After 27 years at Federgon, CEO Ann Cattelain has a clear message for policymakers and business leaders alike: the Belgian labour market is at a crossroads. Regulation is stifling growth, labour shortages remain structural, and AI could be the solution – if we implement it properly. In this wide-ranging conversation, part of the Talent Business Partners leadership series, Cattelain shares where federations can set the framework for their members to thrive.

Ann Cattelain knows the Belgian labour market better than most. Since joining Federgon as a legal adviser in 1998, she has watched the sector weather financial crises, adapt to digitalisation, and wrestle with policy changes that arrive faster than ever before. "What has really changed is the speed," she says. "All the changes coming at us are arriving faster, and the challenges are stacking up."

She uses a metaphor from Scopernia, the consultancy helping Federgon map out its strategic future: climbing a mountain. "In recent decades, we have been climbing together. There were always new obstacles, but we kept moving upwards. Now it feels as if we are standing on the summit and have to make choices: which direction do we go in, what does the new labour market look like, and what does the 'new Federgon' become?"

That strategic rethink is unfolding across Federgon's ten commissions, which span temporary work, search and selection, project sourcing, interim management, wellbeing and outplacement. Each sector faces the same macro trends – demographic shifts, digital transformation, structural labour shortages – but in different ways. The goal, Cattelain explains, is not to passively watch change unfold, but to position the federation dynamically for what comes next.

Federgon is not a monolith. It represents more than 700 members - and Cattelain's ambition is to reach 1,000, from multinational staffing giants to boutique executive search firms and wellbeing consultants. Deciding where to focus is, in Cattelain's words, "one giant jigsaw puzzle."

"We make sure the most important challenges rise to the surface," Cattelain says, "while keeping a balance between the different subsectors."

It is a structure that reflects the complexity of the Belgian labour market itself – fragmented, multilingual, and full of niche players carving out specialist positions. But it also raises questions about how federations can support individual agencies beyond setting standards and lobbying government.

Guide-me

One of Federgon's most ambitious recent initiatives is Guide-me, a platform and brand that brings together three commissions: outplacement, wellbeing and career guidance. "Federgon is in the outside world mainly known for temporary agency work," Cattelain says, "but we are in the core a federation of people who help others move towards work and towards sustainable careers. With Guide-me we want to make that explicit."

The project has serious roots. Three years ago, Federgon commissioned Idea Consult to research the economic cost of long-term sickness. Despite Belgium's excellent healthcare system, the number of long-term sick people keeps growing. Cattelain believes work itself can be part of the solution. "Not at the moment someone suddenly goes back to full-time work, but much earlier: staying in touch with the workplace, exploring what is still possible – that can make a huge difference."

Guide-me is both a tool and a marketplace. Individuals and employers can use it to find professional guides via geolocation and clear service descriptions. For people on long-term sick leave, guidance is free, funded through the national Back to Work fund. Currently that support kicks in after one year of absence; Federgon is lobbying to bring it down to six months.

"We believe every long-term sick person should enter guidance," Cattelain says. "Not to push them, but to take them by the hand and create a clear flow."

The platform also addresses a corporate pain point: employee absence and near-absence. Federgon's wellbeing specialists help employers prevent burnout and manage return-to-work processes more effectively. Guide-me makes that expertise visible and easy to find.

The policy blind spot: too little focus on upskilling

Cattelain does not mince words when it comes to policy failures. "Soon we will see a rise in the number of long-term unemployed, because benefit rules are tightening. But the local welfare offices are afraid of a wave of applications for social assistance. But why is the primary discussion not: how do we help these people move towards the labour market?"

She sees a structural blind spot. Belgium's multi-layered governance means labour market policy is split between federal and regional levels, between unemployment agencies and public employment services. "But there is too little structural space for guidance, training, upskilling and reskilling. At the same time we face structural shortages and a long list of bottleneck jobs. You have an enormous reserve of people, and an enormous need for talent. It is hard to understand that we are not connecting those two more effectively."

That gap is where Federgon's members could thrive. Private labour market intermediaries and guides can assess people, train them, guide them and match them to bottleneck roles. "That is social impact," Cattelain argues, "but also basic economic necessity."

The canary in the coal mine

For all the talk of labour shortages, Belgium's temporary work sector – often called the "canary in the coal mine" for broader economic health – remains stuck at worryingly low levels. "In my long career I have been lucky to work in sectors that, despite crises, kept moving forwards," Cattelain reflects. "This time the low-conjuncture feeling is lasting very long. And I really hope it does not become a structural state."

Normally, when the economy picks up, temporary work recovers first, followed by permanent hiring. That pattern has broken. Temporary work is stable but depressed, a sign that underlying economic performance is weak. Cattelain points to struggling pharma and industrial sectors. "We expect far more decisiveness from our governments."

