December 2008: Award-winning reporting

Best report runner-up

The report was joint runner-up for Best Report of 2008 at the ACCA UK Awards for Sustainability Reporting. Fourteen businesses were short-listed for the prestigious cross-industry awards held in December 2008 – with telecommunications company BT taking the top title.

The online report – which also includes a print overview – documents Unilever's non-financial reporting, looking at the social, economic and environmental activities of the company and its brands around the world. It is the second consecutive year Unilever has achieved the runner-up position for best report.

The judges' comments

The ACCA judging criteria commend companies that strive to improve transparency of business and seek successful ways of communicating three values. In the judges' words: "Credibility, completeness and communication."

The judges described Unilever's Sustainable Development Report as an "honest, interesting and informative document" which was enjoyable to read.

"It's recognition for all the nutrition, hygiene and sustainability programmes Unilever runs worldwide. It's about telling their story, and how – through our brands – we can make a difference," explains Santiago Gowland, Vice President, Unilever Brand and Global Corporate Responsibility at Unilever. "This report documents progress on our sustainable development agenda and challenges us to do better. Our strategy is to integrate social, economic and environmental impacts into brand innovation to fuel growth in ways that are equity enhancing and sustainable."

The secret is simplicity

The judges' report also noted that the report was a comprehensive account of key issues and performance, "especially considering the complicated nature of the business and the number of brand names attributed to it."

Santiago believes the secret to delivering such complex content in a digestible way is the overview's simple format, using colourful graphics and well-signposted topics to more detailed information online.

"These are essential when you have such a broad audience reading it. We have consumers, retailers, suppliers, investors and employees, all looking for different things. When they see the report, they can find what they're looking for really quickly."

Attention to detail

Also commended was the detailing of Unilever's economic impact – such as job creation and growth in developing and emerging markets – which was done to "a higher standard than most" according to the judges. They also stated they appreciated the inclusion of information relating to Unilever's water footprint, a detail few other companies have included in their reports.

Unilever's Sustainable Development Report 2008 will be available from March 2009.