Extended family

In today's ever-changing China, some people lament that they are too busy with their daily work to have time with their family. Preoccupied with their jobs, more and more workers in fast-paced metropolises see family life a luxury.

But the importance of families can never be overlooked even in a fast-forward society. They are a source of inspiration and strength, and provide hope and solace in the face of adversity. And that is true not only for actual families, but also for some organizations or groups.

Festive decorations

On December 8 last year, Zhang Xiaobin, in his early 30s, got up early in the morning with his wife and daughter to celebrate their Family Day. The celebration site was not their home or an amusement park, but Zhang's workplace: Shanghai-based Unilever China headquarters.

It was the first Unilever Family Day held in its newly built headquarters, with employees and their families all invited to spend a day together.

Walking into the festively decorated lobby of the building, people were immediately surrounded by the warm atmosphere of the upcoming New Year, despite the wet and cold weather outside.

At 10 o'clock in the morning, Frank N.J. Braeken, chairman of Unilever Greater China rang a bell announcing the start of the first Unilever Family Day. Employees and their families then began their happy one-day feast.

Building miniature houses, playing peg-top, shaking hollow bamboo - a traditional Chinese child's sport - playing hide-and-seek those were the good memories that Zhang and his workmates had in their childhoods. Now as parents they were amazed to find their sons and daughters enjoying the same cheer and happiness.

For young ladies, beauty is always a pursuit, so it was no surprise to find them enjoying a class given by a professional beauty consultants.

For their part, elderly people received special guidance in healthcare.

The three-floor building seemed more like a theme park rather than a company's headquarters on that day.

Meeting different demands

"Now we have a sufficient space to invite our employees to enjoy a happy time together, which could not be fulfilled before," says Zeng Xiwen, vice-president of Unilever Greater China, who proposed the Family Day idea. "We provide several subject areas. Unilever's plentiful products can meet people's different demands."

According to Zeng, Unilever made the decision to build its own office building in Shanghai as regional headquarters in 2004, completing and occupying it last year. The office in western Shanghai is the company's third-largest in the world.

The first 22,000-sq-m phase of the complex has the capacity to accommodate up to 1,000 employees, while the 24,000-sq-m second phase, scheduled to be completed this year, will become the company's second-largest research and development center. Total investment for the new facility is estimated at $100 million.

"Our employees work very hard every day. Any little bit of success they've had could not be achieved without their families' help and support. We want to thank them through this Family Day event for their long-term hard efforts and dedication to Unilever," says Braeken.

"Meanwhile, we want to tell our employees to spend more time with their families - don't let the fast pace life hurt your soul. On Family Day, we celebrate the rich traditions of family life and emphasize the importance of stable and loving relationships in families, as well as in Unilever, a big family," he adds. "Remember: work with vitality, live with vitality!"

"Add vitality to life" was announced in 2004 as Unilever's new mission, which is the common thread that links Unilever's brands and is central to the way they operate around the world.

"It's really a great day," says Fu Yun, a staff member at Unilever's marketing department, who brought her daughter along to the Family Day. "I'm very happy to see that my daughter played so happily in my workplace. You know, my hard work is to make a better life. At that day, I felt the love of family life which can drive me work harder in the future."

"Our employees' work, our company's culture and families' happiness, we want to tie these three parts together in order to create a vital entrepreneurial culture. Besides, we commit to add vitality to more families, to prepare young people for the challenges and opportunities ahead," says Braeken.

(China Daily 01/05/2008 page8)