 02: REVIEW OF THE RELEVANT
LITERATURE
2.1 Introduction
Globalization is changing the world both demographically and involving the
business world with different kind of individuals both workers and customers as end-
users. For this reason, one of the most important concepts of the globalizing business
world is managing diversities and creating a competitive advantage to cope with
increasing global competition. With international agreements, the free movement
of the workforce, the changing world dynamics and the increasing participation
of minorities such as refugees, women, and members of different religions into the
workforce has become one of the important debates in the leadership which is one
of the functions of management. This necessitated the diversities to be transformed
into global competitive advantage for businesses with the aim of transforming the
meaningful achievements of the diversities, to prevent the possible/current conflicts
or an element that needs to be managed. The rapid globalization of the global
economy has driven businesses into a competitive environment that cannot be
compared to the former in local and international markets, these new world
conditions made plan strategies that will create competitive advantage obligatory.
In the related literature, the most accepted competitive strategies are the generic
competitive strategies recommended by M. Porter (1985). Porter divided these
strategies into 3 basic headings; differentiation, cost leadership and focus strategies.
With the increasingly rapid globalization, the increasing competition, which is one
of the two major influences of this process, necessitated the research of the
relationship between the way of businesses coping with the increasing competition
and the ability to manage the work force structure changing due to globalization.
2.2 Literature Review
In this paper we explore previous literature on the subject of managing diversity. We
begin by looking at the various definitions of diversity. An analysis of the arguments
found in the literature for, and against, workplace diversity is then presented. We
then look at the results of empirical research conducted to examine the effects of
diversity on organizational performance. A number of cases are included to illustrate
real world examples to the literature reviewed.

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1. The most simple and compelling
answer is because it has the potential to
lead to increased firm performance
(Capowski 1996; Johnson 1999; Von
Bergen, Soper & Parnell 2005).
2. This has significant ramifications for
business strategy because a diverse
workforce can lead to higher quality
decisions (Miller, Burke & Glick 1998)
3. Thomas Roosavelt Junior defines
diversity as 'dealing with the collective
mixture of differences and similarities
along a given dimension, and it extends
to age, personal and corporate
background, education, function and
personality' (De Janesz, Dowd &
Schnedier 2006, p.91).His broad
definition includes lifestyle, sexual
orientation, geographic origin, tenure
with an organization, physical and
mental disability, exempt or non-exempt
status, and management or non-
management.
4. (De Janesz et al. 2006). Hazard
(2004, p. 29) also views workplace
diversity as 'more than race and gender.
It refers to a broad range of differences
that influence how people interact and
achieve business results'. A broad
definition of diversity is also adopted by
Worth (2006), Richardson (2005) and
Gill (2003).
Therefore, as almost all workplaces have a diverse group of employees,
managers and directors, being able to effectively manage workplace diversity is
important to the majority of businesses. In this article, we have chosen to adopt a
broad definition of 'diversity' as it is more relevant to most businesses. Kramer (1998)
makes an important distinction between diversity and affirmative action, arguing
that diversity management is an approach to management rather than an extension
of affirmative action.
2.3 Arguments about diversity
Roosavelt (1990, p. 108) argues that 'affirmative action is artificial', whilst
managing diversity consists 'of enabling people, in this case minorities and women,
to perform to their potential'. Accordingly, 'managing diversity is a philosophy about
how differences among individuals and organizations can be embraced rather than
feared, encouraged rather than squelched' (De Janesz et al. 2006, p. 93).

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It is 'a dynamic process that needs to influence business strategy and support
business goals (Worman 2005, p. 27). 'For diversity management to be effective, all
groups in the workplace need to perceive that employment policies operate to satisfy
their needs as well as those of individuals with different personality characteristics'
(Kramer 1998, p. 141). It is argued by Kramer (1998) that to be managed effectively,
it must be done at the strategic, managerial & operational levels within an
organization.
Gilbert & Ivancevich (2000) support Kramer's (1998) argument by
highlighting the difference between a genuine commitment by senior management
to managing diversity as opposed to superficial commitment in two organizations,
finding that unless there is a real commitment at the strategy level of business the
benefits an organization can attain from managing diversity will be limited. This is
supported by research conducted by Lowther (2006) at Dell Computers that found
having support for the diversity strategy at board level was an important driver to
the success of their diversity program.
Examples
The Korean would caucus in Korean, frustrating the buyers, who responded
by caucusing in Spanish. This approach proved effective, conveying to the Koreans
in an indirect manner that the caucus in Korean was frustrating to the other side.
Therefore, as a result both teams interacted in a more professional and respectable
manner (Brett et al. 2006). Johnson (1999) and Richard (2000) have both argued that
superior firm performance results from a culturally diverse work force. It was
however, Von Bergen, Soper & Parnell (2005) that found a link between minority
friendly firms and share performance through rigorous empirical analysis.
For example, the senior management at IBM 'insisted that the task force create
a link between IBM's diversity goals and its business goals - that this would be good
business, not good philanthropy' (Thomas 2004, p. 107). Accordingly, IBM's
revenue that was derived from women-owned businesses and others minority groups
has risen dramatically, from '$10 million in 1998 to hundreds of millions in 2003'
(Thomas 2004, p. 107). Capowski (1996, p. 13) argues that 'diversity as a bottom-
line line issue has overshadowed diversity as a do-good initiative'.
Ferlie, Hartley & Martin (2003) also found justification for increasing
organizational diversity as a strategy to increase firm performance. This may come
in the form of increased adaptability (Wiersema & Bantel 1993) or increased
productivity (Jackson 1993). For example, Dell recognized that a diverse workforce
was critical to the exploration of new ideas and the creation of innovation (Lowther

