Through her experience as President of the Enactus team at Wilfrid Laurier University, Laura Douglas was empowered to make a difference, so when an opportunity presented itself for Laura to join Unilever, a company that shared her values and commitment to making the world a better place, the answer was a resounding YES!
In her final year as an undergraduate student, Laura was recruited as an intern with Unilever and shortly thereafter Laura applied for the Unilever Future Leaders Programme (UFLP), a program designed to give you the training and experience that is needed to become a manager in three years.
Throughout her internship and first year in the UFLP, Laura has seen first-hand how Unilever’s commitment to growing the size of its business while reducing their environmental footprint is truly embedded into their workplace culture. “At Unilever, all employees have the opportunity to create a positive social and environmental impact through their work.” Outside of her current role, Laura has taken her Enactus experience and is working on a global business team to improve the well-being of others by leveraging social business models.
In addition to their shared values, there was something else that influenced Laura’s decision to join Unilever – the chance to work abroad. “One of the unique offerings of that initially attracted me to the UFLP program was the international experience,” says Laura. “From Switzerland to Singapore, a fundamental step in your development is experiencing and understanding Unilever in a market outside of Canada.”
Over the past year, Laura has developed skills and business understanding as a retail representative, business analyst and now currently as an assistant brand building manager. “The UFLP program has provided me a breadth of experience that is pivotal to the beginning stages of my career. I am continuously impressed by the investment Unilever has made in developing my technical skills, growing my network and providing unique experiences, all through roles that have direct accountability and responsibility.” Says Laura. “Most importantly, the mentors and people I’m surrounded by stretch, strengthen and support my personal and leadership development.”
Laura encourages all students to be responsible for their own career, never lose your passion and determination to fuel a brighter future. “Bring everything you learned from being a part of Enactus into your workplace. Not only is it your own personal value proposition, but it is the vehicle our generation will use to change the world!”