HR's strategic role in attracting, motivating and retaining talent in a fast-changing world

Marking the first “Paperjam HR Leaders 2025” awards, Nicole Dochen, a member of the Banque de Luxembourg’s Executive Committee and Head of Human Resources, talks to us about the changing role of the HR department.

First published in PaperJam on 31 January 2024

Interview with Nicole Dochen,
Member of the Executive Committee and Head of Human Resources

People & Organisational performance

In the ongoing quest for performance, what role does the HR Director play partnering the CEO? Is its function to implement a roadmap, or does it have a more assertive role in helping shape corporate strategy?

The days when the head of HR simply executed a roadmap are long gone. Retaining talent, hiring new talent, training, internal mobility, DEI in response to broader societal shifts – all these challenges faced by HR leaders are transforming the HR function. At Banque de Luxembourg, HR clearly contributes to and helps guide strategy. “Employees” is one of the Bank’s four key priorities and the main pillar of our B Corp certification process. So it’s no accident that HR sits on the Executive Committee. It ensures we have a say in strategic decision-making, actively taking part in discussions on the way forward, influencing certain choices, and anticipating future developments.  

How do we reconcile the need for performance with the increasing demand for work-life balance?

We take all stakeholders’ interests, including employees’, into account at the Bank. Positioned as a “trusted and responsible bank”, people come first. We are particularly attentive to our employees, promoting and supporting their wellbeing. Work-life balance is firmly anchored in our culture, in other words, performance must go hand in hand with sustainability.

Talent acquisition

The “talent war” dominates today’s employment market. How is this fierce competition for talent reflected in your own recruitment processes? What difficulties do you encounter?

We want to attract motivated individuals who will feel at home in the Bank ad have the opportunity to advance in their career, while also contributing to our development. It’s not just skills or experience we look for, but people who have values, who want to build something, who want to work in a community where each and every person matters.

This approach has several implications for our recruitment processes. First of all, we focus on the human and hold several interviews so we can get to know each other. Second, we take the time to understand candidates’ needs and expectations to provide them with personalised support during the recruitment and onboarding process. Lastly, with talent very much in demand, we ensure we are quick and agile in our responses – which is also about respect.

Some skill sets are in short supply (multilingual talent, specialist expertise, especially in areas like risk, technology or regulatory issues).. But we're lucky to work in a company that has such a positive image in the market. That's a definite plus.

What “weapons” does your company bring to this talent war? And what else would you like to have in your arsenal if you had the power to change regulations and laws?

In our very human-centric culture built on caring and trust, words like “weapons” and “war” are quite alien. What matters to us is creating an excellent experience for candidates, which not only builds trust, but also reflects our culture as a trusted and responsible bank.

We also believe that collaborative recruitment – with good collaboration between HR experts and hiring managers – is the key to successful recruitment. Our people are our best ambassadors and we involve them in recommending potential talent from their networks.

Employer branding

How would you define “employer branding” applied to your organisation?

Employer branding is all about a company's image and reputation in the eyes of its employees and potential talent. It encompasses the values, culture, benefits and overall experience a company offers to its employees. This includes quality onboarding, a strong corporate culture, tractive career development opportunities, employee wellbeing, transparent and regular communication, recognition, a good work-life balance and involvement in decision-making. This takes effort from everyone in the company. HR’s role is to galvanise this collective energy.

The human dimension is what matters most to us. As a mission-driven company, it is central to how we operate both within and outside the Bank. As well as providing a positive working environment and activities that help develop their skills and fulfil their potential, we also give employees the opportunity to make a positive contribution to society and the environment through their work.

Taking this definition, how big a part does HR play in promoting the employer brand?

The HR department plays a pivotal role in promoting our employer brand: we are central to recruitment, talent management, wellbeing at work, DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] and reward policies.

Here at Banque de Luxembourg, we take a holistic approach to managing our employer brand, calling on many different departments to contribute to promoting it. This collaborative effort ensures a more authentic and consistent employer brand that is perfectly aligned with employees’ experience and drives engagement.

Reskilling and Upskilling

What priority upskilling needs have you identified in your organisation?

Besides the constant and growing needs associated with regulatory training, we have three priority areas. The first of these is the development of leadership and management skills to support our human-centric model

Second, we have introduced a new Learning Management System for use by our in-house experts to create e-learning courses covering our internal processes, tools and products, with particular attention focused on the Bank’s transformation projects. And third, we are rolling out diversity and inclusion initiatives.

