Who Is Leena Nair? The HR That Went On To Become Chanel CEO

The notion that lack of expertise in other domains among HRs is a big reason behind them not becoming CEOs has been demolished as the French luxury fashion house Chanel appoints Leena Nair as their new CEO. The French luxury house went ahead to appoint the first female, Asian and youngest Chief Human Resources Officer of Fast-Moving Consumer Goods company, Unilever as their new Global Chief Executive Officer. From starting as a Management trainee to becoming the CHRO in 2016, her 30 years career span at Unilever comes to an end as she will be starting at Chanel based out of their headquarters in London. 

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From Gold Medalist at XLRI to leading Chanel

Born on June 11, 1969, in Maharashtra, Nair started her schooling at Holy Cross Convent School in Kolhapur. She went on to study electronics engineering at Walchand College of Engineering and eventually joined XLRI, Xaviers School of Management in Jamshedpur and graduated as a gold medalist.

Post her MBA in Human resources, she joined Unilever as a Management Trainee in the year 1992. Just after joining HUL, she was appointed as the factory people manager at Lipton (India) Ltd in 1993. In the early stages of her career, she started working at Hindustan Unilever (HUL) factories in Kolkata, West Bengal, Ambattur, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra.HUL appointed her as Employee Relations Manager in 1996, and by 2000, she was promoted to HR Manager of Hindustan Lever India. She also said that she was the first woman to work in a Hindustan Unilever factory, as well as the first woman to work a night shift. She learnt a lot in the factory, from production procedures to shop-floor ecosystems, but the most essential lesson she took away was resilience.

Nair was promoted to HUL's 'home and personal care India' as HR general manager in 2004. She ascended through the ranks to become the HR general manager in just two years. In 2007, Nair became the company's HR executive director, and in 2013, she became Unilever's senior vice-president of HR. Nair was the first female, youngest, and Asian to be promoted to the position of chief human resources officer in 2016 (CHRO).

In a press release on December 14, 2021, Leena Nair was appointed as the new CEO for Chanel, the French luxury house. She will take over from Alain Wertheimer, who will now be global chairman, in January. Meanwhile, her induction into this new role has witnessed appreciation from many famous business personalities, including Unilever CEO Alan Jope. “Leena has been a pioneer throughout her career at Unilever, but no more so than in her role as a chief human resource officer, where she has been a driving force on our equity, diversity and inclusion agenda, on the transformation of our leadership development, and on our preparedness for the future of work. She has played a critical role in building our purpose-led, future-fit organisation, which is now the employer of choice in over 50 countries globally,” he said.

What does Leena Nair’s arrival at Chanel mean to fashion industry?

The importance of the human aspect in fashion has never been greater than it is now, and everyone who has worked with Nair will attest to her dedication to her clients. Transparency has become a fashion buzzword, and as we all become more aware of the need to be sustainable in our consumption patterns, a company's approach to people and the environment has become as vital as what they produce.

The journey of a British national, born in India, a rare outsider at the helm of the tightly controlled family fashion house, is expected to be inspiring and innovative. On her appointment as the new CEO, she expressed on Linkedin that “She is humbled and honoured to be appointed the Global Chief Executive Officer of CHANEL, an iconic and admired company. She is so inspired by what CHANEL stands for. It is a company that believes in the freedom of creation, in cultivating human potential and in acting to have a positive impact in the world. She is grateful for her long career at Unilever, a place that has been her home for 30 years. It has given her so many opportunities to learn, grow and contribute to a truly purpose-driven organisation. She will always be a proud advocate of Unilever and its ambition to make sustainable living commonplace.”

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