The Independent (UK):Jeremy Warner's Outlook: Unilever blues: “Unlike Shell, the other great Anglo-Dutch behemoth, Unilever does at least have a unified board despite the dual domiciled nature of the beast. Yet it also has two chairmen - chief executives in essence - of equal stature, who are meant to operate as a partnership. This provides the necessary checks and balances to prevent reckless or negligent behaviour…“ (ShellNews.net)

28 October 2004

EXTRACT FROM ARTICLE

Unlike Shell, the other great Anglo-Dutch behemoth, Unilever does at least have a unified board despite the dual domiciled nature of the beast. Yet it also has two chairmen - chief executives in essence - of equal stature, who are meant to operate as a partnership. This provides the necessary checks and balances to prevent reckless or negligent behaviour, but it may also confuse strategy and chains of command. It must also lead to a certain slowness in decision-making. The dual chairmanship is not, as things stand, up for negotiation, but it soon will be if the present duo, Antony Burgmans and Patrick Cescau, don't swiftly nip the current deterioration in the bud.

jeremy.warner@independent.co.uk