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Unil Ever
Unil Ever
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Unilever a leading multinational corporation has multifarious brands that inherent consumer
products on a large scale and involve in manufacturing gigantic operating in hundred countries
all over the world. Unilever’s has been moved by the significant circumstances of the day like
economic boom, rapid change in technology, depression, people’s lifestyle, and recession.
Unilever was original established in 1930 by the consolidation of soap maker Lever Brothers and
margarine maker. In 1930 the Unilever business propagate and new enterprise were inaugurated
in Latin America. They are invariably increasing their products to provide more intense,
extraordinary development. Unilever’s have five laboratories all over the world, which scrutinize
new techniques to make more improve. Unilever’s purpose is to set the highest standards of
organizational behaviour including everyone they work with.
COMPANY BACKGROUND
Unilever began with British soap-maker company named Lever Brothers. Their revolutionary action in business
was by introducing the Sunlight Soap in 1890s. That idea was from William Hesketh Lever, founder of Lever
Brothers. This idea helped the Lever Brothers become the first company that help popularise cleanliness in
Victorian England. Moreover, the product rapidly emulated globally after that it was a success in UK and made
Lever Brothers obtained more business worldwide. One of the reasons of this success was the strategy from
William that not only prioritize on selling the products but also focus on manufacturing them. On the other side, in
1872 Jurgens and Van den Bergh created a company that produces margarine. Since there were many competitors
in the margarine industry in Dutch, in 1920s, Jurgen and Van de Berth decided to strengthen their company by
joining another margarine manufacturer in Bohemia. In 1927, there were three companies including Jurgen and
Van de Berth company which formed Margarine Unie located in Holland.
In 1930, the Lever Bros merged with the Margarine Unie and even though, an international merge was an unusual
move at that time, both of the two companies have the same vision that by doing this merge with strong global
networks would create new opportunities. Finally, the name of “Unilever” was created by the merge of the
companies. Not too long after Unilever was formed, they got a big problem which was that their raw material
companies were reduced from 30% to 40% in the first year. As that problem started to attack, Unilever had to react
quickly by building up an efficient system of control. In September of 1930, Unilever established the ‘Special
Committee’ that was designed to stabilize British and Dutch operate and concern as an internal cabinet for the
organization.
UNILEVER PRODUCT
MOST ANALYSIS
MISSION
Unilever’s corporate mission is “to add vitality to life. We meet everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and
personal care with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life.” This mission
statement underscores how the company satisfies customers in various aspects of their lives. The following
are the significant components in Unilever’s mission statement:
• Adding vitality to life
• Meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene, and personal care
• Helping people feel good, look good, and get more out of life
Adding vitality to life is a general indicator of business strategy in Unilever’s corporate mission statement.
Such vitality is the value that consumers can expect from the company’s products. The corporate mission
also specifies the aspects of life where such vitality is added. For example, Unilever’s food products
address consumers’ vitality needs in terms of nutrition. Furthermore, through these products, the company
attracts customers who want to feel good, look good, and get more out of life. The mission statement’s
specification of the types of products provides a foundation for the product mix in Unilever’s marketing
mix.
OBJECTIVES
• The main objective of Unilever for Surf Excel is to gain market share. For this they are
doing various types of promotional activities and ensure their customers the best
lauaaandry services.
STRATEGY
• We’ve built a strategy to help us achieve our purpose of making sustainable living
commonplace.
• To realise our vision we have invested in a long-term strategy of divisions and brands
that deliver growth to the benefit of all stakeholders.
RESOURCE AUDIT TECHNIQUES
PHYSICAL
Unilever has an organizational culture of performance, which emphasizes the significance of employee output. This
corporate culture also points to the importance of criteria or measures used to determine required output and
adequacy of output. Unilever’s organizational culture of performance has the following characteristics:
• Focus on performance – individual performance and organizational performance
• Focus on quality – quality of output in all areas
• Efficiency – efficient work through technology and other tools
Unilever’s organizational culture is focused on performance and quality. This corporate culture is observable in the
long history of the company. The business has grown from a small firm to a global powerhouse. Such success is
significantly based on the ability of Unilever’s organizational culture to instill high performance and quality in
employees’ work ethic to maximize business output. For example, because of high quality, the company’s consumer
goods remain competitive in the global market despite tough competition. This emphasis on quality is also a
reflection of the emphasis on product effectiveness in the firm’s mission statement (Read: Unilever’s Vision Statement
and Mission Statement). Unilever has also mastered efficiency through technology and innovation in its internal
business processes, including human resource development.
FINANCIAL
Unilever’s success is partly based on the ability of leaders to support a culture of performance and quality. For
example, the firm’s leaders use market-based and results-based approaches to manage the business and drive
performance higher. Market-based management uses market data to make changes in management tactics. On the
other hand, results-based management focuses on the achievement of desired outcomes. These tactics facilitate
human resource productivity and organizational performance in the consumer goods business. Thus, Unilever’s
leadership and managerial approaches are a factor that maintains the company’s organizational culture.
