About Paul
Paul Polman is a Dutch author, investor and businessman. He was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Unilever.
Whilst CEO of Unilever, from 2009 to 2019, he set an ambitious vision to fully decouple business growth from its overall environmental footprint and increase the company’s positive social impact through the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan. During Polman’s tenure, he provided a return vastly superior to rivals and more than double that of the FTSE index. In 2018, the Financial Times called Polman “a standout CEO of the past decade.”
He is the author of Net Positive: How Courageous Companies Thrive by Giving More Than They Take.
In 2019, he created a new organization called Imagine to help businesses "eradicate poverty and inequality, and stem runaway climate change.” Polman is also an active Venture Capital investor having participated in several high profile fundraises for climate and mission focused companies. As a result of his work championing causes around climate change, inequality, and sustainability, Polman has become a prominent global figure in the push for more responsible business.
What does he do?
Paul’s post-Unilever life is unique. Very few CEOs leave giant multinationals to work as global advocates for a more responsible private sector. And very few leaders, let alone CEOs, sit at the interface between business, government/policy and civil society.
He doesn’t have one big job or giant institution – instead he has deliberately chosen to position himself across a careful constellation of organisations/initiatives/campaigns, because he believes this is now the most impactful way for him to drive change.
The Brief
To create personal branding and brand guidelines for Paul Polman, to inform a new website design and build.
Client: Paul Polman
Studio: MakerChange
Type of work: Brand Identity Design
Year: 2022
