Leviat is a global supplier of lifting, connecting and anchoring technologies for the construction and industrial sectors. The company develops technical solutions and innovative products that make building safer, faster, stronger and more sustainable. Leviat is not a construction company itself, but an important supplier to construction companies.

Within Leviat, Griet and Deborah form an HR tandem. Both work on a freelance basis. Deborah mainly focuses on finding the right new colleagues, while Griet has a broader and more strategic role. She supports the management team, sets up structures and strengthens the connection between HR and the workplace. She also assists in recruitment when needed.

What kind of profiles are you mainly looking for?

Deborah: “The profiles are very diverse. Sales profiles, construction engineers, finance professionals, procurement employees, logistics staff, warehouse workers, production workers, operators and welders. So the roles can be technical, logistical or sales-oriented.”

Which Select HR office do you work with most?

Griet: “We mainly work with Melissa (De Pré, Flemish Brabant). We have also been in contact with one of her colleagues who works for iStorm. At that time we were looking for a digital manager. That turned into a very positive success story. That person is still working with us today and everyone is very happy with the addition.”

Deborah: “That was a very good hire. He thinks proactively, he is very intelligent and shows respect for everyone. It was not an easy profile to find either. Our digital manager needs to develop specific programs so that what is designed on the computer can also be translated to the machines.”

Are there other success stories over the past six years?

Griet: “Deborah herself is also a success story. When we were looking for an HR employee in June last year, Melissa introduced Deborah to us. That was really a lifesaver. We had many open vacancies at the time and it wasn’t an easy search, but thanks to Deborah many of those roles were filled relatively quickly.”

As HR professionals, what changes have you seen in the last 20 years?

Deborah: “I’ve seen the image of HR evolve. My mother also works in the sector, and in the past HR was sometimes described as a personnel department with little influence that mainly sent out forms. Today it has evolved into a department of professionals who actively share their vision.”

Griet: “I started as an HR manager in a company in 2007. At that time it was very rare for HR to be represented at management level. HR has evolved in the right direction, with employees gaining more control over their own careers. Over the past 20 years HR has also gone through strong digitalization. Today employees manage many of their own documents, such as payslips or leave requests. That’s positive for many people, but we should not forget that not everyone adapts equally quickly to digital tools.”

How has the role of an HR partner changed?

Griet: “In the past, HR partners had much more physical contact with their clients in the staffing sector because they often had to visit with contracts. But that didn’t necessarily make them good HR partners. As long as you show interest in the company you work with and maintain regular contact, you can build a strong collaboration. It doesn’t matter what kind of profiles you’re looking for.”

Deborah: “For me it’s also important that a partner doesn’t keep sending unnecessary emails. A good HR partner respects our time and doesn’t overload our mailbox with irrelevant profiles.”

How do you experience this with Select HR?

Griet: “Our collaboration with Select HR works both ways, and both sides are satisfied. Just because we originally started working at Leviat through Select HR doesn’t mean we automatically always work with them. We always choose the best service for Leviat. If Select HR weren’t the right partner, we wouldn’t work with them.”

Deborah: “We also know exactly which profiles we can call Select HR for and which profiles we should request from other agencies. Melissa does her job very well and is very proactive. We’re not flooded with CVs that aren’t a match. On the other hand, as a freelancer I’m also very satisfied with the back-office of Select HR. Their administrative support is very strong.”

Griet: “Everything depends on having a good contact person and how engaged they are. If someone isn’t truly interested, the collaboration won’t go far. With Melissa and Select HR, that’s definitely not the case.”

Thank you for the pleasant conversation, Griet and Deborah!