She believes policymakers are underestimating the seriousness of the situation. "They see there are still vacancies and conclude: the labour market is fine. That is far too simplistic." In Flanders especially, support measures for activation and the labour market are being cut in the name of austerity. "There is too little focus on productivity, competitiveness and the real economy underneath."

The broader European context does not help. High labour costs, high energy prices and complex permitting procedures make doing business in Belgium harder than elsewhere. "And yet we keep adding extra layers of regulation," Cattelain says. "We are regulating ourselves to death. That is why our core message is: 'Let us do business'. Let companies do what they are good at, without being suffocated by administration."

AI as lifeline – if we get implementation right

Ask Cattelain about AI and she is refreshingly candid. "Honestly, we are all still partly in the dark on the exact numbers. There are studies from the likes of McKinsey and others, and the common thread is clear: some jobs will disappear, but more new roles will emerge. We do not expect mass unemployment caused by AI in the next ten to fifteen years."

What will change fundamentally is the content of jobs. Tasks will be automated, freeing up time for higher-value work. "If we integrate AI intelligently, it can actually be our lifeline in this tough economy and labour market. Then we can start climbing that mountain again."

But implementation is fragmented. "What I see today is that everyone is playing individually with AI tools – ChatGPT and others – outside of core workflows. The real challenge will be: how do we embed this properly in processes? Even big companies are still at the early stages of that journey."

That tension – between strategic ambition and messy, day-to-day implementation – is exactly what agency leaders share with us during the Executive Dinners hosted by the Talent Business Club: they want to adopt AI, but need concrete use cases and peer examples to make it real. And staff resistance is a significant obstacle for agencies attempting to integrate AI. "People need to be able to follow," Cattelain stresses. "Training, education and change management will be crucial. If we ignore that, we will get resistance instead of progress."

Then there is the human factor. "The more technology we weave into processes, the more time we should be freeing up for the human side. But then we have to consciously make that choice." Chatbots are useful, but if things become too impersonal, people switch off. "In Belgium, most people still want to be able to call a number and speak to a real person. A fully digital temp or recruitment agency? I do not see that becoming the norm in the next few years."

Europe, regulation and the plea against gold-plating

Cattelain also sits on the boards of the World Employment Confederation and the European Confederation of Search and Selection Associations (ECSSA). The challenges there mirror those in Belgium: economic stagnation, over-regulation, and a constant flow of new EU directives on pay transparency, AI governance and ESG reporting.

Her message to Belgian policymakers is clear: "Implement European rules correctly, but do not gold-plate them – do not add seven extra layers on top. Europe already has a tendency towards over-regulation. If we then add another layer nationally, we only make doing business here even harder."

Still, she sees opportunity, especially in ESG. "Federgon wants to push the 'S' of Social much more strongly. The 'E' and the 'G' are getting a lot of attention, but it is precisely on the social pillar that our sector and our members can make a difference: guiding people into work, building inclusive careers, activating vulnerable groups. That is a real social value."

Why Federgon partners with the Talent Business Awards

Federgon is a strategic partner of the Talent Business Awards, an initiative of Talent Business Club. For Cattelain, the value goes beyond the event itself. "On the day you bring a group of our members together in a very pleasant setting, with a strong programme and lots of exchange. But what people often underestimate is the build-up: the nominations, the cases, the internal discussions inside companies. That creates a positive dynamic for our members."

That dynamic matters, especially now. "Times are already dark enough. There are so many challenges. Initiatives that celebrate innovation, progress and recognition are hugely valuable." The Awards create visibility and positive recognition for agencies based on evidence of client and candidate impact, not just self-promotion.

"Being innovative is no longer a choice"

At the end of our conversation, Cattelain becomes more reflective. "We are at a crossroads. Being innovative is no longer a nice-to-have, it is a must. We can keep saying that things were different and maybe easier in the past, but that does not help anyone move forwards."

The combination of technology and humanity remains her compass. "The more technology we embed smartly, the more time we should win for human contact. And that will still be, in 2030 and beyond, our biggest differentiator: real people guiding other people towards the right place in the labour market."

Longer term, she dreams of an external advisory board. "Our formal governance is reserved for members, and rightly so. But I would love to assemble a diverse advisory council of academics, futurists and other thinkers to help us look ahead on specific themes. An external lens can be very refreshing."

Ann Cattelain's vision for Federgon addresses the urgent, structural challenges in the Belgian labour market, from over-regulation to labour shortages, by positioning the federation as an active framework-setter. The path forward requires political decisiveness to stop 'regulating ourselves to death,' a focus on upskilling, and intelligently embracing AI to free up time for the human element.

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