Accenture and Microsoft help Unilever move to the cloud

Accenture, Microsoft and Unilever have completed one of the largest and most complex cloud migrations in the consumer goods industry, helping Unilever become a cloud-only enterprise.

In a transformation that took 18 months Accenture and Microsoft, together with their joint venture, Avanade, worked closely with Unilever to help ensure resilient, secure and optimised operations for Unilever and provide a platform to drive innovation and growth.

Cloud move to accelerate product launches and help Unilever meet sustainability goals

With Azure as its primary cloud platform, Unilever will be able to accelerate product launches, enhance customer service and improve operational efficiency, while the move to Azure will help Unilever meet its sustainability commitments.

“Unilever is a truly data-powered organisation,” commented Steve McCrystal, Chief Enterprise and Technology Officer of Unilever said. We’re using advanced analytics to make better-informed decisions quicker than ever before. Working with Accenture and Microsoft on this global transformation project, we can respond to ever-changing consumer needs faster, allocate our resources more effectively to focus on what drives growth, and bring services and products to the market faster.”

The creation of an agile, high-performing digital core that delivers greater efficiency will provide Unilever with increased computing power to explore new ways of working. Unilever’s adoption of a cloud-only approach will significantly improve business resilience, strengthening security and enhancing control of the IT landscape.

Nicole van Det, Senior Managing Director and Global Account Executive at Accenture said: “The path to business resilience now and in the future is through total enterprise reinvention – which involves the transformation of every part of the business – with cloud at the core. With access to the full continuum of cloud capabilities, including generative AI, Unilever has the elasticity to drive innovation faster, accelerate growth and continue to set the pace as a digital powerhouse and leader in its industry.”

“Together with Accenture, we’re proud to expand our longstanding partnership with Unilever,” said Judson Althoff, Microsoft's Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. “With Microsoft Azure as its cloud foundation, Unilever’s end-to-end digitization will enable rapid innovation across its entire business. From embracing the industrial metaverse across its factories to reimagining how its lines of business can do more with tools like Azure OpenAI Service, Unilever’s digital-first approach will empower it to grow resiliently and exceed the industry’s pace of innovation.”