As part of Unilever's strategy to create a future-fit organisation with a growth culture, this project will help fulfil the company's objective of being a beacon for ED&I and values-based leadership.
The Research Assistant and Essex's expertise and experience in business heritage will allow the company to build up future research initiatives around the emerging field of ED&I in UK Business and help Unilever be transparent and open about its past and how that has shaped it today.
The practical outcomes of the project will benefit not only archival staff, but subsequently its users and broader community by contributing towards improving access to records of marginalised histories.
Research outputs may also address current challenges for the business around staff wellbeing, recruitment, and retention through tracing its past, as well as examine an under-researched area into how change can be practically and positively implemented within business archive contexts.
By providing insight into the many possibilities for use if this material, this work will lead the way for future projects and creative outcomes which fit within the company's marketing strategy and stakeholder networks, as well as present opportunities to connect local and wider communities to Unilever's heritage.