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2006). However, not everyone agrees that increasing workplace diversity
automatically translates to improved organizational performance.
For example, Thomas and Ely (1996) argue that the way in which diversity is
managed leads to increased productivity, rather than the mere existence of diversity.
This is supported by Kwak (2003) who argues that the organizations' culture, its
strategies and policies can have an impact on the ability of a diverse workforce to
perform exceptionally. Hence, managing diversity becomes increasingly important
for businesses that want to maximize the potential of their workforce. De Janesz et
al (2006) have identified a number of barriers that exist within some individuals to
accepting diversity.
2.4 Managing Diversity- A competitive advantage
Why does this work? We are only just beginning to understand all of the unique
ways in which diversity drives this advantage. Here is what we know so far:
Diversity builds beneficial networks: A balanced and diverse leadership team brings
new networks into a company that can be used to attract talent, build business
relationships and sell products.
Diverse leadership brings the right skills at the right time: Studies show differing
leadership styles in an organization bring essential qualities that matter as a company
grows — aggressive, action-oriented approaches tempered by collaboration,
listening and tolerance, for example.
Diversity provides insight into the customer: Most companies sell into an
increasingly diverse customer base; mapping experiences, perspectives and
networks internally to better mirror customers drives increased sales.
2.5 Increasing diversity in the workforce
Workforce diversity means similarities and differences among employees in terms
of age, cultural background, physical abilities and disabilities, race, religion, gender,
and sexual orientation. No two humans are alike. People are different in not only
gender, culture, race, social and psychological characteristics but also in their
perspectives and prejudices. Society had discriminated on these aspects for centuries.
Diversity makes the work force heterogeneous. In current scenario, employing
diversified workforce is a necessity for every organization but to manage such

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diversified workforce is also a big challenge for management. This paper critically
analyses the workforce diversity and its impact on productivity of an organization.
The researcher after examining the literature and various research papers, concluded
that workforce diversity is strength for any organization but people still stick to their
views related to caste, religion etc. and so consider diversity as a problem but if
managed properly, can increase the productivity.
2.6 Company Culture and Diversity Management
Various challenges faced by modern organizations cause the organization seeks to
leverage its potential to achieve goals. The most striking challenge for organizations
today is the issue of managing diversity. This is in line with what Benschop (2001)
argue that diversity management is considered one of the key challenges for HRM
in modern organizations. With regard to human resources, organizations will be
exposed to increasing pressure on human resources diversity. That is, the diversity
requires proper attention, understanding, and management in order for the
organizations to get the real benefits, which in turn is expected to bring meaningful
influence to achieve the organizational goals (Handayani, Udin et al., 2017).
Along with the changing business environment, the work also changed to become
more diverse. Likewise the human resources that work in organizations also become
increasingly diverse. Consequently there is an increasing trend of variation and
interaction among different human resources (Wibowo 2010). In an organizational
context, uniformity is described as a number of important characteristics of human
beings that influence the values, opportunities, and perceptions of people in
themselves and others.
Miller and Katz (2002) argue that diversity is a range of social identity groups that
include within an organization. This diversity is in fact a tremendous opportunity
when diversity is effectively managed. But on the contrary diversity can also be a
disaster when it comes to the conflict of its members. Robbins (2013) mentions that
if diversity is not managed well then emerging is conflict, disagreement and reduced
productivity. In addition, inability of management in managing diversity within the
organization will cause its diversity to be barriers to organizational progress (Allison
1999). These are the reaction to multiculturalism's commitment, anger and sustained

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disappointment from women and minorities, and systematic institutional resistance
within the organization to the differences.
Managing diversity cannot be separated from managing culture. A diversity that can
be effectively managed will bring about the total support of members of the
organization and that is the part of the acceptance of diversity as part of an
organizational culture. Therefore, this is an importance of organizational leaders to
have ability to manage diversity effectively. Effective religious management will
ultimately create a strong culture of the organization. Furthermore, through this
strong organizational culture will be expected to have competitiveness of the
organization.
Recently, the topic of the importance of managing culture within the organization is
still an interesting conversation for researchers. This is proven by many studies of
organizational culture related to organizational outcomes such as those conducted
by Tsai (2011), Acar (2012), Yesil and Rich (2013), Iljins, Skvarciany et al. (2015)
and Lee, Shiue et al. (2016). The discussion that occurred at least includes two things
namely the elements of organizational culture and the process of forming the
organizational culture itself (Brahmasari and Suprayetno, 2008).
Organizational culture greatly affects many aspects of the organization, such as
employee interaction, organizational functions, decision-making processes, and
employee success in the face of challenging situations (Joel 2015). Many aspects
arise as a result of the culture that make the organization need to choose what kind
of cultural classification is worth developing so recognized as a driver for the
progress of an organization.
Identification of strong culture could be known from Robbins's (2006) statement that
strong culture is a culture where organizational values are held intensively and
widely shared from members of the organization. Further Robbins (2006) says that
a strong organizational culture provides stability to an organization. Strong culture
can also be called a positive culture. A positive organizational culture will encourage
employee achievement motivation and company effectiveness. To be clear, the
following table can illustrate the difference between strong culture and weak culture.

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Table 2.2 Differences between strong culture and weak culture
Strong culture Weak Culture
Values are widely accepted Values are embraced by only a handful of
people within the organization, usually top
management
Culture provides a consistent message of what
matters
Culture provides conflicting messages about
what matters
Employees can tell the history and hero of the
organization
Employees have little knowledge about the
history and heroes of the organization
Employees are strongly identify with the
culture
Employees have little concern for their
organizational cultural identity
A strong relationship between shared values
and behavior among members of an organization
Weak relationship between shared values and
behavior among members of the organization
Source: Dessler (2013)
2.7. Relationship between managing diversity and strong culture organization:
The linkage between organizational diversity and culture management is that
basically diversity management could be defined as a company's ability to provide
opportunities and exploit people's resources from different cultural backgrounds
(Magoshi and Chang, 2009). This sense means that between diversity and culture
there is a close relationship.
The issue of organizational diversity becomes important for all organizations to
address today. Not only because of the increasing level of competition but also with
the increasingly complex workforce in an organization. Organizational competition
is no longer happening at the local level but across regional boundaries. Similarly,
complexity of labor and heterogeneity are a necessity.
There are several ways that could be done in the face of diversity of human resources,
so even though coming from different backgrounds, these ways could be applied in

