Paulus Gerardus Josephus Maria Polman (born 11 July 1956)[1] is a Dutch business executive and author.
Early life and education
Polman was born and raised in Enschede, Netherlands, in a Catholic family with three brothers and two sisters.His father was a tire company executive, and his mother was a former school teacher.[2] He has said that he briefly considered becoming a priest as a teenager.[3]
He initially hoped to study medicine, but was not selected through the medical school lottery.[2] He instead attended the University of Groningen, graduating with a Bachelor of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in 1977.[4]
In 1979, he completed a master’s degree in economics and a Master of Business Administration in finance and international marketing at the University of Cincinnati.[5]
Polman received an honorary doctorate from the University of Groningen in June 2014, during its 400th anniversary celebrations.[6]
In May 2018, he received a second honorary doctorate from George Mason University, where he also delivered the commencement address, speaking on social inclusion, responsibility, and collective action.[7]
Career
Procter & Gamble
Polman worked for Procter & Gamble (P&G) for 27 years, starting in 1979 as a cost analyst.He later served as managing director of P&G UK from 1995 to 1998, president of global fabric care from 1998 to 2001, and group president for P&G Europe in 2001.[8]
Nestlé
Polman joined Nestlé in 2006 as chief financial officer.On February 2008, he became vice president and head of the Americas branch.[9][10][11]
Unilever
Polman served as Chief Executive Officer of Unilever from 2009 to 2019.[12][13] On 1 January 2009, Polman succeeded Patrick Cescau as chief executive officer of Unilever.During his tenure, the company launched the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, a strategy focused on reducing the company’s environmental impact and expanding social initiatives.[14]
He discontinued short-term earnings guidance, stating that quarterly targets encouraged decisions that harmed long-term performance. Polman also said he aims to increase the share of Unilever’s sales in emerging markets from 57 percent (up from 47 percent in 2008) to 70 percent.[15]
In 2013 and 2014, Unilever missed sales targets in six of eight quarters, prompting criticism from some shareholders, who questioned Polman’s emphasis on sustainability.
Systemiq / Imagine World
In July 2019, Polman co-founded Imagine World, an organization focused on poverty and climate change.[23] The entity works with corporations on initiatives related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.In 2022, Imagine World was acquired by Systemiq, with Polman remaining a board member as well as a major shareholder.[24] Systemiq, a certified B-Corporation, is an environmental consultancy firm headquartered in London, focused on environmental strategy and climate-related research.[25]
Other activities
Polman is a former[26] chair of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and sat on the board of directors of the Consumer Goods Forum,[27] leading its sustainability efforts.He is also a member of board of the UN Global Compact.[28] At the invitation of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Polman was one of the 27 members of the UN High Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda.At the invitation of former Mexican President Felipe Calderón, Polman was on the International Council of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate.[29]
Polman has served on the Global Advisory Board of TPG’s Rise Funds alongside Bono and Jeffrey Skoll.[30]
Personal life
Polman is married to Kim Polman, with whom he has three sons.[48]
Selected awards
Polman has received numerous awards for his leadership and efforts in sustainable development, including:
European Business Leader of the year by Wall Street Journal/CNBC (2003)
Investor Magazine CEO of the year (2010, 2011, 2012)
33.Fan, Shenggen and Polman, Paul. 2014. An ambitious development goal: Ending hunger and undernutrition by 2025. In the 2013 Global Food Policy Report. Eds. Marble, Andrew, and Fritschel, Heidi. Chapter 2. Pp 15-28. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).^
Polman attributed the shortfalls to currency fluctuations and slower growth in emerging markets rather than company strategy.[16]
In 2016, Polman’s total compensation was €8.3 million, including a base salary of €1.2 million.[17]
A 2017 Bernstein report ranked Unilever first among peers for market-share gains not driven by acquisitions and rated the company “Outperform".[18]
In 2018, the Financial Times reviewed Polman's ten-year term as chief executive.[13]
Also in 2018, Unilever supported the abolition of the Dutch dividend tax,[19] despite public opposition in the Netherlands.[20]
In October 2018, Unilever cancelled plans to relocate its headquarters from London to Rotterdam.[21]
In November 2018, it was announced that Polman would step down as chief executive officer, with Alan Jope named as his successor, effective 1 January 2019.[22]
Instead of aiming for an end to poverty by 2030, the report, "An Ambitious Development Goal: Ending Hunger and Undernutrition by 2025", called for a greater emphasis on eliminating hunger and undernutrition and achieving this goal by 2025.[33]
Polman co-founded the Dutch Sustainable Growth Coalition, led by former Dutch prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende.
He is a member of the World Economic Forum International Business Council[34] and the Global Taskforce for Scaling up Nutrition (SUN),[35] and he was part of the European Resource Efficiency Platform Working Group,[36] chaired by European Commissioner Janez Potočnik.
He was co-chair of the World Economic Forum 2012.
He is a counsellor of One Young World[37] and trustee of the Leverhulme Trust.
Polman was co-chair of the B-20 Food Security Taskforce.[38]
Polman was on the board of Unilever from 2009 to 2019.
Polman is also part of the Leadership Vanguard, an initiative that seeks to identify, support, and mobilize the next generation of leaders, focusing on redefining value.[39] He has been a member of IESE's International Advisory Board (IAB)[40] since 2015.
He is president of the Kilimanjaro Blind Trust, a foundation he created alongside fellow climber Erik Weihenmayer to benefit blind children in Africa, and chair of the Perkins International Advisory Board.[41]
In 2016, Polman was selected by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to be an SDG Advocate, tasked with helping build widespread support for the UN's SDGs.[42] He was again appointed in 2019 by the current Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres.[43]
Polman is co-chair of the Global Commission for the Economy and Climate, with Nicholas Stern and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.[44]
He is a member of The B Team, chairing the group from August 2018 to September 2021.[45]
In 2019, Polman was appointed as Chair of the Board for University of Oxford, Saїd Business School.[46]
In 2024, Polman appeared as himself in the Netflix documentary Buy Now! The Shopping Conspiracy.[47]