Unilever’s leadership-based approaches support the integrity of corporate culture implementation, especially in
mergers and acquisitions. Integrity is important in mergers and acquisitions, where human resource integration is
needed for successful organizational merging. For example, Unilever applies results-based management to
implement its organizational culture throughout the newly merged organization. In this way, the company’s
leadership supports integrity for the continuity of the organizational culture of performance and quality even after
mergers and acquisitions.
HUMAN RESOURCE
Environmental trends and conditions influence Unilever’s remote or macro-environment. The effects of the natural environment
and related issues are considered in this section of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis. The following ecological external factors
significantly affect Unilever’s consumer goods business:
• Rising interest in business environmentalism (opportunity)
• Increasing business efforts on sustainability (opportunity)
• Increasing complexity of environmental programs (opportunity)
The rising interest in business environmentalism is an opportunity for Unilever to improve its environmental programs to attract
consumers concerned about the environment. In relation, the company can enhance its sustainability programs to strengthen its
competitiveness against other firms in the consumer goods industry. Unilever’s corporate social responsibility strategy must
effectively implement these programs throughout the organization. For example, the strategy must consider product innovation
and internal business processes to further reduce business environmental impact. These efforts should also support Unilever’s
ability to satisfy increasingly complex environmental programs. Such external factor is an opportunity for the company to
improve its competitive advantage through corporate responsibility. Based on the condition of the remote or macro-environment
shown in this section of Unilever’s PESTEL/PESTLE analysis, there are opportunities to improve business performance by making
the organization more environmentally sustainable.
PORTER’S FIVE FORCES MODEL
INDUSTRY RIVALRY
Competition is a major force in Unilever’s industry environment. This section of the Five Forces analysis
identifies the external factors that present the impact of firms on each other. The strong force of competitive
rivalry against Unilever is based on the following external factors and their intensities:
• High number of firms (strong force)
• High aggressiveness of firms (strong force)
• Low switching costs (strong force)
There are many firms operating in the consumer goods industry. This external factor imposes a strong force
on Unilever. In addition, these firms are generally aggressive, further adding to the intensity of competition.
Unilever also experiences tough competition because of low switching costs. For example, it is easy for
consumers to switch from one firm to another. Thus, a high level of competition is shown in this section of
Unilever’s Five Forces analysis, highlighting the need to consider competitive rivalry as a high-priority force
in the company’s industry environment.
BARGAINING POWERS OF BUYERS
Unilever’s business and industry environment depend on the response of consumers to its products. The influence of
buyers on business performance is considered in this section of the Five Forces analysis. Unilever must address the
following external factors that lead to the strong force of the bargaining power of customers:
• Low switching costs (strong force)
• High quality of information (strong force)
• Small size of individual buyers (weak force)
The low switching costs make it easy for consumers to transfer from Unilever’s products to other companies’
products. This external factor contributes to the strong intensity of the bargaining power of buyers. In addition,
consumers have access to high quality of information about consumer goods, making it even easier for them to
decide when transferring from Unilever to other providers. For example, buyers can compare products based on
online information. The small size of an individual consumer’s purchases has minimal impact on Unilever’s profits.
However, the low switching costs and high quality of information outweigh this third external factor in the industry
environment. Based on this section of the Five Forces analysis, the bargaining power of customers is one of the
strongest forces affecting Unilever’s consumer goods business.
BARGAINING POWER OF SUPPLIERS
Suppliers impact Unilever’s industry environment by affecting the level of supply available to firms. This section of
the Five Forces analysis presents the influence of suppliers on companies. The following are the external factors that
contribute to the moderate force of the bargaining power of suppliers on Unilever:
• Moderate size of individual suppliers (moderate force)
• Moderate population of suppliers (moderate force)
• Moderate overall supply (moderate force)
While Unilever has large suppliers like foreign firms that supply paper and oil, the average supplier is moderate in
size. This external factor imposes a moderate intensity force on the consumer goods industry environment. In
addition, the moderate population of suppliers enables them to impose significant but limited influence on firms like
Unilever. Similarly, the moderate level of the overall supply adds to such significant but limited influence of
suppliers. For example, any supplier’s change in production level leads to significant but limited change in the
availability of raw materials used in Unilever’s business. Other firms in the industry are similarly affected. As shown
in this section of the Five Forces analysis of Unilever, the bargaining power of suppliers is a significant but moderate
consideration in the consumer goods industry environment.
BARRIERS TO ENTRY
Unilever competes with established firms as well as new firms in the consumer goods market. This section of the
Five Forces analysis considers the influence of new firms on the industry environment. The following external factors
create the weak force of the threat of new entrants against Unilever:
• Low switching costs (strong force)
• High cost of brand development (weak force)
• High economies of scale (weak force)
The low switching costs enable new entrants to impose a strong force against Unilever. For example, consumers can
easily decide to try new products from new firms. However, it is costly to build strong brands like Unilever’s. This
external factor weakens the intensity of the threat of new entrants against the company. Also, Unilever takes
advantage of high economies of scale, which support competitive pricing and high organizational efficiencies that
new firms typically lack. As a result, the company remains strong despite new entrants. Based on this section of the
Five Forces analysis, the threat of new entry is a minor concern in Unilever’s industry environment.
