AllChiefs partners with Achmea to transform HR

Achmea, a Dutch insurance company, partnered with AllChiefs to build and implement a new HR Target Operating Model, designed to better its strategy and future ambitions with the organization and place employee experience at the heart of its way of working.

This new way of approaching human resources (HR), placing employee experience at the centre, prioritizes retaining talent, meeting the expectations of the younger generation of workers, and ultimately building Achmea’s reputation as an employer of choice.

With over 18,000 employees in the Netherlands and abroad and over 10 million clients around the world, Achmea is one of the largest organizations in the Netherlands.

With everything in our day-to-day lives going digital, it is more important than ever for companies to offer employees – and not just customers – a digital-first experience. This is especially true in today’s tight labor market in which companies are vying to stay as attractive as possible to current and future employees.

In order to get the right expertise on transforming their HR strategy, Achmea turned to AllChiefs, who was able to bring their outside-in perspective into the project. AllChiefs gained a strong understanding of how Achmea operates and ensured that the transformation approach fit the organization.

Designing employee journeys

The project began with a comprehensive analysis of documentation and stakeholder interviews, which yielded hundreds of insights. These insights, along with predefined design principles, shaped the new HR Target Operating Model. This framework, co-created by a joint project team comprising both AllChiefs and Achmea colleagues, outlines how the HR department should operate to support Achmea’s strategic goals.

A central element in Achmea’s transformation was the choice to view HR through the lens of employee journeys – a roadmap of an employee’s entire experience within the organization. Including this perspective helps organizations center their employees’ needs and significantly improves their experience throughout their employment.

An important step in the process was to design five main employee journeys: Recruit Together, Smooth Start, Improve Performance, Keep Growing, and Leave Well. To define these journeys in detail, the Achmea and AllChiefs project team conducted over 100 workshops with colleagues from both HR and other business departments. These sessions provided valuable information on the current situation, the ideal future state, and key areas for improvement.

“We remain proud that someone chooses us, knowing they will spend a large part of their week at Achmea. It would be such a waste if a new colleague felt: They got me in, and now I am just here to work,” said Sylvia Wools, lead of two employee journeys within Achmea, in an interview.

“And this is not just a nice to have – a poor recruitment experience leads over 60% of people to say they no longer want to buy products or services from that company. That does not fit with Achmea, being the largest insurer in the Netherlands. On top of that, a good onboarding experience drives loyalty; new colleagues report up to 18 times more engagement if onboarding is done well.”

Implementing a new model

After the overall blueprint was established, the implementation phase began. That meant changing the HR department and adopting new ways of working. To support this transition, numerous inspiration and training sessions were held to help employees become familiar and confident with the new approach.

The structure of the new teams, the rationale behind the change, and the expected impact on employees were put through a careful process. Meanwhile, preparations for the implementation phase continued, including knowledge transfer and additional training for employees and management.

Reflecting on the collaboration with AllChiefs, Wools noted that the consultancy played a crucial role, and later gradually phased out their involvement, handing it over to Achmea’s HR team. “AllChiefs was present and involved, but never directive. It did not feel like working with an external party, it felt like we were one team,” said Wools.

Digitalization and continuous improvement          

A significant part of the project focused on digitalization. This included the first steps towards building the People Experience Platform, which is a digital hub for employees to access and manage HR services. For more complex issues, the team People Services helps to provide dedicated support.

The new HR department is built on the pillar of continuous improvement through data-driven insights. Each HR process is supported by specific metrics to enhance the overall employee experience. Clear prioritization ensures that improvements are addressed over time to create a sustainable impact.

This new way of working allows the HR department to focus on topics with the highest strategic value, increasing its impact and agility. By making HR more aligned with business and employees’ needs, the overall impact on the organization significantly enhances.

Wools emphasized the importance of both recruiting new employees and retaining existing employees, by focussing on employee experience: “We really need people, especially in this fast-changing world. If we take good care of our own people, it can also be the most powerful promise we can make to new colleagues,” she concluded.