In August 2014, Manchester Business School China Centre signed Talent Management Partnership MoU with Unilever North Asia. Mr. Nigel Banister, Chief Global Officer of Manchester Business School, Ms. Sherry Fu, China Centre Director, and Mr. Meade Zhang, Vice HR Director of Unilever North Asia witnessed the occasion, which unveiled the official cooperation between the two parties.

Unilever is one of the world’s largest FMCG companies, with over 171,000 employees all over the world. Similar to the globalisation scene of Manchester Business School, Unilever has 6 research and development centres in the UK, USA, China and other important economic hubs.

The main business of Unilever North Asia including China is daily used chemicals and foods. In order to realise its long-term development commitment in China, Unilever started new strategy in China from 2000: prioritising Shanghai as the centre of its management and science research in the Greater China Region. Successful localisation is inseparable from personnel localization. Excellent localised employees and management teams would be able to understand Chinese consumers’ needs better. 90% of Unilever’s management team is recruited and trained locally.

Manchester Business School, also known as MBS, is one of the top business schools in the world, and is also one of the two earliest established business schools in the UK. With its centres in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Brazil and Miami, MBS has a worldwide network and more than 50,000 alumni all over the world.

Manchester Business School established its China Centre in Shanghai in 2008, promoting and managing MBS Global MBA program, Tongji-Manchester Dual-Degree MBA programs etc., offering world-class business management courses to experienced professionals and those who are ambitious to make progress both professionally and academically.

Successful enterprises would have positive social impact by taking corporate social responsibilities. In March 2013, on behalf of Manchester Business School, Ms. Sherry Fu, China Centre Director, donated the funds collected from alumni dinner to Unilever Qinghai Hope School. The donation ceremony was held in Unilever North Asia headquarter in Shanghai. Mr. Xiwen Zeng, Vice President of Unilever North Asia attended the ceremony and accepted the donation.

The cooperation of Manchester Business School with Unilever aims to cultivate talents for society together with each other, as well as to create and share fortune with the society. Unilever attaches great importance to the core value cultivation of its employees, including their professional skills and business management caliber, in the hope of constant progress of the company through the development of its employees.

The signing of the memorandum signifies mutually beneficial collaboration. Unilever employees who meet the admission criteria of Manchester Business School will be entitled to preferential tuition fees. Meanwhile, MBS will also provide valuable support for Unilever’s talent attraction, employee retention and professional development.