Leadership Insights: A Conversation with SThree Belgium's Top Executives
What inspired you to enter the staffing and recruitment industry? Was there a specific experience that sparked your passion?
Catherine De Caluwe - Country Director at Sthree Belgium: "My entry in the staffing and recruitment industry was already more than 20 years ago... but I remember the immense joy it gave me to find a new mission for a consultant and to do that over and over again creating long lasting partnerships. Also to develop meaningful client relationships and with that, my career went up as well."
Olivier Buysschaert - Sales Director at Sthree Belgium: "I always wanted to work in a sales environment since I was young and the opportunity to make a significant impact on both individuals' careers and organizations' success, and the potential for personal and professional growth in a fast-paced industry made me sign for this job."
What's a challenge you've overcome, and how has it shaped you as a leader?
Catherine: "2 actually. Many of the people I speak with, talk about the imposter syndrome. For a long time, it wasn't strange to me either. However, the moment I fully understood: hey, it's OK to be myself AND to be a leader, everything went much smoother. And the mental space freed up by that is immense. So, I can only recommend it! And secondly, being a kind leader doesn't mean you are a weak leader. In this industry, one might mistakenly think that you have to be hard to lead successfully. And for that reason, for a while, I felt that I didn't want to be a leader, if that is required. But I understood you always have the choice to tackle any challenge AND to do that in a kind way. That's the leadership I was up to! And I think the world would be a nicer place if more people think like that!"
Olivier: "Every day presents its own set of challenges, filled with both rewarding highs and difficult lows, which have collectively fostered my resilience. Throughout my career, I've experienced numerous management and strategic shifts. Each transition offered valuable lessons, allowing me to swiftly adapt and embrace change more readily. This adaptability and openness to learning have been instrumental in shaping me into a more effective and empathetic leader."
What sets your agency apart from the competition, and how do your clients and candidates benefit from this unique value proposition?
Catherine: "What truly sets Sthree apart is our specialized approach to STEM recruitment. We've built our reputation through distinct recruitment brands, each focusing on specific sectors within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. This specialization isn't just a business strategy – it's how we ensure we truly understand both our clients' needs and our candidates' aspirations. Our global presence is another key differentiator. Having offices across multiple countries means we can tap into diverse talent pools and provide opportunities that cross borders. We've also made significant investments in quality and compliance, implementing rigorous vetting processes that our clients have come to trust. But perhaps what I'm most excited about is our innovative approach – we're constantly leveraging new technologies and data-driven insights to enhance our recruitment processes and stay ahead of industry trends."
What core values guide the culture and decision-making within your agency?
Olivier: "We have a set of core values that are truly embedded in our company. These values reflect their commitment to excellence, integrity, and collaboration. And every decision, promotion, reflection, .. we make is in line with these values. And as previously said, we add kindness to it."
How do you ensure diversity, equity, and inclusion are embedded in your recruitment practices?
Catherine: "We conduct multiple training sessions annually to ensure that DEI is seamlessly integrated into our daily operations. We have a very active DE&I team, so that is helpful to support us. We also partner with external companies that help us increase our awareness and develop us further on that. But next to that, I must say that every leader in our team 'breathes' this. It's just natural to be diverse, equal and inclusive."
What strategies do you use to build and maintain long-term relationships with clients and candidates?
Olivier: "Building lasting relationships is really about three key elements for us. First, we take a deeply personalized approach with both our clients and candidates. We invest time in truly understanding each client's unique business challenges and goals. Similarly, we take the time to understand our candidates' career aspirations and what drives them professionally. It's not just about filling positions – it's about creating meaningful matches that last.
Secondly, we believe in maintaining consistent communication, even when there's no immediate recruitment need. Regular check-ins and active feedback loops help us stay connected and ensure we're always aligned with our clients' and candidates' evolving needs.
Finally, we're committed to delivering excellence in everything we do. We consistently strive to exceed expectations, whether that's through the quality of candidates we present or the efficiency of our recruitment process. We ensure everything is transparent and well-communicated – there's nothing worse than being left in the dark during a recruitment process."
How do you measure success for your agency beyond financial performance? What key KPIs do you track?
Catherine: "Financial performance is undeniably important, but our success is measured through a variety of indicators that provide a more holistic view of our impact and effectiveness. Here are some of the key metrics we track: Firstly, we gauge client and ambassador satisfaction and retention through our Net Promoter Score (NPS). This tool provides invaluable insights into how likely our clients are to recommend our services, reflecting their overall satisfaction and loyalty. Equally crucial to our success is the well-being of our employees. We consistently measure employee happiness and engagement, and we are proud to report a recent score of 72. This high level of employee satisfaction has undoubtedly contributed to our strong performance, as a motivated and content workforce is fundamental to achieving our goals."
What are you most proud of when it comes to your agency's achievements, and what impact do you hope to make in the world through your work?
Olivier: "Our purpose is bringing skilled people together to build the future. This mission deeply resonates with me. As specialists in life sciences, engineering, IT, and more, we are committed to delivering impactful projects. Our goal is to contribute to a healthier, safer, greener, and more efficient world. This is precisely the impact we strive to achieve."
Catherine: "Personally I am very proud that SThree Belgium, the first SThree country outside the UK is consistently doing so well; we grow each year, and we manage to maintain a great company culture. Secondly, we are a large company on the London stock exchange, a true household name in the international world of recruitment. It makes me proud to be part of that and to be able to say: this is the SThree way. But at the same time we have the liberty to do things our way. I love that mix!
With regards to impact, I think this speaks for itself. We provide interesting jobs for people and we enable our clients to achieve their strategic goals by the work we do on a daily basis. It's quite powerful! And meaningful too! Anyway, it gives me a lot of satisfaction!"
What do you see as the three most significant changes in the recruitment industry over the past five years, and how has your agency adapted to them?
Catherine: "First of all, and that's a general thing, hybrid working. It's a challenge but I believe we've done it right. With COVID we immediately were enabled to work from home, but still to date, I believe that you can't say you're a flexible organisation if you put too many rules in place for people to come to the office. I think we have a nice balance, without imposing too many things.
From a technology point of view AI is a gamechanger and will continue to be one for the coming years. Embedding AI in our systems through a complete digital transformation with Microsoft is one of the bravest and coolest steps SThree has taken.
And thirdly about the markets we work in. Time and material based staffing has switched to Project Work. I am proud to say we adapted to that as well by working closely to our legal teams to move where our clients go."
What role does technology play in your recruitment processes, and how are you leveraging it to meet the evolving expectations of clients and candidates?
Olivier: "We are currently rolling out an unprecedented digital transformation in the recruitment industry, aimed at significantly enhancing client and candidate experiences while also improving process efficiency. Our transformation programme is putting tech and data at the heart of our organisation, introducing game-changing infrastructure and processes to create a seamless digital experience for our customers and ambassadors, ensure we are performing at our very best to meet their expectations, and set ourselves apart from the industry through our digital first approach and cutting-edge tech platform. Our transformation in collaboration with Microsoft is, of course, AI-driven, and we are harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to revolutionize our processes, providing a more personalized and efficient experience for both clients and candidates."
As our conversation with Catherine and Olivier draws to a close, it's clear that SThree Belgium's success stems from more than just industry expertise. Their commitment to authentic leadership, embracing technological innovation, and maintaining a people-first approach while adapting to industry changes sets them apart in the competitive world of STEM recruitment. As they continue to evolve and shape the future of recruitment in Belgium and beyond, their focus on building meaningful relationships while leveraging cutting-edge technology positions them well for continued success in the ever-changing landscape of talent acquisition.
> Visit SThree Belgium company profile for more information