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HeadFirst Group is committed to a better world beyond the job market. We are committed to improving the environment, nature and the lives of people around the world. One way we do this is with the HeadFirst Group Foundation, with activities aimed at helping people in their careers and in life.

In addition, we at HeadFirst Group are proud of our colleagues who dedicate themselves to society and social initiatives. Therefore, the HFG Foundation has made a donation to Stichting Jongeren Op Kamp (SJOK), in which our colleague Sem Overduin is actively involved. SJOK has been organizing affordable vacation weeks for young people with mental and/or physical disabilities since 1995. Sem helps organize these camps, which provide valuable experiences for a diverse group of participants.

The vacation weeks include activities such as swimming, sports and game activities and shopping. Wondering what this looks like? See some photos from last week here. It was another successful vacation for everyone who attended!

Want to become part of an organization that is also committed to a better world. Then come and meet HeadFirst Group. Check out our vacancies here.

At HeadFirst Group, connection is at the heart of everything we do. We believe in celebrating special moments together, taking care of each other and always being ready to help each other when needed. One of the ways we strengthen that connection is through our monthly get-together, which time after time guarantees fun, creativity and most importantly: being together!

Every month a different team gets the honor of organizing the get-together, and this is always accompanied by a surprising theme. This year we have already had some get-togethers, all of which have proved memorable.

Spring vibes and royal charm
The Service Desk team kicked off the year with spring drinks, complete with a merry bingo. The enthusiasm with which the bingo cards were filled out, and the happy faces when winning prizes, showed how fun and connecting a simple game can be.

During the week of King's Day, we couldn't avoid the theme. It was time for the Kings & Queens get-together. The bar was draped in orange and many a colleague had pulled out the orange outfit.

Sporting challenges and traditional Dutch hospitality
Not long after, we imagined ourselves in a typically Dutch atmosphere during the 'Ik hou van Holland' drinks. With delicious snacks and a quiz full of Dutch facts.

With the Olympics on the agenda, HR organized the Olympic ping pong tournament. Colleagues were able to show their sporting talents. People played fanatically, but also laughed a lot.

In August, of course, many colleagues were enjoying a wonderful vacation. With the colleagues who were working, we celebrated the summer with the summer drink. On the roof terrace there were small pools, water guns and summer drinks ready.

Having drinks together: a moment of connection
At HeadFirst Group, our monthly get-together is about more than just drinks and snacks. It is a moment of connection, where we take a moment to reflect on what connects us as a team. We get to know each other better outside the workplace, discover new talents and strengthen our bonds.

Would you like to become part of an organization where connection is key and where job satisfaction goes hand in hand with performance? Then come and meet HeadFirst Group. Check out our vacancies here.

At HeadFirst Group, "Connecting People" is not just a core value, it is the foundation of our culture and everything we do. We believe that true connection happens through personal interaction and sharing experiences, both in the workplace and beyond.

Personal interaction

Connection starts with personal contact. A conversation in person or via (video) call is always better than an email. Participating in, or better yet, initiating social activities, helps us further strengthen this connection.

Music events: connection outside of work

Because connection does not stop when the working day ends, at HeadFirst Group we regularly organize social activities such as get-togethers and parties. We also offer our colleagues the chance to enjoy music events together. This year, for example, several colleagues enjoyed concerts by P!NK, Joel Borelli, Taylor Swift and Amsterdam Summer. These events provide an excellent opportunity to connect with each other outside the work context and create shared memories.

At HeadFirst Group, we are all about connection. By encouraging personal interactions and creating shared experiences both on and off the job, we strengthen the bond between colleagues. Join our team and experience how we at HeadFirst Group bring "Connecting People" to life, every day.

Check out our vacancies here.

At HeadFirst Group, we believe that an inspiring work environment is essential for stimulating innovation and creating a positive work culture. Located in Hoofddorp, near Amsterdam, our headquarters offers an inspiring space where connection is key. Here we want to strengthen our leading position as an HR-tech service provider and underline our sustainability ambitions.

Location  

Our headquarters are located in Office Park 20|20 in Hoofddorp, just 1 km from the A4 motorway and 400 meters from Hoofddorp train station. With an area of 3,700 square meters, our office offers:

• A 1,500-square-foot theater, bar, restaurant and gym on the ground and second floors.
• Office space of 2,200 square feet, distributed on the second through fourth floors.
• 150 (flex) workstations with adjustable desks.

