A win-win situation

Concordia NV, a subsidiary in Belgium, gives people a chance of a permanent job who would otherwise often have a hard time on the labor market. Six people, including people with autism or in difficult life situations, are now an integral part of the Concordia team. They successfully contribute their individual strengths.

Like many companies in the Ecclesia Group, Concordia NV is increasingly faced with the challenge of finding qualified employees. It is becoming more and more difficult to identify suitable candidates for vacant positions. One way to counteract this is to relieve the burden on employees who are already part of the team and give them the opportunity to focus more on value-adding and strategic tasks. HR manager Sary Vlaminckx reports: “When we took a closer look at the tasks of our teams, we found that they are increasingly occupied with routine and administrative tasks. This takes up about 30 percent of their working time.”

And yet, these administrative tasks usually do not require any special training. They are absolutely necessary, but they take up valuable time that could otherwise be spent talking to customers, for example. Luc Van Antwerpen, one of Concordia's managing directors, came up with an idea in this context: “We constantly hear complaints about the shortage of skilled workers, while at the same time there are people who are looking for a job in vain. But people who, for example, have autism or have been confronted with strokes of fate and have ended up in complicated life situations can, under the right conditions, very successfully contribute their individual strengths to a company.” So he took the initiative and, together with a funding program from the city of Antwerp, set a process in motion.

A job that doesn't require a degree

In the course of the analysis, it became clear that employees could be relieved by handing over certain administrative tasks to a newly created position, the “administrative assistant”. The requirements for this job are not specific academic degrees or professional experience. “It's more about the person themselves, their motivation and their desire to achieve,” explains Sary Vlaminckx. ‘What's important is that the person is a good fit for us, enjoys administrative work and, of course, has a sense of accuracy and correctness.’ After all, a clean and precise approach is particularly important when it comes to administrative work.

The first administrative assistant at Concordia was Steven De Pooter, who started work at the Antwerp site in 2019. For recruiting in this area, Concordia works with companies that specialize in reintegrating people with disabilities or in difficult life situations into the labor market. “At the beginning, we described in detail the tasks for which we were looking for a person and then received a few suggestions,” says Sary Vlaminckx, who has been involved in the project from the outset. ”Now, it sometimes works the other way around: when a person who might be a good fit for us comes into the applicant pool, our contacts ask whether we could imagine employing them.”

Onboarding with a great deal of tact

Unlike regular job postings, there is significantly more lead time for onboarding. First, the idea is discussed within the team so that everyone is on the same page. Then one or two possible mentors are selected who would be willing to act as a point of contact for the new team member and to take special care of the new colleague. The mentor and job candidate then get to know each other. If that goes well, there is initially a work placement. “It's important that both sides can see if it's a good fit and works,” explains Sary Vlaminckx. “Only if a person enjoys the job but can also meet our requirements does long-term employment make sense.”

For Steven De Pooter, everything worked out perfectly. After a nervous breakdown with severe psychological and physical consequences, he was unemployed for about five years. “I will never forget the moment I was admitted here for team building,” he says. “I was able to integrate into the Concordia family so quickly. My internship went great and at the end of it I received a permanent job contract. I'm really very happy here.”

But even after the company and candidate have decided on each other, there are still a few things to consider. “As a rule, our administrative assistants don't immediately work full-time,” says Sary Vlaminckx. “We first look together at what workload they can handle well and, if possible, slowly increase the weekly working hours.” Initially, the administrative assistants were deployed in the Brokerage and Claims department, mainly because the demand was greatest there. In theory, however, they can work anywhere. ”For example, we now also have an administrative assistant in IT.”

What a permanent job and appreciation can achieve

With the help of their new colleagues, employees are relieved. The company benefits from this because employees can concentrate more on their core tasks. But the administrative assistants also often see re-entering the workforce as a great opportunity. Steven De Pooter, for example, was still living with his mother when he was hired: “Now I was able to buy my own apartment again. That was a real milestone for me. I've managed to fight my way up from a low point, and I've been able to do that because I have a job that I enjoy and that is valued.”

Sary Vlaminckx is also very pleased with how the project has developed: “Yes, you have to stick together as a team and it takes work to make it all happen. But when we see people like Steven flourish and develop with us, it's just beautiful.” Concordia continues to pursue the project and is pleased to be able to expand it. ‘This is certainly not the end of the story,’ emphasizes Luc Van Antwerpen. ”I definitely want to employ even more people in our company who would otherwise have a hard time in the regular labor market.”