With the mood of complacency shattered by the Kraft Heinz bid, the company must take action to protect its independence
There’s nothing like a bid – or, in Unilever’s case, a non-bid that goes away within 48 hours – to shatter a mood of comfortable complacency in a boardroom. The chief executive, Paul Polman, after his unpleasant encounter with Kraft Heinz, appears to have drawn two correct conclusions. First, it was embarrassing that a company of Unilever’s size and standing could even be viewed as prey by Kraft’s cast of job-slashing billionaires. Second, the best way to improve matters is for Unilever to get its share price higher.
Wednesday’s statement – “the events of the last week have highlighted the need to capture more quickly the value we see in Unilever” – was woolly but significant. Unilever is conceding, in effect, that it cannot take its shareholders’ loyalty for granted. Polman was probably told as much by a few powerful fund managers who do not share his love of long-term perspectives.
Related: Unilever takes steps to fend off renewed bid from Kraft Heinz
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