And what continuing professional development tools and systems have you put in place in your departments?

Skills development is a top priority for us at Banque de Luxembourg. In practice, this means we have an integrated HR policy that includes a skills reference framework tailored to the Bank’s needs and transposed in our job descriptions. Every year, the employee appraisals evaluate an employee's performance, skills and expertise and set out areas for improvement in their individual development plan (IDP). Our employees draw up their individual development plan using the resources in our professional development offering (which is not limited to training since we have adopted the 70/20/10 learning and development model) with support as needed. We are creating a genuine culture of learning in the Bank.

Talent retention

Is there also a war to retain talent? And if so, do you think that finding and keeping talent are equally complex?

Our turnover is well below the market average and our engagement level is very high (see the “2024 Have Your Say” employee satisfaction survey).

We have two levers to encourage our staff to stay with us: clear career paths with attractive prospects and investment the development of skills and expertise. 

We never rest on our laurels and always listen to our men and women. And we ask questions to make sure that all aspects of our employee value proposition are competitive.

Attracting the right people with specific and hard-to-find skills is a challenge and we have to look further and further away from the usual catchment area of Greater Region for potential talent.

What are the main changes or ongoing developments in your company’s “employee journey”?

Based on a structured framework, our career path model aims to be clear about career progression opportunities. It is published and everyone is familiar with it. This means we can offer: clear career paths; identification of skills to be developed; HR and managerial support for career progression; a choice of advancement tailored to each individual, taking into account their preferred work-life balance; guaranteed greater employability; and flexibility to effectively pivot in response to organisational changes and needs.

New ways of working

The trend toward new ways of working – flexibility, working from home and more – is more pronounced than ever since the Covid-19 pandemic. But how do we respond to this paradigm shift without denting company performance?

Flexible working and performance are no longer mutually exclusive. Indeed, motivated employees—both individually and as a team—are the key to boosting productivity and achieving high performance. And while there's no denying that flexibility in when and how employees do their work is a significant motivating factor, what matters most are personalised HR management, upskilling, reward and recognition policies, high quality internal communications and managers’ ability to bring teams together around shared goals that motivate employees day after day.

How do you address the challenge of fostering employee engagement, which is slumping according to recent studies?

In today’s employment market, the challenge for employers is to create and maintain the right conditions to inspire and retain talent over the long term. To do this, it’s critical for companies to set goals together with their teams, align them with overall business strategy and communicate them clearly. This is the type of company that creates the right conditions – job responsibilities and assignments – for employees to showcase their full potential and ensures their achievements are recognised. It is also the type of company that promotes diversity and inclusion and takes care of its employees.

Employment law

What is your view on the employment rules? As things stand, is the Luxembourg employment code on the side of employers? Or more of an adversary?

The aim of the Employment Code is to regulate labour relations, balancing protection for the interests of both employees and employers. It does not take sides. Yet, some decades-old rules need to be updated to adapt to the needs of today’s employment market. In 2023, the Luxembourg Employment Law Specialists Association, ELSA, published a white paper outlining proposals to modernise and improve some aspects of the law relative to its current practical applications.

Let’s do another what-if exercise. If you had the power, what additional provisions would you like to see to meet your needs more effectively?

There are only two types of employee status in Luxembourg employment law, employee and senior manager. The latter meets very specific requirements, such as autonomy in organising work, the power to direct and make decisions. But the reality on the ground points to the need for an in-between status of “executive”. Creating this status with full legal recognition would be a genuine step in the right direction for employment law in Luxembourg in line with the needs of today’s companies.

Digitisation

How are you harnessing digitisation to make it an ally of the HR function?

The great advantage of digital technology is the positive impact on the operational efficiency of the teams in charge of all the administrative aspects of human resources management. But it delivers even more benefits beyond this. For example, we have an efficient and very comprehensive e-learning tool that covers business, regulatory and soft skills training needs. We also use it to co-create tailored content for our processes and tools.

Benefits

How important is salary in attracting and retaining talent?

The applications we receive show that we have a very good image in the market, based around strong local roots, stability, the perception of a trusted and responsible bank, and long-term commitment. There’s no denying this is an advantage. When a candidate is considering several options, what can tip the balance – other than the financial package – is a sense of purpose, the chance to be part of something meaningful, high levels of trust and a supportive environment.

We keep a close eye on our positioning in the market by taking part in various benchmarking surveys.

What else, besides pay, adds to employer attractiveness?

An environment that fosters a good work-life balance, flexibility and wellbeing at work more broadly are all essential.

