Through TRANSFORM, Unilever, UK FCDO and EY enable a unique model – one that bridges the public and private sectors, bringing together organisations with different skills, perspectives, resources, and networks to help impact enterprises become thriving, self-sustaining businesses that address some of the world’s most pressing development challenges. Importantly, we offer more than just funding. Over the past decade, more than 500 EY and 250 Unilever employees have volunteered their time and knowledge to help enterprises recognise and reach their potential.
There are various paths employees can follow to support TRANSFORM. Our Executive Coaching Program, established in 2023, is one such route. The Program invites senior executives from Unilever and EY to coach a leader of a visionary social enterprise from our network. Mentors and mentees are ‘match-made’, so both stand to benefit from the initiative.
Personalised and practical support for entrepreneurs
Through one-to-one sessions, coaches offer strategic guidance, challenge thinking, and provide a sounding board for entrepreneurs navigating the complexities of scaling inclusive business models. The advice is practical, bespoke and grounded in world-class expertise across brand building, operations, finance, strategy and leadership development.
For Elizabeth Mwangi, founder of Gwiji- a tech-based social enterprise that connects Kenyan women working as casual cleaners, with clients - the program “took us to a level we couldn’t have reached on our own.” Gwiji was struggling to scale their B2B model and expand their client network organically. In strategy sessions, including one face-to-face in Nairobi, the coaches Asha Saleh-Mwangi, Partner, Financial Accounting Advisory Services (FAAS), UK & Ireland at Ernst & Young LLP, and Rachel Cowburn-Walden, previously Global Head of Sustainability (Human Rights) at Unilever, suggested that it offer corporate clients a cleaning voucher – a one-off, free cleaning service as a trial. This helped to build brand awareness and relationships with potential clients.
The result? Entry into the corporate market, a leap in cleaners’ daily earnings to US$15, and a growing network of over 5,000 female cleaners. Beyond the numbers, however, was the mentoring and friendship that continued even after the official sessions ended – “we built real rapport, challenged ideas, and grew together,” recounts Rachel. “I feel privileged to have supported this great inspiring team of young, energetic and driven individuals with a clear purpose”, echoes Asha.
Starting a business can be daunting and lonely at times. Olawale Adebiyi, co-founder and CEO of WeCyclers, knew this and, before the program, was already looking for a mentor in his existing network. Wale gained confidence while exchanging ideas with his coaches, Kim Paykel, Sustainability Leader, Consumer Products & Retail at Ernst & Young LLP, and Laurence Crouzet, Unilever’s R&D Hair Care Director, who offered new perspectives and encouragement. Wale summarised that the experience “gave me validation, guidance, and helped me become a better leader.”
Meaningful engagement for volunteers
For Unilever and EY executives, the program represents a meaningful and tangible volunteering opportunity that builds skills and fosters global connections across a range of industries. Engaging with visionary entrepreneurs who tackle systemic issues has helped many reconnect with their own sense of purpose, while gaining new insights into business innovation, customer-centricity, and agile leadership in resource-constrained environments.
Rod Wolfenden, Africa Clients and Industries Leader at Ernst & Young Services (Pty) Ltd, and Sandro Cavaleri, who was M&A and Integration Director at Unilever, co-mentored Rakhee Mediratta from Powered by People Kenya – a B2B tech platform that connects small-batch makers to global markets. The trio remarked on the strong sense of mutual learning and the humility evident in their conversations. Rakhee would present a challenge, and together they would work through it – no one claimed to have all the answers. Indeed, Rakhee described the coaching program more as a “partnership.” Rod echoed her sentiments, describing the initiative as a “mutual learning process between all stakeholders. The diversity of thought that each of us brought to the table is game-changing”.
For Unilever’s Global Head of Nature, Jeremy Harrison, coaching Coast 4C had the added bonus of sharing in their journey as finalists in the Earthshot Prize. He commented: “Coast 4C is very much in the sweet spot of business that is driving positive impacts for nature and communities — I absolutely loved it.”
For Jeremy and other coaching volunteers, this is professional development at its most meaningful – a rare opportunity to contribute directly to scalable social impact while growing personally and professionally. It is this win-win that TRANSFORM continues to drive.
Foundations for growth
As TRANSFORM continues to evolve, the coaching program remains a cornerstone of our support for enterprises, not just with funding, but also with bespoke leadership training and goal setting to ensure they continue to scale even after the project comes to a formal end. It’s a shining example of how public-private partnerships can go beyond traditional donor-recipient models and foster genuine relationships that celebrate individual journeys and successes.
Paul Sutcliffe, Partner, Assurance, UK & Ireland at Ernst & Young LLP, concludes: “It has been an absolute pleasure — TRANSFORM doesn’t just help innovators grow; it helps us grow too. I don’t want this to end. It is more than a program — it’s a real, lasting relationship.”
Disclaimer: The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organisation or its member firms.