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order to maximize the potential diversity that exists within the organization, among
others (Robbins and Coulter, 2012): Peak management commitment to diversity
Organizations need a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion programs.
Diversity needs to be integrated into every aspect of the business - from labor,
customers and suppliers to products, services and communities served Mentoring
program Mentoring is a process by which experienced members of the organization
offer advice and guidance to less experienced members. A good mentoring program
will be aimed at all the diversity of employees who have high potential to rise to the
career ladder of an organization Diversity skills training Organizations have a
challenge to find ways how an employee can work with different employees. That
is when it comes to the training of diversity skills, a special training to educate
employees about importance of diversity and teach them the skills to work in diverse
environments. Recognition and support to the employee resources group
Recognition of an employee resource group is a strategy that could be used to
embrace different groups that are not seen and ignored within an organization. This
group of employee resources provides an opportunity for these people to have a
voice.
Diversity is an absolute thing for the organizations. It therefore is necessary to plan
management strategies to overcome the problems that arise as a result of these
differences. The hope, once the organization knows the problems that arise then top
management to do strategic steps in solving the problem. Diversity of human
resources is very influential on business strategy and organizational management. It
has to be a top priority for organizational leaders who need to be considered for
effective performance of the organization.
2.8 Organizational Practices used to effectively manage diversity
With the perfect representation of all ethnicities, genders and varying age groups –
Barney couldn’t really go wrong when it came to inclusion!With organizations
across the world seeking increasing global relevance, embracing and managing
diversity gains tremendous importance. So apart from engaging a heterogeneous
workforce that includes all genders, employees across age groups, ethnicities and

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races, diversity also means inclusion of everyone so that they feel comfortable and
can contribute to the success of the organization.
Creating this heterogeneous workforce that helps to create innovative products,
services and business practices that can set the organization apart and differentiate it
to create a competitive advantage.
Many countries have regulations that ensure or even demand diversity; organizations
themselves have seen tremendous benefits by embracing diversity.
Here’s a quick look at some of them:
Innovation:
One of the most positive effects of diversity is the boost it provides to innovation at
the workplace. Diversity encourages employees to learn from others and share ideas
by brainstorming and sharing experiences. It also makes them more receptive to
trying out new things thus increasing the innovation and creativity at work.
Reduced turnover:
Often employee conflicts with managers and colleagues lead to stress that could
increase the employee turnover at the workplace. Not only does this lead to loss of
productivity but increases the recruitment and training cost as well. However by
ensuring inclusion the organization can create an informal culture that in turn
increases the employee loyalty and the employees’ sense of belonging in the
organization.
Attract top Talent:
Firstly diversity in recruitment broadens the pool of talent that the organization can
recruit from. It also helps build an employer brand that is seen as inclusive thus
becoming an aspirational organization for top talent.
Increased Adaptability:
Workplace diversity can increase the organization’s adaptability in the market as a
heterogeneous employee base will ensure better understanding of consumer
requirements and demands leading finally to better decisions.

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Managing Diversity
While diversity provides many benefits to the organization, it’s also essential for
managers and employees to understand how to manage diversity to the
organization’s as well as their own benefit.
Organizations and managers alike need to consciously take steps and initiatives to
encourage more heterogeneous groups that ultimately lead to better market
understanding and decision making.
This requires managers to understand their own backgrounds and behaviors better
and understand how it affects their perspectives and decision making.
A successful manager should be in a position to manage diversity by building a
culture of tolerance through education, training, communication and conflict
management strategies.
Here are some tips on making your teams diverse and reaping the benefit:
Hiring
Very clearly the inroads into the organization should mirror the approach that the
organization has towards building a diverse team. It’s said that the workforce should
resemble the community or country in which it is set up.
For the initial impetus required for policy adherence, it may also be necessary to
incorporate tangible aspects of the recruitment policy in a each individual team
manager’s performance evaluation.
Overcoming bias in the interviewing and assessment process is also another
important aspect of hiring for diversity.
By incorporating a diverse interview panel the organization can ensure that the
selection process is free of any biases and prejudices and the candidates are selected
based on suitability to the job requirements.

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CHAPTER 3: OVERVIEW OF THE COMPANY
3.1. Introduction:
Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of fast-moving-consumer-goods,
with 400 brands spanning 14 categories of Home, Personal Care and Foods products.
In fact, 150 million times a day people use Unilever products at key moments of
their day. Unilever employs more than 269,000 people in 190 countries and had
worldwide revenue is US$78 billion or BDT 6,315 billion in 2016.
Unilever’s brand portfolio includes worldwide favorites: Lipton, Knorr, Dove, Axe,
Dirt is good, Hellmann’s, Lux, Megnum, Rexona, Sunsilk, Surf and Vaseline. Their
portfolio is diverse in response to the varying needs of their customers across the
globe. Unilever offers world-class brands, many of which are customized for local
markets. Unilever spends €1 billion annually on research and development,
employing approximately 6,000 experts to drive innovation, often in partnership
with suppliers and academia. Their innovations use insights and technologies to
deliver brand-led benefits which meet the latest trends. Examples include natural
variants in Foods and Personal Care by Knorr and TRESemmé brands, and vegan
product variants by Ben & Jerry’s and Hellmann’s. Our innovation is increasingly
responsive to local needs, landing results faster into markets.
The following figure shows the portfolio of categories Unilever operates.
Fig: Business Area of Unilever
Home Care
18%
Savoury,Dressings
35%
Personal Care
28%
Ice Cream and
Bevarages
19%

