Leena Nair

Leena Nair (née Menon;born 1969) is an Indian business executive who is the Global CEO of Chanel.[1] Nair previously served as the Chief Human Resource Officer of Unilever and member of the Unilever Leadership Executive.[2][3][4] Nair was responsible for the human capital of Unilever, which operates across multiple regulatory and labour environments spread over 190 countries. Under her leadership, Unilever has been named the number one FMCG graduate employer of choice in 54 countries.[5] She headed the Diversity and Inclusion agenda for the organisation ensuring that its workforce is diverse and inclusive.[6] Nair is an advocate for human-centred workplaces and compassionate leadership.[7]

Leena Nair
Nair in 2022
Born (1969-06-11) June 11, 1969
Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India
Alma mater
OccupationGlobal Chief Executive Officer
EmployerChanel

Early life and education

Nair grew up in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. She studied at Holy Cross Convent High School Kohlapur, and The New College Kolhapur. After completing her bachelor's degree in electronics and telecommunication (E&TC) Engineering at Walchand College of Engineering, Sangli (Maharashtra), she graduated from XLRI – Xavier School of Management as a gold medallist (1990-1992). Apart from working in Jamshedpur, she also worked at three different factories in Kolkata, Ambattur, Tamil Nadu and Taloja, Maharashtra.[8]

Career

Chanel

In 2016, Nair became Unilever's "first female, first Asian, youngest ever" chief human-resources officer.[9] In December 2021, Nair was appointed chief executive officer of Chanel.[10] She is the mentee of Indra Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo.[11][12]

Unilever
  • 2016: Appointed Chief Human Resources Officer and member of the Unilever Leadership Executive
  • 2013: SVP HR Leadership and Organizational Development and Global Head of Diversity
  • 2007: Executive Director HR of Hindustan Unilever Limited
  • 1992-2007: Various roles in factories, sales and corporate headquarters in Hindustan Unilever
  • 1992: Joined Unilever as management trainee of Hindustan Unilever

Other responsibilities
  • Non-Executive Board Member – BT plc[13]
  • Member of the Trust Board - Leverhulme Trust[14]
  • Steering Committee member – The Future of Education, Gender and Work, WEF (2017–present)
  • Leadership Council Member – International Centre for Research on Women (2019 – present)[15]
  • NED on the UK Government's department of Business, Energy and Industrial strategy (BEIS) (2018- 2020)[16]

Awards and recognition
  • Forbes India's Top Self-Made Women's List (aka W-Power) (2022)[17]
  • Role Model of Year, The Great British Businesswoman's Awards (2021)[18]
  • Fortune India's Most Powerful Women's List[19] (2021)
  • Global Indian of the Year – The Economic Times’ Prime Women Leadership Awards (2020)
  • LinkedIn Top Voice (2018-2020)[20][21]
  • Thinkers50 List – Thinkers Who Will Shape the Future of Business (2019)[22]
  • Top 10 list of FT HERoes Champions of Women in Business by the Financial Times (2017-2019)[23]
  • Recognized by Queen Elizabeth II as one of the accomplished Indian Business Leaders in the UK (2017)

Personal life

Nair is the daughter of K. Karthikeyan, and the cousin of industrialists Vijay Menon and Sachin Menon. She is married and has two sons. Her interests include reading, running,[24] and Bollywood dancing.[25]

References
  1. "Chanel appoints Unilever executive Leena Nair as Global CEO". The Hindu. PTI. 15 December 2021. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 15 December 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. "Leena Nair". Unilever. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  3. Pant, Drishti. "Rapid Fire with Unilever's CHRO, Leena Nair". people matters. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  4. S, Radhakrishna N. (29 June 2019). "Indian origin Leena Nair to join BT Board". EasternEye. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  5. "At a glance". Unilever. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  6. Chakravarty, Chaitali; Malviya, Sagar. "Unilever likely to name Leena Nair as its global HR chief". The Economic Times.
  7. Hougaard, Rasmus. "How Unilever Develops Leaders To Be A Force For Good". Forbes. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  8. "As good as it gets". business today. 21 November 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  9. Ward, Marguerite. "Chanel's incoming Global CEO, Leena Nair, could shake up the future of fashion". Business Insider. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  10. "Indian-origin Leena Nair is new Chanel Global CEO". Connected to India. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  11. "Indra Nooyi lauds Leena Nair's leadership skills, says it was an honour to see the next Chanel CEO grow". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  12. "Fashion house Chanel hires Indian-born Leena Nair as CEO". NBC News. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  13. "Leena Nair - Board of directors - Group governance - Our company | BT Plc". www.bt.com. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  14. "THE LEVERHULME TRUST - Charity 1159154". register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  15. "ICRW Leadership Council". ICRW | PASSION. PROOF. POWER. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  16. "Leena Nair". GOV.UK. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  17. "Top Self-Made Women in 2022". Forbes India. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
  18. "2021 Alumni". Great British Businesswoman Series. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  19. "Power is force of good in the world: Unilever's Leena Nair". www.fortuneindia.com. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  20. "LinkedIn Top Voices 2020: United Kingdom". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  21. "LinkedIn Top Voices 2019: United Kingdom". www.linkedin.com. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  22. "Leena Nair - Thinkers50". thinkers50.com. 29 March 2019. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  23. Jacobs, Emma; Fildes, Nic (27 September 2017). "HERoes ranking: champions of women in business". Financial Times. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  24. conversation...), Sudha Menon (In. "I learnt how to claw my way up!". Khaleej Times. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  25. "How Unilever's Head of HR Sees The Future of Work". Time. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
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