Here at Banque de Luxembourg, our human-centred approach is written into our DNA and reflected in good workplace relations, mutual respect and a caring and open management culture. Our employee engagement surveys show that our employees see the human dimension as a core component of our corporate culture, and many candidates mention it spontaneously during job interviews. When our employees talk about us outside the bank, the word-of-mouth effect is definitely positive.

What’s more, the opportunity for career advancement and internal mobility is another definite advantage appreciated by our employees. Every year, we offer a hundred or so internal mobility opportunities, made possible by our diverse businesses, our clear career path model and personalised development plans that empower our staff to shape their own careers.. Every member of staff can continue to grow and develop throughout their professional life.

In addition, we offer an attractive financial and non-financial package. Our employees enjoy a modern workplace, canteens, gyms, health and insurance benefits, as well as access to cultural and sporting activities. Voluntary initiatives are supported through our Hëllef Hëllefen fund

Taken as a whole, all of these attributes help to attract and retain the right people for the Bank while promoting long-term professional development and fulfilment

Mobility & Fleet

What are your company’s past, present or future plans to support sustainable mobility, such as electrifying the fleet or encouraging use of public transport?

The Bank encourages staff to take public transport by giving cross-border commuters a subsidy of €60 per month. We also offer a financial incentive to nudge employees with leased vehicles to choose electric.

Looked at more broadly, what green transition drivers are you keeping an eye on?

Other than our leasing policy and incentives to use different forms of transport, we have no control over how people get to and from work. Transport generates emissions and does have an impact on our decarbonisation pathway.

CSR

What are the biggest challenges posed by the new CSR requirements for your organisation?

First of all, implementing the deluge of regulations applicable to banks, which play an important role in the green transition.

The second challenge is to galvanise our employees and encourage them to take practical action. As a certified B Corp we’re anything but passive when it comes to CSR: we actively promote corporate social responsibility throughout our organisation including by offering our expertise through skills-based sponsorship initiatives or volunteering. Our men and women are keen to play their part, but it is up to us to organise them and shape initiatives with meaning and purpose.

How do these requirements impact your internal upskilling or external hiring processes? 

CSR forms part of our continuing professional development catalogue with training on human rights, environmental initiatives and risks, and more.

Sustainability is a new field and we are actively upskilling staff or hiring people with this skill set.

Gen Z

Said to be less engaged, more demanding and even maybe more difficult to understand, is Gen Z really disrupting the workplace environment?

GenZ will make up 30% of the workforce in OECD countries by 2025. The young men and women in this age group have very specific expectations about work and the workplace. Organisations will have to reinvent themselves and how they operate, because Zoomers want to make a difference. What matters most to them are a sense of meaning and flexibility. Work must both provide personal fulfilment and have a positive impact on the world. But it would be a mistake to think that the shifts in how we work are only because of GenZ’s entry into the labour force. 60% of the jobs of the future haven’t been invented yet. So workers of all generations will need the structure and support to continue learning and develop new skills.

What advice would you give to newly hired 25-30-year olds?

Young women and men entering employment should nurture their curiosity and entrepreneurial spirit and learn to be agile. Change is the only constant and this open and curious attitude will ensure they will be always learning and acquiring the skills and expertise to keep pace, which is of course synonymous with innovation for business.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

As the Head of HR, how would you define your role and responsibilities when it comes to DEI?

In the HR team, we are keenly aware of the importance of all forms of diversity in decision-making bodies. We believe that diversity drives performance across the organisationthrough a wealth of different opinions and points of view.

All our HR processes, from hiring, internal mobility, promotion and learning, are there to support and encourage diversity.

Is the “model” company a Utopian dream, or is it achievable?

To answer your question, we first need to ask what we mean by the “model” company.

I’m absolutely persuaded that that diversity is a rich asset for any company. A “model” company would be one that respects everyone for who they are and what they bring to the company as whole. It would be one has a motivating and inspiring vision for each and every one of its employees; one where employees can grow and develop without denying their true selves. Utopia? I don't think so. What's important are the vision and the values that we advocate over the long term. It this long-term vision is lasting and fair, anything is possible, provided employees are central to the whole endeavour. At Banque de Luxembourg, our purpose revolves around being “attentive to future generations” and this guides our commitment and our actions.

 

We put the human into HR management

Our teams are made up of men and women from many backgrounds, with complementary skills and experience. This diversity is a rich asset and illustrates the open-minded spirit we actively encourage.