Description
Paulus Gerardus Josephus Maria Polman , (born 11 July 1956) is a Dutch businessman and author. He was the chief executive officer (CEO) of the British/Dutch consumer goods company Unilever. Polman is also the author of Net Positive: How Courageous Companies Thrive by Giving More Than They Take.
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.”
In 2019, he co-founded a new organization called IMAGINE with Jeff Seabright (formerly the Chief Sustainability Officer of Unilever) and Kees Kruythoff, 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.