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3.2 Unilever Global:
Unilever is an Anglo-Dutch company, with a history of colonial exploitation, on
which it has gradually built its capital. Today it owns more than 400 of the world's
consumer product brands in food, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care
products. Unilever employs more than 174,000 people and had worldwide revenue
of €49.800 billion in 2013. Unilever has two parent companies: Unilever NV in
Rotterdam, Netherlands, and Unilever PLC in London, United Kingdom. This
arrangement is similar to that of Reed Elsevier, and that of Royal Dutch Shell prior
to their unified structure. Both Unilever companies have the same directors and
effectively operate as a single business. The current non-executive Chairman of
Unilever N.V. and PLC is Michael Treschow (May 2007) while Paul Polman
(January 2009) is Chief Executive Officer. Unilever's major competitors include
Nestlé and Procter & Gamble.
3.3 History of Unilever:
William Hesketh Lever founded Lever Brothers in 1885. Lever established soap
factories around the world. In 1917, he began to diversify into foods, acquiring fish,
ice cream and canned foods businesses. In the Thirties, Unilever introduced
improved technology to the business. The business grew and new ventures were
launched in Latin America. The entrepreneurial spirit of the founders and their
caring approach to their employees and their communities remain at the heart of
Unilever's business today.
Unilever was formed in 1930 when the Dutch margarine company Margarine Unie
merged with British soap maker Lever Brothers. Companies were competing for the
same raw materials, both were involved in large-scale marketing of household
products and both used similar distribution channels. Between them, they had
operations in over 40 countries. Margarine Unie grew through mergers with other
margarine companies in the 1920s.
In a history that now crosses three centuries, Unilever's success has been influenced
by the major events of the day –economic boom, depression, world wars, changing
consumer lifestyles and advances in technology. And throughout they've created
products that help people get more out of life–cutting the time spent on household

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chores, improving nutrition, enabling people to enjoy food and take care of their
homes, their clothes and themselves.
Through this timeline you'll see how UBL brand portfolio has evolved. At the
beginning of the 21st century, path to Growth strategy focused us on global high-
potential brands and Vitality mission is taking us into a new phase of development.
More than ever, how brands are helping people 'feel good, look good and get more
out of life' – a sentiment close to Lord Lever Hulme's heart over a hundred years
ago.
Timeline
19th century: Although Unilever wasn't formed until 1930, the companies that
joined forces to create the business we know today were already well established
before the start of the 20th century.
1900s: Unilever's founding companies produced products made of oils and fats,
principally soap and margarine. At the beginning of the 20th century their expansion
nearly outstrips the supply of raw materials.
1910s: Tough economic conditions and the First World War make trading difficult
for everyone, so many businesses form trade associations to protect their shared
interests.
1920s: With businesses expanding fast, companies set up negotiations intending to
stop others producing the same types of products. But instead they agree to merge
and so Unilever is created.
1930s: Unilever's first decade is no easy ride: it starts with the Great Depression and
ends with the Second World War. But while the business rationalizes operations, it
also continues to diversify.
1940s: Unilever's operations around the world begin to fragment, but the business
continues to expand further into the foods market and increase investment in
research and development.

27
1950s: Business booms as new technology and the European Economic Community
lead to rising standards of living in the West, while new markets open up in emerging
economies around the globe.
1960s: As the world economy expands so does Unilever and it sets about developing
new products, entering new markets and running a highly ambitious acquisition
program.
1970s: Hard economic conditions and high inflation make the 70s a tough time for
everyone, but things are particularly difficult in the fast-moving consumer goods
(FMCG) sector as the big retailers start to flex their muscles.
1980s: The business expands into Central and Eastern Europe and further sharpens
its focus on fewer product categories, leading to the sale or withdrawal of two-thirds
of its brands.
1990s: The business expands into Central and Eastern Europe and further sharpens
its focus on fewer product categories, leading to the sale or withdrawal of two thirds
of its brands.
The 21st Centuries: The decade starts with the launch of Path to Growth, a five-
year strategic plan, and in 2004 further sharpens its focus on the needs of 21st
Century consumers with its Vitality mission.
3.4 Unilever Bangladesh Limited
Unilever started its operations in Bangladesh nearly 87 years back. Lever Brothers
Bangladesh Ltd. was a subsidiary of Unilever is leading the home care, personal care
and food product market of Bangladesh. On 25th
February 1964 the eastern plant of
Lever Brothers Pakistan Ltd. was inaugurated at Kalurghat, Chittagong with a soap
production capacity of approximately 485 metric tons. It was a private limited
company with 55% share held by Unilever and the rest by the Government of
Pakistan. After independence the eastern plant was declared abandoned. But on 5th
July 1973 it was registered under the name of Lever Brothers Bangladesh Ltd.

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3.5 Unilever’s Corporate Purpose
UBL’s purpose is to meet the everyday needs of people everywhere, to anticipate
the aspirations of the consumers and customers and to respond creatively and
competitively with branded products and services which raise the quality of life. At
the heart of the corporate purpose, which guides UBL in its approach to doing
business, is the drive to serve consumers in a unique and effective way.
This is Unilever’s road to sustainable, profitable, growth for their business and long-
term value creation for their shareholders and employees.
3.6 Unilever at a Glance
Mission: Unilever's mission is to add Vitality to life. They meet every day needs
for nutrition; hygiene and personal care with brands that help people feel good, look
good and get more out of life.
Vision: To make cleanliness a commonplace; to lessen work for women; to foster
health and contribute to personal attractiveness, in order that life may be more
enjoyable and rewarding for the people who use the products.
Goals: The goals of UBL are:
 To manufacture high-standard products.
 Promoting products to the highest extent
 Producing large volume to achieve production cost economies.
 Enabling quality products to be sold out at obtainable prices.
Constitution:
Unilever - 60.75% shares, Government of Bangladesh - 39.25%
Product categories:
Household Care, Fabric Cleaning, Skin Cleansing, Skin Care, Oral Care, Hair Care,
Color Cosmetics, Deodorant, Tea based Beverages.

