Amir Paracha, Chairman and CEO of Unilever Pakistan Limited, was invited as the guest speaker at SSGC’s Synergy-Talks Speakers’ Session held at SSGC’s Head Office auditorium. The session entitled ‘Hitting the Bulls’ Eye’ was organized by SSGC’s Corporate Communication Department (CCD) and was participated by many SSGC’s employees and executives, including its senior management.  

During the candid conversation hosted by Syed Imran Ahmed, A/DGM-CCD, Mr. Paracha, who is one of Pakistan’s youngest CEOs, took the audience on a professional journey spanning over 27 years, starting from the position of Retail Analyst at Shell Pakistan Limited, soon after completing his MBA from IBA Karachi. Mr. Paracha revealed that after a 4-year stint at Shell, he applied to Unilever Pakistan. Even though, job-wise, the position was lesser in the cadre he was holding at Shell, he prevailed at Unilever since he was able to pursue his dream of becoming a consummate marketer in an environment that offered him tremendous diversity to work and grow.  

The Unilever CEO attributed his swift rise to persistence, rebellious streak, discipline, and value system that he learned from his school days and later from IBA, Karachi. Chairman Unilever recalled that when he took over the helm of affairs at one of the world’s biggest FMCG companies, the COVID-19 pandemic sneaked into our lives. Yet he and his team stood up against the disease by implementing a major campaign for ensuring nationwide hygiene through its products. Mr. Paracha said that since taking over as the Unilever CEO, his primary focus has been creating a healthy financial bottom line, enduring equitable socio-economic opportunities and enforcing a fair living wages concept for his employees. The event proved highly interactive, punctuated by questions and remarks from the audience during the talk and at the conclusion.

In his welcome address, Salman Ahmed Siddiqui, SSGC’s Head of Corporate Communications, expressed his gratitude to the learned guest for sparing his time. He anticipated Chairman Unilever’s candid talk would be highly insightful and stimulating. In his concluding remarks, Saeed Rizvi, SSGC’s ADMD (Operations and UFG), stressed that the value system that saw Mr Paracha’s rise to the pinnacle of success must be emulated by the younger executives seeking career progression. Mr. Rizvi later presented a memento and company’s souvenirs to the distinguished speaker to mark the conclusion of this session.