Leena Nair to add to Unilever's sustainability push

If there is one epithet that best describes 46-year-old Leena Nair, Unilever's new chief of human resources, it is achiever. The gold medallist from XLRI, Jamshedpur, considered the country's best management institute for those pursuing HR, Nair's elevation points to the increasing clout of women in international boardrooms.

Nair, who became Hindustan Unilever's youngest executive director in 2007, now joins the Unilever Executive, the elite club of top officers at the world's second largest consumer goods company. Executives report directly to chief executive Paul Polman.

"She succeeds Doug Bailliee, who will be retiring from Unilever on March 1, 2016," said a Unilever spokesperson. "As senior vice-president, HR Leadership and Organisational Development, she has been instrumental in driving our employer brand to a record high and in step-changing our diversity agenda," the spokesperson said. Nair has been with subsidiary HUL and now Unilever for 23 years. She is expected to bring her experience and expertise in handling people to the management table in her new role, persons at the firm said. That is critical as the $53 billion-Unilever endeavours to grow aggressively. It has taken upon itself the responsibility of doing so sustainably.

The Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, launched in 2010, attempts to reduce the firm's environmental impact, even as it seeks growth mostly in emerging markets that already give it 57 per cent of its revenues.

Nair -- with her experience of having worked both on the factory floor (she opted for a factory stint at HUL's plant in Taloja, near Mumbai, as a young manager), as well as in the corporate office - should come handy when assisting Polman in his effort to decouple sales growth from the firm's environmental footprint, analysts tracking the company said. That is because a sustainability agenda cannot be achieved without co-operation coming from all quarters, they said.

The mother of two is described by peers as one who has enormous energy and enthusiasm, despite juggling a full-time job and family responsibilities.

Beside being HUL's youngest ED, she was also the first woman in the management committee of HUL and the first to be appointed in Unilever South Asia's leadership team. In this role, she looked after HR operations in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal, beside India.

Nair moved to London in 2013 and has since lent her experience to talent management and acquisition, besides employer branding in her role as SVP Leadership & Organization Development and Global Head of Diversity.