Umicore

IMPACT

A few years ago at Umicore Hoboken, employment challenges were becoming more acute. A wave of retirement was taking place at a time of plant expansion. Finding qualified people for increasingly technical jobs was getting harder. Along with the talent squeeze, Hoboken was about to lose the expertise of its retiring employees.

These circumstances gave birth to project IMPACT (Improving Approach on Competences & Talent). Its goals: identify and transmit the knowledge of retiring employees, help people develop behavioural and technical competencies, offer career development opportunities in a more structured and transparent way, base performance management less on evaluations and more on an employee's development.

Into their own hands

"When people had HR questions it wasn't always obvious whom they could turn to," explains Anne Smekens, HR Project Manager in Hoboken. "We wanted to provide clear processes and tools so that people could take their career into their own hands." Another problem was job descriptions: in discussions between a supervisor and an employee each had his own interpretation. Working with external consultants and representatives from all departments, Anne and her colleagues set about creating what she calls a common HR language.

Workshops were held throughout the plant to define the competencies required for all the various jobs. "People of all levels got involved and appreciated the opportunity to take part," Anne says. "It's very important that people themselves clarify what their jobs are about." Once this so-called competency model was defined, the task was to put it all into a software tool. This is now being progressively rolled out.

Fulfilling careers

When finished, all employees will have a clear overview of their current job based on the competencies it entails. They can see what kind of training is available to go further, or how their competencies might fit with other jobs on the site. Safety training will be integrated into the system. Anne: "Having benefits for everybody."

Not only does this help Hoboken attract, retain and develop the talent it needs. The new competency model is helping people to find more fulfillment in their jobs, one of Umicore's sustainability objectives. Anne sums up: "It's essential that people are aware of their skills and talents and find fulfillment. When I guide visitors through the site they remark about hearing people refer to the Umicore family. It's very gratifying."