70% of transformations fail due to the human factor. Discover the HR guide inspired by the RTBF case to successfully drive change and leave no one behind.
I'm going to be honest with you. The word 'transformation' tires me. It's heard everywhere, in every executive committee, on every PowerPoint slide. The problem? It's been emptied of its meaning. It's been reduced to org charts, processes, and tools. We've forgotten that transforming a company is, above all, about supporting human beings who are losing their bearings.
When I spoke with Christine Thiran, HR Director of RTBF, I realized that I was dealing with a leader who had not forgotten. She steered one of the most profound transformations of the Belgian media landscape, not from an ivory tower, but from the trenches, staying close to her teams.
His testimony is a powerful antidote to the dehumanization of change. Forget the consultants and complex diagrams. Here are the human lessons of a radical transformation.
The initial shock: Accepting and naming the grief
Imagine the scene. You gather your top 200 executives. People who have built their careers, their professional identity, within an organization they know inside out. And then, you announce the news to them.
Christine tells it bluntly: "They announced to all these executives that a large part would have to... they were going to have their mandate withdrawn."
The word is out: "withdraw". It's not a "career evolution", it's a loss. A loss of status, of benchmarks, of work relationships built over years. It is precisely at this moment, by denying the emotional impact, that most transformation plans sow the seeds of their own failure.
What Christine and her team were smart to do was to name things. Her words are powerful and still resonate with me: "We have done a lot of support programs, grief management because cutting, breaking up teams like that... there is a mourning. It must be acknowledged, even if my boss was annoyed that I talked about it."
Talking about "grief" in a corporate setting might seem excessive. Yet, that's exactly what the famous Elisabeth Kübler-Ross Change Curve models. Originally applied to the stages of grief, it perfectly describes the emotional stages an employee goes through when faced with a major change: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, sadness, and finally, acceptance. Ignoring these stages ensures that resistance will take root permanently.
The Change Curve: Understanding the emotional phases of a transformation.
The cardinal philosophy: "Leave no one behind"
In the face of this emotional chaos, a single compass guided the actions of RTBF's HR director. A simple sentence, but one that changes everything.
"It was just essential not to leave anyone behind. [...] The worst thing is to leave people out. They won't understand and they will start to have thoughts that are not positive."
This sentence is not just wishful thinking. It's a strategy. It's the belief that the energy spent on supporting each individual is an investment, not a cost. What does that mean in practice? Christine explains having "motivated her teams to go out and reach people", to understand why an executive hadn't applied for a new position, to ensure that everyone had an exit door or a clear transition path.
This approach is the polar opposite of the traditional method that involves announcing the plan and letting people fend for themselves. The result? This figure is not a hunch, but a harsh reality. A seminal study by the Harvard Business Review ("The Hard Side of Change Management") confirms that nearly 70% of transformation initiatives fail.The main reason? Companies focus on the technical aspects (structure, process) and overlook the human element, the "soft side," which is actually the hardest to manage. By not leaving anyone behind, RTBF has not only shown humanity; it has defused the main time bomb of its project.
(Source: "The Hard Side of Change Management", Harold L. Sirkin, Perry Keenan, and Alan Jackson, Harvard Business Review, October 2005. URL: https://hbr.org/2005/10/the-hard-side-of-change-management)
The Mechanics of Success: Combining Purpose and Structure
Having a philosophy is good. Having a method to apply it is better. The famous John Kotter's 8-step change model provides a perfect framework for understanding the success of RTBF. Even if the company didn't consciously tick each box, the spirit of these key steps is evident in its approach.
Here are the 8 steps of Kotter's model:
Create a sense of urgency.
Form a powerful leading coalition.
Develop a vision and a strategy.
Communicate the vision for change.
Empower employees to take action.
Generate short-term wins.
Consolidate achievements and generate even more change.
Anchor new approaches in the corporate culture.
In her testimony, Christine particularly emphasizes the steps 1, 4, and 6. The urgency (the media's survival against new practices), the communication of the vision ("We spent a lot of time explaining the meaning, the why. [...] Having a storytelling that made sense.") and the short-term victories (the promise of internal mobility, initially met with skepticism but proven by the numbers: 146 out of 154 positions filled internally) were the visible pillars of their success.
What I take away, as a leader...
The RTBF adventure is not just a simple reorganization. It's a masterclass on leadership in times of crisis. It reminds us that our role, as HR leaders, is not to draw boxes, but to hold hands. To acknowledge the pain, to provide clear direction, and to never, ever, consider humans as a variable for adjustment.
True transformation is not measured by the beauty of the new organizational chart, but by the resilience and trust of the teams that have gone through it.
And you, in your transformations, how do you ensure that no one is left behind?
Want to go further?
This question leads to another, equally crucial one: once the new structure is in place, how can we ensure that the new roles are clear, motivating, and truly aligned with the vision? Because there is a great risk of falling back into old habits with job descriptions that do not reflect the change.
Changing roles on paper is one thing. Bringing them to life is another. It's a challenge I face every day. That's why we organize sessions d'introduction à Jobloom, short and interactive. The goal? To show you concretely how to rethink your mission descriptions to turn them into real management and motivation tools.
To discover a method and concrete examples, join one of our upcoming sessions. Inspiration is guaranteed.
