Vlerick Expertise in Human Resource Management

Belgian senior managers do not earn less than their colleagues in the Netherlands, France, Sweden and Switzerland. However there is a significant difference of up to 40% in comparison to the salaries of CEOs from companies in Germany and the United Kingdom. Moreover, the current remuneration practices fail to sufficiently encourage business leaders to pay attention to environmental matters and to the long-term creation of shareholder value. These are the key conclusions of the annual study of top salaries by Vlerick Business School’s Executive Remuneration Research Centre.

Maternity leave, burn-out, an accident or serious illness are among the many potential causes of an extended absence from work. But what about the financial implications? And what role do employers play? In association with AG Insurance, Vlerick Business School recently conducted a survey into the way in which private sector employees and public sector contract workers assess the risk of losing their capacity to work. Professor Xavier Baeten questioned people about their experiences and personal expectations and the role they feel employers should play.

“By now, we know each other well and know what we can do together. However, we are also just grateful that we can continue our work in this way.” Hudson and Vlerick’s collaboration has already lasted nearly 20 years. Following their renewed Chair Partnership, we spoke to Xavier Baeten, Professor of Reward & Sustainability, and Dirk Buyens and Koen Dewettinck, both HRM Professors at Vlerick.

Employees who are well prepared for their first day at work tend to find their bearings more easily and also have a more positive first impression of their new employer. At one in three companies, however, new hires encounter difficulties during their first weeks – or even months - in the job. They are left with all sorts of questions and many things remain unclear. And while they usually look to their direct superior for answers, that person is often insufficiently involved or lacks the time to help. These are the most important conclusions of a survey of the use of onboarding processes in Belgian companies.

The Belgian human resources departments are focused on attracting, developing and motivating talent once again this year. Recruitment and selection are number one here, followed by leadership development and talent management. Those are the results from the fourth annual HR Barometer study by HR consultancy firm Hudson and Vlerick Business School. HR analytics, however, has not really established itself yet. Although companies collect lots of data, those responsible for HR indicate that they are often not proficient enough in analysing it.

Flexible working is all the rage these days, and hospitals can't escape the trend either. The white paper ‘Flexible working in hospitals: OM and HRM perspective’ by our MINOZ research centre is the fruit of last year's efforts. It examines what flexible working means for the organisation and the employee, how the two perspectives can be brought into balance and which forms of flexible working are relevant for hospitals. Illustrated with practical examples, it offers food for thought for organisations which would like to introduce flexible working themselves.

The wage pressure in Belgium, i.e. the salary tension between younger and older employees, is one of the highest in Europe. On average, 55-year-old employees earn 45% more than their 30-year-old colleagues doing the same job. Furthermore, we are living longer so our working lives are also longer. Consequently, a new wage structure is required, based on a mix of experience, performance and flexible rewards. That is what Professor Xavier Baeten, researcher Saïd Loyens (Vlerick Business School) and Bert De Greve (Hudson) propose in a white paper that offers a fresh perspective on the future house of rewards.

Between 2014 and 2016, over 70% of the CEOs of Bel 20 and Bel Mid companies received a salary increase compared to a mere 46% in the smaller listed companies. The increase was the largest in the Bel 20 companies and was mainly due to variable remuneration. When the actual market data, the size, sector and profitability are taken into account, the German and English CEOs are overpaid. In stark contrast to that is the conclusion that CEOs in the best performing companies are paid relatively less and that the so-called pay ratio (the ratio of the remuneration for the CEO and the average employee) is also considerably lower in these companies.

Every year, around 4.7 million graduates take their first steps on the European labour market. As for businesses: they are always looking for suitable, qualified candidates. Moreover, the competition for available talent is increasing as the baby boom generation retire in the years ahead. Employers who wish to bring the most talented young people on board – and retain them – will therefore do well to gain insights into their expectations and ambitions. Our Centre for Excellence in Strategic Talent Management has conducted its tenth survey of the expectations of young people who are entering the labour market for the first time.

For the second time in a row Hudson and Vlerick Business School mapped the trends and challenges for HRM at leading Belgian companies by way of an HR Barometer. The HR managers of the largest Belgian profit organisations (in terms of staff numbers) and the Bel 20 organisations were invited to participate in an online survey. Some 46 organisations from a diversity of sectors participated in the survey, together representing more than 150,000 workers employed in Belgium. This year, leadership development was the main focus of the HR Barometer.