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Brands:
Wheel, Lux, Lifebuoy, Fair & Lovely, Pond's, Close Up, Sunsilk, Lipton Taaza,
Pepsodent, Clear, Vim, Surf Excel, Rexona, Dove, Vaseline & Lakme, and Axe.
MANUFACTURING FACILITIES:
The company has a soap manufacturing factory and a personal products factory
located in Chittagong. Besides these, there is a tea packaging operation in Chittagong
and three manufacturing units in Dhaka, which are owned and run by third parties
exclusively dedicated to Unilever Bangladesh.
EMPLOYEES:
Unilever Operations in Bangladesh provide employment to over 10,000 people
directly and indirectly through its dedicated suppliers, distributors and service
providers. 99.5% of UBL employees are locals and there are equal numbers of
Bangladeshis working abroad in other Unilever companies as expatriates.
3.7 Organizational Structure
In terms of Unilever, they have two chairmen leading the company worldwide.
They have seven top directors leading seven different departments. They have
divided their departments.
Worldwide business into different region and have different business groups to
manage them.
Unilever Bangladesh limited falls under the Southeast Asian region. On a more
micro scale, Unilever Bangladesh ltd is monitored by Hindustan lever Ltd. which
oversees operation in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The chairman of
Unilever Bangladesh Limited is known as the managing director. The management
staff of the company consists of six layers, starting from junior manager (who are
local managers) to manager grade 5 (who are Unilever managers). Apart from this
the company also hires many non-management staff as well as operatives to work in
the factories

30
Unilever Bangladesh Limited structured in the following manner:
Unilever Bangladesh Limited has five departments to carry out all the organizational
functions. Respective director’s head are head of all departments. These departments
are:
1) Customer Development Department Headed by Customer Development Director
(CDD)
2) Brands & Development Department headed by the Brands and Development
Director (B&DD)
3) Supply Chain Department headed by the Supply Chain Director (SCD)
4) Finance Department headed by Finance Director (FD)
5) Human Resources Department headed by the Human Resources Director (HRD)

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1) Customer Development Department:
Managing customers i.e. retailers, wholesalers, and distributors, is becoming critical
day by day. With the evolution of modern trade and aggressive local and
international competition, role of Customer Management has also been gradually
shifting from traditional “Sales: to “Trade Marketing”. Category Management,
Space Management and In-store merchandising are becoming more and more
important. Exploring and developing new channels are becoming critical to drive
their business forward. With more and more sophistication, the role of Customer
Management will evolve further and the whole game will be turned into
“Relationship Marketing”. The customer management director (CMD) heads the
Customer Management Department. Reporting to him are the Sales Operation
Manager, Regional Sales Managers and Area Sales Managers. Company organized
media is under the Sales Operation Manager. Assistant Area managers’ report to the
Regional Sales Managers. Territory Managers report to the Assistant Area sales
managers, Area Sales Managers and Regional Sales Managers, which differ in
different sales areas. The Customer Management Department, early called ‘Sales
Department’, is responsible for all company goods and maintains the following
customer management strategy:
 Strong distribution network
 Widest distribution with seasonal operation in cost effectives areas.
 Effective and focused company sales force
 Major thrust in rural market
2) Brands and Development Department:
The Brands Team has been expanded to Brands and Development, thus providing
opportunity of increased coordination between the marketing and Development
Team.
Insight into consumer needs and aspirations is critical if new market opportunities
are to be identified. New market opportunities must be identified if they are looking
for sustainable profitable growth, keeping them miles ahead of their competitors.
However it is also crucial to exploit technology and developments to translate the
found insight into tangible products catering to the needs and aspirations of the
consumers with speed. A deep understanding of both consumers and technologies

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provides an essential foundation for successful innovation. To ensure a successful
innovation process at Unilever, Brands and Development have been bought together.
This will help their development team to have closer contact with the consumer
world, following the leads and cues of their
aspirations and thus innovating products tailored accordingly at a faster pace. Brands
and Development Department is further divided into six major areas. They include:
. Home care
. Personal care
. Dental Service
. Food
. Tea export
. Marketing research
3) Supply Chain Department:
The Supply Chain Director (SCD) who is in charge of planning, buying,
manufacturing and distributing heads Supply Chain Department. The supply chain
process constitutes a series of important activities ensuring smooth delivery to the
consumers. Supply chain process led to joining planning and buying with
manufacturing. Joining distribution to the chain, thus integrating both backward and
forward linkages, further extends this chain. An integrated supply chain will give
them the advantage of acting with speed, enabling them to keep up with pace of the
ever changing business scenario. At present, it is divided into the following
functions:
. Manufacturing
. Engineering
. Company Buying
. Distribution
. Quality Assurance
. Planning
4) Finance and IT Department:
The Finance and IT departments are jointly headed by one Director. The main
objectives of this department are to serve all the division and departments of the
companies, to secure and safeguard company assets and interest, to ensure proper

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internal control within the company and above all, to be cost effective in order to get
optimum benefit for the company while operating. At present the major sub
departments are:
. Business system
. Finance
. Legal.
5) Human Resources Department:
The Human Resources Director (HRD) currently heads this department. The major
functions of this department are:
 Factory Personnel functions or Industrial Relations
 Recruitment, Training and developments, labor welfare
 Personnel Services and Security.
All these major personnel functions are integrated in the best possible way in
Unilever Bangladesh Limited which results in its higher productivity. Industrial
relations or the factory personnel functions are looked after by factory personnel
manager, training and development activities are supervised by Manager Human
Resource Development, Employee Welfare activities are monitored by Assistant
Manager labor welfare, personnel services are looked after by the FPM along with
the office services manager and finally security officer is responsible for all the
security services At present, the total number of personnel in Unilever Bangladesh
Limited are 720 which includes 159 in management & 543 unionized permanent
workers.

