“One of the high-priority needs identified concerns the managerial skills of our employees who manage teams of varying sizes,” says Edith Brunner, HR director at Lombard International Assurance. “Managers are the key players in ensuring that teams perform well, that they are motivated and that the organisation succeeds. The task is a complex one for managers, who are faced with more and more challenges in adapting to today’s professional environment and increasingly demanding employees. The need to support these managers must be a priority. The latter are themselves looking for ways to strengthen their communication and decision-making skills, develop their emotional agility, and are even seeking individual coaching. Investing in managerial development not only strengthens leadership, it also improves employee satisfaction and keeps staff engaged and motivated, as they continue to grow and hone their skills.”
Support for managers
Lise Roda, HR director at Pictet, adopts an identical position and roadmap: “We need to continue to support our managers in developing their skills. Their role is crucial in our organisation. The skills required have changed considerably over the last five to ten years.”
“Our priority is to develop managerial skills, particularly in managing multicultural and intergenerational teams,” adds Marine Cardé, HR director at Delhaize Luxembourg, “to guarantee harmonious and effective collaboration.”
“We’ve grown very quickly,” says Cocottes HR director Léa Piot. “We’re established all over Luxembourg and we realised that certain essentials on the ground were no longer as well mastered, because we didn’t have the right tools (digitalisation)--and our wish is to have identical operations in our 17 restaurants. To achieve this, we decided to put in place a number of follow-up measures and to provide our managers with more regular support, so that they have the keys and the support they need to steer their departments and their restaurants.”
The issue of leadership also cuts across the concerns of CDCL Group, SLG, Dussmann, ING Luxembourg, Raiffeisen and KPMG, whose HR managers are all nominated for the Paperjam HR Leaders 2025 ranking. “It is essential that we continue to train and develop our staff in all aspects of leadership and people management, in order to promote a caring and effective management style that is in line with our culture,” says KPMG HR director Géraldine Hassler.
The digital race
Hassler goes on to point to the need for a mature approach to AI. “We are investing in skills related to artificial intelligence, focusing on the working methods and tools that will enable our teams to anticipate and meet the technological challenges of tomorrow. These two pillars are essential to guarantee sustainable and innovative performance.”
The digital challenge is everywhere. “Societe Generale Luxembourg recognises the importance of upskilling to respond to the rapid changes in the financial sector and the challenges posed by digital transformation and ESG issues,” says its HR director, Aurélie Ederle. “Key areas include digital and technological skills, sustainable development skills and social responsibility.”
“Our upskilling priorities are digital transformation and ESG expertise, which reflect developments in the financial sector,” adds Christopher Frères, HR director at the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
“Dussmann prioritises upskilling in digital skills, leadership, business expertise, soft skills (communication, adaptability) and sustainability awareness,” says its director, Christelle Noel. “The aim is to prepare teams for technological developments, organisational transformations and environmental challenges.”
"We use assessment tools, a global academy and specific learning paths for leaders and specialists.
“Our upskilling priorities focus on artificial intelligence, digital skills, and lean and agile methodologies, in order to meet the challenges of rapid and ongoing transformation,” says Delphine Bath, HR director at La Mondiale Europartner. “The digital transformation of our sector makes it essential to master digital tools, emerging technologies (such as AI) and data analysis. We organised a forum on AI and rolled out training courses on our in-house AI, Almia, to raise awareness and train our employees. This content is accessible on our training platform to encourage autonomy and learning flexibility. We also rely on our internal community of ‘Digit@liens’ to support changes in our business lines.”
Developing other skills
At BDO, Matina Korma also points to AI: “We’ve already started with courses for beginners and intermediates.”
“Historically, law firms have focused on academic skills,” says Magali Maillot, HR director at A&O Shearman. “It is now essential to develop other skills to adapt to the complex challenges faced by our clients, such as strategic consulting and problem solving. With the arrival of artificial intelligence, the nature of tasks is changing. Simple tasks will be automated, and our people will need to skilfully integrate new technologies to advise our clients in even more sophisticated ways.”
At Sodexo, meanwhile, “the health and safety of our employees and food safety are subjects on which we are uncompromising and which require massive and continuous training,” says HR director Anne De Jonghe. “Alongside this, and not surprisingly, we want to develop the skills of our employees in the field of digitalisation and AI.”
“In a fast-changing world, it is essential to anticipate and prepare for the future,” comments BGL BNP Paribas HR director Louis de Looz-Corswarem. “So, for several years now, in order to identify tomorrow’s skills needs and map out the appropriate upskilling and reskilling trajectories, we have been implementing our ‘Strategic Workforce Planning’ project, in line with our transformation plan and strategy. Through cross-functional studies, discussions and workshops, we have identified the key shared skills that need to be developed as a priority: data, digital, sustainable development and finance. We are also upskilling our teams to gradually roll out agility at scale across our organisation.”
Reaching every employee
In the social and healthcare sectors, the challenges are the same. “First of all, we support our employees who want to obtain a diploma to enter new professions,” says Dorothée Schneider of the Luxembourg Red Cross. “This is essential with the number of regulated positions we have. There is also a need to rapidly acquire skills in artificial intelligence: these new tools will help us to reduce administrative burdens and find rapid solutions, as well as to free up energy that we can devote to what’s at the heart of the various professions,
“Our needs are essentially based on constantly updating our practices,” says Olivier Schmitt, HR director of the CHL. “Framed by the JCI quality standard, which sets very high international standards, the continuing training policy for medical and non-medical staff is worth millions of euros a year. By digitalising our training modules via our e-learning platform, we can reach every member of staff and offer them a wide range of programmes. Every month, around 20 face-to-face training sessions are organised within the CHL.”
“In the health sector, it is essential to offer our patients a range of care based on excellence,” says the HR director of the Robert Schuman Hospitals Foundation, Karine Rollot. “This involves human skills (active listening, empathy) and innovative technological skills (digitalisation, data management and artificial intelligence). Change management and agility are and remain major leadership skills.”
Hybrid training courses
The range of tools is wide and varied, as is the case at Raiffeisen: “We have set up online training programmes, face-to-face workshops and mentoring to support the ongoing training of employees,” says HR director Laurent Derkum. “These schemes enable employees to develop their skills at their own pace and according to their specific needs.”
Louis de Looz-Corswarem of BGL BNP Paribas explains: “To adapt to the hybrid working environment, we have developed training playlists to run alongside face-to-face training, which are very useful, particularly for raising awareness. We have also developed new participative formats in the form of frescoes and workshops to build skills in CSR. Some of our employees have even trained to become ‘fresco artists’ and facilitators in their own right, so that they can pass on their knowledge.”
Continuous learning at the university
In addition to leadership, the University of Luxembourg focuses on “promoting diversity and inclusion, in particular through training in unconscious bias, inclusive leadership and intercultural communication,” says HR director Claire Audollent, “[so as to] support lecturers and researchers in implementing innovative teaching methods and preparing them for diversified career paths, whether in teaching and research or industry.” The idea is to give staff the opportunity to adapt to digital and digital transformations, she adds.
“The professional development and ongoing training of employees is a priority, supported by a dedicated budget drawn up in consultation with the social partners,” says the university’s HR director. “This is reflected in a wide range of training courses: face-to-face, e-learning and self-service, via online platforms accessible via multiple devices. Development dialogues, which are privileged moments between the manager and the employee, provide an opportunity to discuss wishes and agree on individual development and training opportunities.”
This article, , was written for the supplement of the edition of Paperjam magazine published on 29 January. The content is produced exclusively for the magazine. It is published on the website to contribute to the complete Paperjam archive. .
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