ESG Report

Our Environmental, Social and Governance policies

Democo Group ensures that the right person is in the right place, with people's suitability being the starting point. Our recruitment policy provides opportunities for diversity, irrespective of gender, ethnicity, religion, social background, gender orientation, physical characteristics, or disabilities, to the maximum extent possible.

Breakdown

Democo Group has a workforce of around 800 people representing more than 12 different nationalities, with a highly diversified age distribution. Democo Group aims to continue attracting young talent, retain older team members and help them through the transition to retirement.

  • 20% are under 30 years of age
  • 45% are between 30 and 50 years of age
  • 35% are over 50 years of age
 
Employee Selection Process
General

Democo Group’s recruitment policy is based on shared corporate values and soft and hard skills. An initial screening is carried out on the basis of the CV, using a pre-defined set of objective criteria. Shortlisted candidates are then invited for a competen-cy-based interview. Democo Group uses the BAQ personality questionnaire to underpin this interview.

Candidates are also given a series of online reasoning tests as part of the selection process. These tests are added to the se-lection process to get a most objective picture of the candidate. Assessment centres, run by an independent external partner, are also used for candidates who are above a certain professional level. Following the selection process, a decision will be made based on the information gathered.

Equal Opportunities

Democo Group makes a special effort to reach out to various groups with limited access to the labour market, in order to pro-vide more equal opportunities.

  • We help integrate young, low-skilled workers or school-leavers by taking on apprentices.
  • Our companies provide opportunities for low-skilled workers, the long-term unemployed and workers with disabilities or impairments. These employees receive internal guidance and training.
  • We take an active role in promoting the inclusion of minority groups in our selection process. For example, we are firmly committed to IBO programmes (individual vocational learning) and dual learning programmes. In addition, we have established collaborations with VDAB/Actiris and Group Intro to include people who speak other languages and those with low skills in the selection process.
  • For our projects abroad, we recruit local workers and employees. We train these people so they can grow and develop their skills. They can also expect the same fair working conditions common throughout the group.
 
Procedure for Selecting External Service Providers

At Democo Group, we select our external service providers with the same care we take when selecting our employees, with a view to long-term, sustainable cooperation. We expect our external service providers, like our other supply chain partners, to carry out their tasks within the framework of Democo Group’s values and to subscribe actively to the ESG policy.

Sustainable Training Policy

Democo Group has a sound and sustainable training policy, which it will continue to develop. We place great emphasis on the training and development of our employees to ensure a future-proof, flexible and ever-growing organisation.

Demo College

At Democo Group, learning and development are shared responsibilities. Democo Group provides a structured framework to facilitate learning and development as set out in the training policy. We also expect employees to take responsibility for their development. We have made provisions for training needs to be communicated through the supervisor or HR business part-ner, after which an appropriate response will be sought from within the organisation. This process has been defined in the coaching policy. Our Demo College platform provides employees with the necessary tools, education, training and resources.

Onboarding and ID

As soon as employees join Democo Group, they will be immersed in a personally customised onboarding process, which in-troduces them to our learning and improvement culture. In addition, each employee receives an Insights Discovery profile, which is a personal profile based on an accessible colour model that gives people more insight into themselves and can be used for both personal and team development to improve communication and collaboration. The ID profile provides a strong foundation for efficient collaboration and optimal performance.

Collective Training

Every year, Democo Group offers a series of collective training courses in line with its views and strategic objectives. Democo Group wants its employees to grow with the company, giving everyone the tools to perform their roles efficiently and to add as much value as possible.

Leadership

We also provide our supervisors with the tools they need to facilitate learning and development. For example, strengthening the group’s leadership level is one of the strategic points of our training policy. Investing in leadership has led to the emergence of our leadership model, Forza Democo Group. Within this programme, leadership is strengthened through workshops and personal development plans.

Resilience

Democo Group offers a wide range of workshops on mental well-being, resilience, stress management and burn-out preven-tion as part of its open training programme.

Online Training Centre

Finally, Democo Group has an online training centre to support the above initiatives. This digital environment includes e-learning courses developed by Democo Group’s in-house experts. This will enable us to ensure that knowledge continues to flow within our organisation. Employees have more flexibility to learn at their own pace and can make the best use of their time by choosing where and when to access training.

Active Career Guidance
Internal Job Mobility

Vacancies are published on Democo Group’s website and are open to internal candidates. This allows employees to change positions and/or companies without leaving the group. HR can also be proactive in offering internal career opportunities to employees.

Performance Cycle

Alongside ongoing dialogue, each employee is invited to attend an annual performance and review meeting. An employee’s career is formally discussed during the annual performance review. The supervisor and the employee discuss career issues and opportunities. Any questions or comments will be followed up by the HR business partner to provide guidance regarding the individual’s personal development path and to support the discussion on this.

The process, content, objectives and timing of this performance cycle have been documented in a performance cycle manual.

Individual Coaching

Democo Group offers employees the opportunity to participate in the Development of Talent Centres with a specialised firm, to identify potential career opportunities and support personal development. Individually customised coaching programmes are also offered and initiated in consultation with the HR business partners. The request for individual coaching can originate from the employee, the supervisor, or be initiated by HR. A coaching policy has been developed.