Hervé Tiberghien: "Human resources people can be both HR technicians and also help the business to perform better."

Leaders League: What do you consider to be the main qualities of a Chief People Officer and what responsibilities does this unusual title entail?

Hervé Tiberghien: Before taking up this assignment, I had a long discussion with CEO Ilham Kadri. The idea behind this role was to transform our strategy by focusing on Solvay’s culture and organization, the heart of which is people. The qualities needed are listening and an ability to assess situations with strong emotional intelligence. You need leadership, strong convictions, but also considerable flexibility. Another fundamental quality is understanding the company’s business. Often, HR people are human resources technicians who put corporate considerations to one side. But we have to help the business perform better. We also need to be well anchored because everything around us is in motion, which is destabilizing.

Ernest Solvay, the founder, worked very early on a form of social justice that is still part of the group’s DNA today.

Do you see your role as rooted in the group’s historical heritage of social dialogue? How does this translate in today’s world of work?

Solvay is a family group which will celebrate its 160th anniversary next year. Ernest Solvay, the founder, worked very early on a form of social justice that is still part of the group’s DNA today. Near his factories he built houses for the workers and developed schools to train the workforce in the technologies that were fundamental to Solvay as a company. He put in place a form of employee representation to enable dialogue. He was a pioneer with quite innovative ideas on minimum income.

We are a multinational capable of combining the search for competitiveness with the structuring of a working environment that allows people to develop. In 2020, we resorted to short-time working, which was a first at Solvay. From the outset and for all group employees on several continents, we decided to give three months’ salary and medical coverage to those affected by these measures. In the United States, the impact of this decision was strong, as workers there are generally not entitled to anything of the sort. At the beginning of 2021, maternity coverage was extended to seven weeks and for both parents, which brings the total to 16 weeks of leave when a child is born. These are all actions in line with what Ernest Solvay would have done. It was also a message to our employees about our conception of well-being at work. In the event of an important moment for them, it seems essential to us that each employee be able to take time out with his or her family.

What sets us apart is certainly our ability to embody a soul, a raison d’être and values that enable us to attract and develop young talent.

Is it challenging to be involved in the petrochemical sector at a time when young professionals are more sensitive to a company’s environmental and societal impact?

We may have the image of heavy industry players, but I don’t totally identify with it. Some of our products have a strong societal impact, such as membranes for personal respirators or our presence in green mobility. Nevertheless, we can feel this concern from our young employees. Our CEO Ihlam Kadri has set up the ambitious One Planet program since her arrival. We have invested internally around ESG criteria to the equivalent of 15% of the managers’ remuneration. This program contributes to the reduction of water-related waste, CO2 emissions and of our waste discharges at over double the levels of the commitments made in the Paris agreements.

Staff turnover rates of 10% to 15% are common among peer companies, whereas we are at 3% to5%. It is more difficult today to find people who want to come and work in factories, and we need to increase our attractiveness by strengthening our employer value proposition. In order to communicate it better, in November we brought together 150 site managers in Brussels, which was a major first at Solvay. We were able to reflect on our strengths. What sets us apart is certainly our ability to embody a soul, a raison d’être and values that enable us to attract and develop young talent. I think that the engagement of our employees gives us a competitive advantage.

Interview by Aude Ghespiere.