Unilever’s marketing and digital chief Conny Braams to step down after three decades, ET BrandEquity

Unilever’s marketing and digital chief, Conny Braams, will leave in August after more than three decades with the company, the company said.

The changes come as the owner of brands including Dove soap, Hellmann’s mayonnaise and Ben and Jerry’s ice cream prepares for the arrival of new chief executive Hein Schumacher, who had been the chief executive officer of dairy and nutrition business Royal FrieslandCampina.

Braams joined Unilever as a marketing trainee in 1990 and went on to hold numerous roles at the company over the decades. She was named chief digital and marketing officer in 2019 before taking on the chief digital and commercial officer post last year.

Braams posted on her LinkedIn, “After 32 wonderful years, I’ve decided it’s time to explore new opportunities to have a meaningful impact beyond Unilever, so I will be stepping down as chief digital and commercial officer in August. I’m fully committed to continuing to lead our exceptional marketing, sales and digital teams until then.”

“It has been (and still is!) a delight to work with all of them, and I’m also excited for what lies ahead. As we say in The Netherlands: ‘Je kunt nooit een oceaan oversteken, als je niet het lef hebt om de kust uit het zicht te verliezen’; ‘You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore’,” she added.