Dual-Market HR Partnership for a Global Coatings Manufacturer Across the Netherlands and Belgium

The company produces performance coatings for the automotive, architectural, and general industrial markets. The Netherlands and Belgium operations are part of a larger European cluster. HR for the cluster works on a shared services model: global policy and coordination with a local People Experience Partner supporting the site level across a number of facilities in both countries. The role is responsible for employment relations, local HR process delivery, and delivery of global transformation initiatives at site level.

Dutch and Belgian labor laws are not two versions of the same system. Their requirements around dismissal, sickness management, performance processes, and works council engagement differ meaningfully, and those differences are evident in practice. The search was for a candidate who had worked substantively in both markets and could advise line managers with equal confidence on either side of the border, a combination that is genuinely rare.

The role also sat within a global shared services structure, which further shaped the type of practitioner who would succeed in it. This position required candidates who knew how to make a real difference locally within a globally coordinated function, and who were comfortable with the discipline that model entails. Fluency in Dutch was non-negotiable.

The search was carried out across the Benelux HR market, and candidates were evaluated against four combined requirements: language, legal knowledge of the two markets, experience with shared services, and cultural fit. Once the client received our shortlist they moved decisively.

The candidate had more than 6 years of HR experience in the Netherlands, including hands-on experience with Belgian employment requirements, which was gained through cross-border collaboration with Belgian colleagues. At her previous organization she had overseen the Netherlands rollout of a global shared-service migration, including re-engineering local processes, ensuring stakeholder alignment and training managers on new procedures. She advised on all aspects of employment relations, including dismissals, performance management, sickness absence, works council interaction, and employment investigations. Throughout her career, she worked with Workday and SAP SuccessFactors and was based in the cluster’s main area of operations.