Many companies now promise a sustainable career. But engineering firm Arcadis has really put the HR buzzword into practice with a strategy that is based on three pillars: continuous feedback, mobility and working from home. Wim Waterschoot, People Director Arcadis Belgium & Europe South: "Our people want to give their very best, and this is only possible if you, in turn take their well-being seriously."
Over the past year, HR too has had to deal with our modern version of the Big Bang. We all adopted a ‘new normal’, to use a trendy term. Hopefully 2021 will be better. Thanks to the vaccine - fingers crossed - we shall soon be getting back to our social lives and be able to meet our colleagues and customers in person again more often. The after-effects of the coronavirus will continue affecting HR developments in the year to come, however. We hereby present the most important insights and trends for the new year.
Aertssen Group is a family business based in Stabroek, north of Antwerp in Belgium. However strong it’s growth ambitions, Aertssen Group will always be a family business above all else. In order to retain that family spirit in amidst a growing organisation, a wide range of significant HR efforts have been made over the past couple of years: every employee can now count on a personalised approach supported by technology.
What will 2021 bring? After such a turbulent year, it would be audacious to start making big statements. But one thing seems to be a given: ‘the old normal’ is not coming back. Even more, companies will quickly have to find a way to deal with the likelihood of ongoing changes. A good first step is building an agile workforce and valuing both internal and external mobility. To do so, you’ll need to embrace total talent management.
COVID-19 has a great impact on employees, with mass homeworking as one of the most remarkable outcomes. Many companies are pulling out all the stops to establish viable homeworking policies, implement digital tools and create a renewed organisational culture. What’s often overlooked is the physical workspace. Although traditional offices are on their way out, they can re-emerge as employee experience centres.
Care and hospitals go hand in hand, but this usually relates to patient care. At Az Damiaan in Ostend, they extend this care to employees with the same focus. Az Damiaan regularly appears in the press with original employer branding campaigns. Of course, just the image of a caring, creative employer with 'a twist' is not enough. Without a supportive and established HR policy, this reputation would be in danger. During the first wave of coronavirus, the hospital showed that they have a solid foundation in this area. Chief HR Officer, Dirk Van de Velde, explains.
According to Professor Joe Perfetti from the University of Maryland, “The keyword for the 20th century was ‘speed’; the keyword for the 21st century is ‘agility’. And then COVID emerged to shake the business world up beyond our wildest imaginings. What does that does that mean for companies – and their HR teams?
American athletic giant Nike has a solid foothold in Belgium too, with five distribution centres in Ham, Laakdal and Meerhout. Together, they make up the Nike European Logistics Campus (ELC). From here, sporting goods depart around the clock, destined for wholesalers, Nike stores and online customers across Europe. This phenomenal logistics achievement relies heavily on flexibility. For that reason, personalisation, mobility and innovation are key elements of the HR policy.
Through on online survey conducted in June 2020, the European Payroll & HR services provider SD Worx tested how well 3,000 European companies are dealing with 6 crucial HR challenges. Each of those challenges consists of a subtle balancing act. Drop one or more hula hoops and you risk finding yourself a long way behind your competitors. Gracefully swirl all of them around and you’re bound to be successful.
COVID-19 has forced companies to reassess their priorities. Getting the basics right, such as payroll duties, is now by far the number one concern. Besides that, we see both a strong shift towards cost-efficiency and increased emphasis on employee experience, including personalisation and work-life balance. Although these three objectives could be met effectively by turning the spotlight on to flexible rewards, few companies seem to see the connection.
