He was appointed chief human resources officer in February 2005, after starting his Unilever career in January 2003 as SVP human resources in the Foods division.

Before joining Unilever, Sandy worked for Motorola in the United States in a change management/organisation effectiveness role. His last role was reporting to CEO as head of the Office of Leadership, responsible for Leadership Development, Learning and Organization Performance.

In the 15 year period prior to his joining Motorola, Sandy was a leadership development and change management consultant based in San Diego, CA, during which time his clients included Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo, General Electric and Motorola. He also held positions as president of the Center for Leadership Studies, managing director of Dove Associates and founder of the Via Consulting Group.

Sandy started his professional life as a line officer for the United States Coast Guard in 1972. Here, he was part of search and rescue missions and became a highly decorated commanding officer.

He graduated from the United States Coast Guard Academy in 1976 with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics. He later graduated from George Washington University in 1983 with a Master of Arts in Organizational Behaviour, and he also obtained an MBA from the James L Kellogg School of Management at North Western University in 2001. In 1996 Sandy was inducted into the Collegiate Athletic Hall of Fame for participation in Football and Baseball.