THREATS OF SUBSTITUTES
Substitutes can reduce Unilever’s revenues and the strength of firms in the consumer goods industry environment.
The impact of substitution is determined in this section of the Five Forces analysis. In Unilever’s case, the following
external factors are responsible for the weak force of the threat of substitution:
• Low switching costs (strong force)
• Low substitute availability (weak force)
• Low performance to price ratio of substitutes (weak force)
The low switching costs enable consumers to easily use substitutes to Unilever’s products. This external factor
imposes a strong force on the company and the consumer goods industry environment. However, the overall impact
of substitution is weakened because of the low availability of substitutes. For example, it is easier to access
Unilever’s Close-Up toothpaste from grocery stores than to obtain substitutes like homemade organic dentifrice. In
relation, most substitutes have low performance with minimal or insignificant cost difference when compared to
consumer goods readily available in the market. This condition makes Unilever’s products more attractive than
substitutes, thereby further weakening the intensity of the threat of substitution. This section of Unilever’s Five Forces
analysis shows that the threat of substitutes is a minor issue in the business.
SWOT ANALYSIS
STRENGTH
Unilever’s organizational and business strengths are identified in this section of the SWOT analysis. Strengths are internal strategic factors
based on the company’s conditions, such as human resources, production processes, organizational structure and investments. The
following strengths are significant in Unilever’s consumer goods business:
• Strong brands
• Broad product mix
• Economies of scale
• Strong global market presence
Unilever has some of the strongest brands in the consumer goods industry. This strength enables the company to penetrate markets and
effectively compete against other firms. The broad product mix shows the extent of Unilever’s business growth. For example, the company
has increased its product portfolio through years of mergers and acquisitions, leading to organizational growth and corresponding
increases in revenues. On the other hand, economies of scale support production efficiency necessary for competitive pricing strategies,
as shown in Unilever’s marketing mix. Through years of international expansion, the company has also increased its market presence,
which is a strength that reinforces brand popularity. The internal strategic factors in this section of Unilever’s SWOT analysis show strengths
that the company can use to sustain global growth and success in the consumer goods market.
WEAKNESSES
Despite its strong market position, Unilever has weaknesses that limit its potential growth. This section of the
SWOT analysis presents the internal strategic factors that impose barriers to organizational and business
development. Unilever must address the following weaknesses:
• Imitable products
• Limited business diversification
• Dependence on retailers
One of Unilever’s weaknesses is the imitable nature of its products. For example, even though the company
heavily invests in its product development processes, other firms can imitate Dove and Rexona products. Also, in
spite of its broad product mix, Unilever is weak because of limited diversification in businesses outside the
consumer goods industry. Moreover, the company lacks direct strong influence on consumers, considering that
retailers are the ones who directly affect buyers. Thus, based on the internal strategic factors in this section of the
SWOT analysis of Unilever, the weaknesses emphasize the importance of diversification, innovation, and
enhanced marketing efforts.
OPPORTUNITIES
Unilever must take advantage of growth opportunities in consumer goods markets around the world. This section of the
SWOT analysis determines such opportunities or external strategic factors that can facilitate business development. The
following opportunities are significant in Unilever’s external environment:
• Business diversification
• Product innovation for health
• Business enhancement for environmental conservation
• Market development
Unilever has opportunities to diversify by entering businesses outside the consumer goods industry. Diversification
reduces market-based risks and improves business resilience. On the other hand, product innovation can increase
Unilever’s product attractiveness by addressing the needs of increasingly health-conscious consumers. Similarly, the
company has an opportunity to make its business more sustainable and environmentally friendly to attract and retain
environmentally conscious consumers. In addition, market development can grow Unilever’s business by increasing
revenues from the sale of its current products in new market segments. For example, the company can market its Lipton
products as health drinks for consumers with special diets. The external strategic factors in this section of Unilever’s
SWOT analysis point to major opportunities to grow the business despite its weaknesses.
THREATS
A variety of external factors can limit or reduce Unilever’s business performance. The SWOT Analysis model considers
these external factors as threats that the company must strategically tackle. The following are the threats relevant to
Unilever’s consumer goods business:
• Tough competitive rivalry
• Product imitation
• Increasing popularity of retailers’ house brands
Unilever faces tough competition, which is a threat based on the strengths of other firms in the industry. Competitors
threaten to reduce the company’s market share and corresponding financial performance. Product imitation is also a
major threat against Unilever. For example, local firms can develop products highly similar to Unilever’s. Also, retailers
impose a threat by selling their own brands. These brands are known as house brands, store brands or generic brands.
For example, Costco uses Kirkland Signature as a house brand, and Walmart has its own house brands that directly
compete against Unilever’s products. Based on the external strategic factors in this section of the SWOT analysis of
Unilever, strategies must focus on improving the company’s competitive advantage.
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