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Old-school hiring doesn’t hire anyone anymore, carte blanche in L’Echo
Recruitment is a showcase. Companies that struggle to hire are often those whose practices don’t match their rhetoric. Behind talent shortages, ongoing tensions in certain professions, and the low mobility observed in the job market lies an issue far broader than a simple human resources problem. Recruitment has become one of the most reliable indicators of how companies are actually governed—and of their ability to make decisions, stand by their choices, and plan for the long term. When recruitment stalls, it’s not just positions that remain unfilled. Career paths become frozen, decisions fail to materialize, and value is no longer created. This dysfunction is rarely due to an absolute shortage of skills. Much more often, it is a symptom of organizations that struggle to clarify who they are, what they expect, and what they are prepared to offer. Very observant talents In many companies, recruitment is still treated as an operational, reactive function, sometimes purely administrative. A job ad is posted, a few channels are activated, and then people are surprised that applications don’t come in as expected or don’t match what they’re looking for. That way of thinking belongs to another era. Today, the recruitment funnel no longer starts with the job offer, but with perception. Before applying, talented people observe. They read, compare, and assess the credibility of a project and the consistency of its message. They try to understand how decisions are made, what the relationship is to power, autonomy, and responsibility. In other words, they evaluate governance long before they consider a position. This reality becomes particularly clear in the candidate experience. Response times, clarity of the process, quality of interactions, ability to make decisions: every touchpoint says something very concrete about the company. Far more than institutional speeches or the promises displayed on a careers site. The lived experience never lies. SMEs are more exposed In SMEs in particular, where responsibilities are concentrated and communication channels are short, recruitment acts like a magnifying glass. It is often at this very moment that candidates understand what it really means to work in this organization: where the grey areas lie, how trade-offs are made, and how much room is given to trust and initiative. Recruitment is therefore not just an entry gate. It is a stage where everything is on display. And like any stage, it forgives neither improvisation nor inconsistency. Companies that struggle to recruit are often those that struggle to make decisions, to set priorities, and to align their practices with their rhetoric. Every interaction with talent says something very concrete about the company. The experience people have never lies. Conversely, those who are getting ahead have understood that recruiting is neither a collection of tools nor a series of best practices. It is a coherent system, aligned with a particular way of leading. They are not trying to attract everyone. They fully own what they are, what they are not, and what they no longer want to be. Because recruiting is never a neutral act. It means accepting certain skills, rejecting others, opening up or closing off career paths. With constant hesitation and half-measures, old-school “dad-style” recruiting ends up not hiring anyone at all. Conversely, clear, demanding, and fully owned recruitment says something essential: the company knows how to make decisions—and it knows where it’s going. Amélie Alleman - Opinion piece published in L'Echo - 27 February 2026
SMEs: Digital Recruitment & Salary Transparency – The Strategic Shift I've Seen Transform Businesses
The pace is accelerating. I see it, I hear it: for SMEs, recruitment has become a real headache. Time flies, good profiles are scarce, and competition from large groups is fierce. But behind these challenges lies a huge opportunity to transform your business. This is a deep conviction at Jobloom, and I am here to share it with you. In this ever-evolving landscape, two subjects stand out as pillars for your SME's growth: digital recruitment and salary transparency. These are not just buzzwords, but the new rules of the game, those that separate businesses that suffer from those that thrive. I've seen SME leaders embrace them and radically transform their approach. It's this vision we want to convey to you. That's why, on Friday, March 6th , we are organizing an exclusive SME breakfast at Foster Farm Rosières. A morning designed to offer you ultra-concrete keys and enable you to activate these strategic levers. Part 1: Is Your Recruitment Ready for 2026? My Method for Digitalizing It. Let's be honest: "old-school" recruitment methods are a drag on your growth. Spending hours sorting CVs in an inbox, posting ads that reach no one, or offering a process that discourages the best talent... all of this costs you much more than money. It costs you time, energy, and opportunities. During this event, I will share my approach with you, the one I've developed with Jobloom, to show you how to: Understand the "why" behind digitalization: Beyond the tools, it's a matter of vision. Why is this the ideal time to turn your recruitment into a local competitive advantage? Master the "how" with simplicity: We will break down a simple and effective digital recruitment process, from the art of attracting the right talent (how to become visible everywhere with one click?) to onboarding your new recruits (how to prevent them from disappearing along the way?). Massively save time and REALLY attract the right people: I will reveal concrete strategies to reduce your managers' administrative time by up to 80% and multiply your qualified applications by 20. Yes, the numbers speak for themselves! My objective is clear: to give you the means to make recruitment an accelerator, not a burden, for your SME. Part 2: Salary Transparency & Data – Axelle Peeters' Secrets to Building Trust Attracting talent is one thing. Keeping them and building a loyal team is another. And that's where salary transparency comes in. Between new regulations and growing employee expectations, it has become an unavoidable topic. But it is also a huge opportunity. I will have the privilege of welcoming Axelle Peeters from Coreus, an expert whose vision will change your perception of the HR function. In 30 dense and inspiring minutes, Axelle will show you how to: Transform "constraints" into "levers": Far from being a simple obligation, salary transparency can strengthen trust, equity, and performance within your SME. Use data as a strategic compass: Discover how digitalization and analytics can help you build fair, understandable, and, above all, effective salary policies to attract and retain the best. Axelle will prove to you that data is not just about numbers. It is the engine for giving your HR a strategic and profoundly human role. Get Ahead: Join Us! This breakfast is not just any event. It's a unique opportunity to step out of your daily routine, exchange with peers, ask all your questions, and leave with a concrete action plan. We will welcome you from 9 am with coffee and croissants, in a convivial atmosphere conducive to discussions. I am convinced that every SME can become a benchmark employer, capable of competing with the biggest players in talent attraction. It's time to master these new rules of the game. The event is free, but places are limited and reserved for companies. I reserve my spot for the SME breakfast on March 6th! Looking forward to seeing you there, Amélie Alleman,