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CHAPTER-4 DIVERSITY MANAGEMENT OF
UNILEVER BANGLADESH
4.1 Introduction
Diversity management has attracted great attention of academics, practitioners and
organizational researchers over the last few decades. The changing demographic
composition of the workforce, the increasing social sensitivity to ethical concerns,
and the overall consequences of globalization are compelling more and more
organizations to deal with diversity management (DM) (Ravazzani, 2016).
Diversity and DM have several definitions. According to Kandola and Fullerton
(1998) diversity means visible and non-visible differences of people such as sex,
age, race, background, disability, personality and work style. Accordingly, DM starts
with accepting these differences and aims to harness them to create a productive
environment where everybody feels valued, their talents are being fully utilized and
in which organizational goals are met (Kandola & Fullerton, 1998).
Early studies in DM focused on affirmative action plans and improving equal
employment opportunities of marginalized groups such as women, racial or ethnic
minorities, disabled individuals and other designated groups as well as visible
minorities. It is also important to note that early research in DM usually reflected
national perspectives mainly originated from a limited number of countries
(Klarsfeld, et al., 2016).
The need for DM for all multi-national companies increased given several factors
including: the intensifying “war for talent”, the changing nature of production, the
increasing need for creativity and continuous innovation and the accelerating labor
mobility (Friday & Friday, 2003). Accordingly, in time, both content and coverage
of DM progressed and managing diversities effectively became a strategic issue for
organizations to gain sustainable competitive advantage in today’s competitive
global business environment (Bendl, Fleischmann, & Walenta, 2008).
However, in comparison to Western countries, Asia (India and China) and
Bangladesh in particular has attracted less attention in Diversity management.

35
4.2 Global Diversity at Unilever:
More companies are undertaking efforts to increase diversity and inclusion (D&I)
within their organizations. Unilever, one of the world’s leading suppliers of food,
home care, personal care, and refreshment products, has made strong commitments
in this field in recent years. The British-Dutch company seeks to challenge harmful
social norms and stereotypes in the workplace and beyond, enable the inclusion of
disabled employees and LGBT+ employees, and advance the presence of women in
management — with a target of 50 percent representation.
The global organization, with presence in over 190 countries and a reach of 2.5
billion consumers a day, has already made great strides toward accomplishing its
goals. With its Global Diversity Board providing overarching vision, governance,
and targets, Unilever launched an internal and external Unstereotype initiative that
aims to combat stereotypes in the workplace and advertising; the company initiated
a Disability Inclusion Program in 10 countries in 2018 and 49 percent of Unilever’s
managers are women.
4.2.1 Diversity agenda of Unilever
Unilever has a long track record as a multi-national company. Yet they are also have
a very local feel, with deep social roots and customs in many countries where we do
business. This has been their cornerstone and why they have done well globally.
Unilever top leadership team has 22 different nationalities and they have six different
nationalities on our executive. Unilever global leader of diversity is based in
Mumbai, India, and we have an extensive international network of people leading
this important agenda. In the last few years, diversity has become a true business
imperative for us: a core part of our strategy and fundamental to our business
success.
4.2.2 Structuring diversity policies
Unilever comprehensive approach hinges on improving representation and
participation. They take tangible measures at management level, giving
accountability to improve gender balance at all levels of business. Unilever create
the best of agile working programs, so that people may work where they are most

36
productive. For example, women with children may wish to work from home so they
can balance childcare.
Unilever looks at individual needs as well as business team needs by encouraging
constructive line management conversations, so we can strike a balance that is good
for both parties. This is easier now Unilever has a technology-enabled environment:
Skype connectivity, video and audio conferencing, and an intranet portal site that
gives access to a contact directory for Unilever employees around the world.
4.3 Diversity at Unilever Bangladesh Limited
The information gathered about Unilever Bangladesh Limited is based on online
sources that are already available to the public. Most of the information was gathered
from the company’s website. The purpose of the information gathered is to get
detailed information of the company’s workplace diversity involvement, and the
impact it has had on the company’s activities and success.
UBL employs people all over the Country. Throughout the history of UBL, their
diverse employees have created a variety of products that has immensely contributed
to its success.
UBL has been one of the world leaders in workplace diversity and inclusion, which
has since remained the key business strategy of the company. Diversity could be
found in every level of the company’s operations, from the boardroom to the Supply
Chain, from the plant floors to the marketing center, their diversity makes them a
better and successful company.
Recognizing the company’s day-by-day growth in diversity in the company, UBL
realized that it needed to strategically and effectively manage the diverse workforce
to enable itsimplementation continue to work to the company’s advantage. UBL
therefore recognized some measures, which they thought would retain and also
attract new diverse workforce and successful diversity implementation and
management. These measures involves Unsilvers recognition of its Global diversity
vision of Diversity and inclusion, of which some strategies are underlined and
explained below:

37
Diverse workforce: Employing people from all over the Country irrespective of
their race, gender, ethnicity, age, disability to contribute to the company’s success
story.
Respectful and Inclusive Work Environment: A working environment where no
one is left out but instead all is included in the decision-making process as well as
opinion sharing. And also a mutual respect for each individual’s culture believe and
their personality.
Leading the Way: To ensure that UBL stands “on top of the chart” above other
reputable companies, by moving one step further from them in terms of workplace
diversity and productivity as a whole.
Work life Integration: This integration involves workers making choices as well
as exercising control of their life´s challenges in order to meet their goals. In
recognizing the impact of the work life integration strategy, the company designed
a conducive-working environment for workers to successfully combine personal
lives with their working life, thereby motivating them to work productively and
efficiently
Equal pay for equal work
UBL believe in paying for performance with clear reward policies and have a
longstanding commitment to equal pay for equal work.
UBL’s compensation structures are intended to be gender neutral, with any pay
differences between employees in similar jobs fairly reflecting levels of individual
performance and skill.
4.4 Balanced business in UBL
UBL is on a longstanding mission to drive gender equality in the workplace, and
with 50% of managerial roles across Unilever’s global business now represented by
women, UBL is making positive progress.
This 50/50 split is a result that delivers on a goal we set back in 2010, at which point
women accounted for 38% of our managerial roles. Since then UBL has introduced
a series of programs, partnerships and policies – all designed to support women
within the company and break down any barriers to their recruitment, retention and
development.

