Back in 2016, the energy group ENGIE signed a European agreement with three union federations – IndustriALL Europe, EPSU (European Public Services Union) and the EFBW (European Federation of Building and Woodworkers) – which sought to allow each employee to build his/her career path in the group “against a backdrop of organisational change” (see article n°9597). The agreement reaffirmed and bolstered the GPEC (forward-looking employment and skills) agreement that was established as part of a previous deal, containing strong and concrete commitments on training and seeking to foster internal mobility to ensure employment opportunities within the group. Three years later, on 16 February 2019, following a request by its European Works Council, the group held a European social forum, which was an opportunity to bring together key actors on the agreement (HR directors, managers, employee representatives) and engage in transparent dialogue on how it has been implemented, as well as to share views on best practices and on areas where efforts need to be stepped up.
HR function dedicated to anticipating evolutions. Philippe Perret, skills and mobility director for the ENGIE group, says that one of the first concrete results of the agreement was the “creation of a new HR department” which consists of three functions. First of all, ENGIE Skills focuses on anticipating different skill needs, and consists of “strategic workforce planning”. Mr Perret says the mechanism differs from the GPEC approach by using the group’s needs as a starting point, as opposed to what it already has in place.
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