38
“Diversity & Inclusion is one of the three things that we want Unilever to be famous
for,” says CEO Alan Jope. “This means making sure our business is fair, attracting
and retaining the very best talent and helping them unlock their full potential.”
Here are 9 changes UBL has made to create a more balanced business
1. UBL is leading change from the top
CEO Alan Jope chairs Unilever’s Global Diversity Board. The group comprises
senior leaders from across Unilever and is accountable for setting our Diversity &
Inclusion strategy, giving direction and acting as a catalyst for action.
Members of the Global Diversity Board are tasked with driving gender balance
within their parts of the business – and their results depend on it. Improving gender
representation is written into their annual business and development targets.
UBL also have a network of D&I Champions: nearly 100 employees who help power
this agenda through collaboration worldwide.
2. UBL improving numbers and culture at the same time
When UBL first started working towards our ambitions of a more gender-balanced
business, the prevailing wisdom was that a culture shift had to be in place before the
numbers could change.
Recognising the deep connection between an inclusive culture and a thriving
workforce, we decided to take a more holistic approach. While working on cultural
changes, UBL also applied data on current and historical challenges to set stretching
targets for every market and function within Unilever.
The Unilever Leadership Executive checks progress against these targets every
month, and our Global Diversity Board reviews updates three times a year to ensure
unilever stay on track.
3. Unilever is unstereotyping business as well as brands
In 2016 we launched a global commitment to move our advertising away from
stereotypes, recognising that they’re often outdated, unhelpful and, in some cases,
harmful.
We turned the lens inward to our business too, commissioning a study to understand
how stereotypes affected 8,000 of our employees. The results made tough reading –

39
60% of women and 49% of men said they felt stereotypes had held them back at
work.
We took swift action, and Unstereotype the Workplace is now a global theme across
Unilever for all our work to shatter limiting norms.
4. Unilever is addressing unconscious bias
In 2018 Unilever began a partnership with Professor Iris Bohnet of Harvard
University, which set out to put Unilever at the cutting edge of results-driven,
scientific approaches to tackle unconscious bias.
With Professor Bohnet’s guidance, Unilever introduced a metric called the Gender
Appointment Ratio, which looked at the recruitment track records of some of our
senior leaders over a five-year period, measuring how many men they had hired
compared with the number of women.
Presenting line managers with the big picture of their recruitment decisions improves
their awareness, triggers conversations around the issue, and helps them make
unbiased choices next time the opportunity arises.
5. Unilever is offering better support for new parents – globally
In 2018 Unilever completed the roll-out of our Global Maternal Wellbeing standard,
which guarantees employees 16 weeks’ paid maternity leave, wherever they’re
based. In 54% of countries, that meant going beyond regulatory requirements.
And because Unilever recognize the valuable role of men as care-givers too, the
same year Unilever also launched our Global Paternity Leave standard. It enables
new fathers to take three weeks’ paid paternity leave and is available to same-sex
couples and those who choose to adopt.
6. Unilever is making flexible working work
All employees are entitled to request flexible working, and it’s something UBL is
promoting throughout the business to give people more control over how, when and
where they work.

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7. Unilever is tackling tricky hot spots
In 2017, Unilever identified the areas within Unilever facing the greatest challenges
in terms of achieving a gender-balanced workforce. We’ve since delved deeper to
add granularity to our data, so we can refine how these historically male-dominated
functions or markets can make changes.
In Supply Chain, for example, Unilever have started to increase representation of
women in the function by accelerating the development of existing female leaders
and working with recruitment specialists to build proactive talent pipelines. We’ve
also established a Supply Chain female mentoring program.
Meanwhile in Finance Unilever have adopted a performance management
framework for gender representation, adding targets for directors to take leadership
on creating more diverse teams.
8. Unilever is seeing a shift in senior roles
In Supply Chain, one of Unilever’s ‘hot spots’ for gender balance, policies to support
balanced internal promotions and external hiring, and unbiased assessments for
senior leadership roles have made a big impact.
Female representation in vice president positions improved from 17% in December
2015 to 30% in December 2018.
Unilever has also made some encouraging progress in leadership roles at our
factories – traditionally a very male-dominated sector. Unilever moved from 11%
female factory leaders in 2015 to 20% in 2018. And at our tea plantations, 30% of
leadership roles are now held by women.
9. Unilever knows they’ve still got work to do
Unilever has reached a 50/50 gender balance in managerial roles worldwide. But
Unilever want our business to grow, and they firmly believe that empowering
women and unlocking their potential is part of how Unilever will achieve
sustainable, equitable growth.
“Today, Unilever has succeeded in reaching gender balance at management level,
but our work doesn't stop there, and we will continue to be a driving force in closing
the gender gap everywhere,” says Chief HR Officer Leena Nair.

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“A thriving society is one where women have equal access to rights, skills and
opportunities. If half the population are being held back, how are we all going to be
able to move forward?” Leena adds.
4.5 Gender Balance Policy
According to Kedar Lele, The CEO and Managing Director of Unilever
Bangladesh
“Unilever's gender balance milestone follows a long-standing commitment to drive
gender equality in the workplace. A dedicated Diversity & Inclusion team has
implemented several initiatives, including a Global Diversity Board and a network
of nearly 100 "Diversity & Inclusion Champions", who have set the benchmark for
how a community can power an inclusive culture across markets. Tools are also
being used to drive gender equity in recruitment, including gender-balanced
interview slate requirements, robust Diversity & Inclusion goals, and the Gender
Appointment Ratio—a measurement which tracks senior leaders' records in
appointing women. Unilever is also driving the Stereotype Alliance convened by
UN Women, which aims to eliminate harmful stereotypes in the workplace and
across the advertising industry.
In Bangladesh, while we are still short of being a gender-balanced organization, we
have made some great progress supported by sustained focus and organizational
commitment towards the cause. Women participation among Unilever Bangladesh's
managers went up from less than 10 percent to 37.3 percent over the last three years.
At Unilever Bangladesh, we undertook a slew of systemic measures to build our
female leadership pipeline across levels. Starting with a detailed talent landscape
and market mapping of women for focused recruitment to create a sustainable
pipeline, to creating and grooming visible role models in senior positions across
functions, Unilever Bangladesh has been working tirelessly to break traditional
stereotypes. Our inclusive and progressive policies like surrogacy and adoption
leave, six months' maternity leave for new mothers and four weeks' paternity leave
for new fathers, agile working policy, education assistance policy, operating creche
facility within our office premise to provide childcare support to all our workers are
shining examples of our commitment to walk the talk. Not only do we have a career
break policy to support our employees at critical life stages, we also have a career

42
re-entry program for women who were in career breaks and want to rejoin the
corporate world, rightfully called "Stride". We have been hosting a series of
Diversity and Inclusion Dialogues both internally and externally to help us and
others realize the unconscious biases and open our minds. Back in March 2019, our
Diversity and Inclusion agenda took a new sharp turn when Unilever Bangladesh
brought successful organizations together to collaborate and work towards the
employment opportunities for women. This was called "Balance for Better". Taking
the pledge forward, later in the year, Unilever Bangladesh initiated an external
Council called INSPIRIT, where purposeful diversity advocates from 7 large
organizations have joined forces to co-create actions and build a more conducive
environment for working women in Bangladesh. This council now plans to work
closely with regulators and Industry bodies to raise the bar for female workforce in
the country. After all, coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress,
and working together is success
This Women's Day, as we celebrate a historic milestone of achieving a perfect
gender-balanced Unilever globally at managerial level, our resolve for creating an
inclusive workplace in Bangladesh gets stronger. We must raise both the ceiling and
the floor in education, development, empowerment and progress of our women to
live the true spirit of Amar Sonar Bangla envisioned for this great nation”.
Ref: The daily Star 8th
march, 2020
4.6 Unilever’s policies & flexible working
At Unilever, they have a range of market-leading, family-friendly and flexible
working policies, which enable their employees to balance their day-to-day
responsibilities.
These policies and practices include:
 Agile working, which gives employees the possibility to work remotely and
flex their own hours, whilst ensuring business needs are met.
 Flexible working arrangements including, but not limited to, part-time and job
share opportunities.
 Enhanced leave policies - all employees taking maternity or shared parental
leave have up to 16 weeks’ paid leave and some eligible employees can have
up to 39 weeks’ paid leave. In addition, our Maternity & Paternity Services

43
portal provides online resources to support employees at all stages of
parenthood, as well as tailored guidance for line managers.
 Practical support including, nursery benefits and back-up care for parents and
careers.
Mentoring & training
Unilever has a strong culture of mentoring, training and learning across the
organization, with a range of resources and initiatives available:
 Mentoring and coaching
 Leadership and general business skills training, including unconscious bias
 Learning for all, via access to internal and external resources
 Workshops which support personal and team development.

44
CHAPTER 5: RECOMMENDATIONS AND
CONCLUSION
5.1. Recommendations
Unilever is one of the leading multinational Fast Moving Consumer Goods
Company in the world that owns many of the world's most popular consumer product
brand in food beverages, cleaning agents, and personal care products. With 400
brands spanning 14 categories of home, personal care and foods products, but about
this report Unilever Bangladesh Ltd we are giving some recommendation from our
findings to improve the diversity management in Unilever Bangladesh Ltd.
Making the job schedule more flexible which can help draw a wider pool of
candidates. Consider, for example, whether any jobs can be completed through
telecommuting or whether you can provide incentives that help people return to the
workforce while still taking care of their families, such as flexible work schedules
or child care on-site.
Emphasis on discipline. Many companies find that they can attract a diverse range
of candidates, but over time, because of a higher attrition rate for certain classes, the
organizational culture remains homogenous. When this is a phenomenon in the
organization, concentrate on retention efforts.
Recruitment over a broader geographical region. By broadening the recruitment's
regional spectrum, you can attract more potential candidates.
Consider offering instruction on diversity. It will encourage the company to simply
be more inclusive, which will encourage with retention efforts. It can help people to
realize the advantages of creating a more diverse and inclusive workforce which in
effect helps build a more accepting atmosphere.
Encourage diversity at all levels, not just in the hiring process. If at the upper levels
the corporate atmosphere isn't diverse, there would be less likelihood of maintaining
diversity overall. When all workers may not see that they have a chance to achieve
their personal ambitions, they will be more likely to leave.

45
5.2. Conclusion
Over the past four decades, Unilever Bangladesh has consistently introduced fresh
and world-class products to eliminate the everyday drudgery of life for the
Bangladeshi people. More than 90 per cent of households in the country use one or
more of their products. When Bangladesh became an independent country in 1971,
Lever Brothers Bangladesh Ltd was formed with Unilever owing 60.75 per cent
shares and the remaining 39.25 per cent shares were held by the Bangladesh
Government. To sync its corporate identity and logo with that of the multinational
Unilever, Lever Brothers was renamed "Unilever Bangladesh Limited" in 2004. And
from our finding we got that Unilever Bangladesh is doing well in terms of diversity
management they have policies like equal pay, flexible work time, gender balance
etc. A diverse workforce is a reflection of a changing world and marketplace.
Diverse work teams bring high value to organizations. Respecting individual
differences will benefit the workplace by creating a competitive edge and increasing
work productivity. Diversity management benefits associates by creating a fair and
safe environment where everyone has access to opportunities and challenges.
Management tools in a diverse workforce should be used to educate everyone about
diversity and its issues, including laws and regulations. Most workplaces are made
up of diverse cultures, so organizations need to learn how to adapt to be successful.
.

46
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books
1. Kotler Philip and Gary Armstrong, 12th
Edition, Principles of
Marketing, Indian Pearson prentice Hall PP- 15-30
2. Annual Report of Unilever (2010 and 2011)
Website
1. Unilever Global http://www.unilever.com/
2. http://www.unilever.com.bd/
3. Unilever – Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unilever
4. http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Unilever-Company-
History.html
5. www.unilever.com/sustainable-living
6. https://www.thedailystar.net/opinion/perspective/news/our-journey-towards-
balance-better-1877671
7. https://www.unilever.com.bd/news/news-and-features/2020/nine-ways-we-
are-making-unilever-a-more-gender-balanced-business.html
8. https://www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/enhancing-
livelihoods/opportunities-for-women/advancing-diversity-and-inclusion/
9. https://www.unilever.com.bd/news/news-and-features/2019/the-brands-
helping-girls-dream-bigger-and-be-bolder.html

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