Facilities

Our office is equipped with various amenities to provide an optimal working environment:

• A theater with space for five hundred guests, ideal for presentations and events.
• A bar where colleagues can connect and celebrate successes.
• A restaurant with a barista, serving healthy and sustainable meals.
• A gym with fifteen Technogym machines.
• Seventeen meeting rooms with modern facilities for hybrid conferencing.
• Three coffee corners.

Sustainability

At HeadFirst Group, we strive to minimize our carbon footprint and contribute to a more sustainable world. Our office was built with sustainability in mind and features:

• A cradle-to-cradle building with energy label A and a BREEAM-NL certificate "Very Good.
• Smart blue-green roofs for rainwater harvesting, which is used for flushing toilets, among other things.
• A gray water recycling system.
• Green electricity from Greenchoice and carbon-neutral flooring from Interface.
• Our caterer, Leo Love Good Food, is committed to reducing environmental impact by choosing sustainable products whenever possible.
• Cleaning of our facilities is done with cold water and ecological cleaning agents.

At HeadFirst Group, we strive to provide an inspiring and sustainable work environment for our employees and visitors. If you're looking for a company that values innovation, connection and sustainability, you've come to the right place. View our vacancies here or contact us.

We proudly launched Striive's brand new website and branding. Striive helps professionals find new challenges, supports suppliers in matching assignments with their talent and assists clients in their search for the best candidates. The platform is revolutionary in ease of use and uniquely uses artificial intelligence (AI) to connect supply and demand. In addition, Striive offers innovative services to fully support professionals in their entrepreneurship.

Connector between tech and touch

HeadFirst Group believes in - and fights for - a fair, open labor market where technology and human touch go hand in hand. In this "next world of work," Striive takes the position of excellent connector. Every year, the platform brings together more than twenty thousand assignments at over five hundred leading organizations in one place. In doing so, it provides easily accessible new career opportunities for professionals, self-employed or employed by suppliers.

Mattijs Wassenburg, Managing Director Digital at HeadFirst Group, explains: "Our goal with Striive is to make all assignments in the market available in one online place for all professionals, regardless of contract form. Ease of use is hugely important in this regard. We rebuilt the platform from the ground up, based on thousands of reviews, user interviews and data analysis. Independent professionals and suppliers on our platform have four primary needs: 1) challenging assignments with reputable clients, 2) minimal red tape, 3) prompt payment of invoices, and 4) personal contact when they want it. Striive fulfills the first three needs, giving my colleagues more time for the fourth: the human touch."

Are you ready to be part of the "next world of work"? Discover the opportunities at HeadFirst Group and view our job openings here.

As an employer, we have evolved rapidly in recent years. Guided by our three core values: Customer first, Learn everyday and Connecting people. Engagement, fun and ownership are central to our organization.

Responsibility

We encourage our employees to be entrepreneurial through personal development and give them responsibility. We combine our focus on customer experience with the Lean philosophy, which is based on the principle that improvement initiatives come from the entire organization rather than just from the top of the organization. We have put our employees at the wheel of continuous improvement.

HeadFirst Group Academy

To encourage our staff to continue to learn and develop, we have our own HeadFirst Group Academy. The Academy is an online learning environment where employees collectively attended 483 training sessions in 2023. In addition, a large number of classroom training sessions were conducted (305 training sessions).

Mental well-being

The mental well-being of our employees is also essential to us. That's why we joined forces with OpenUp, an organization whose mission is to make mental wellness accessible to everyone. OpenUp offers resources that make people more resilient and help them in their personal development such as a health check, one-on-one consultations with certified psychologists, master classes and group sessions, mindfulness consultations and online programs, articles and manuals.

Acknowledgment

Since we moved into our new headquarters in Hoofddorp in early 2022, we have our own HeadFirst Group theater at our disposal. We use this for our customized escape room, company parties, knowledge events and inspiration sessions.
All of this has been greatly appreciated: we were certified as a Great Place to Work (GPTW) for the second time in 2023. This is a great recognition of who we want to be as an employer. In the GPTW survey, our employees rated us highly on the topics of fair treatment, diversity & inclusion, responsibility and independence within work, and feeling that they can be themselves at work.

Does HeadFirst Group seem like a great place to work? Check out our vacancies and maybe we'll see you soon at our monthly drink!

For the ^22nd time Great Place To Work has announced the Best Workplaces of The Netherlands. These 40 employers are the leaders in the field of being a good employer. HeadFirst Group ended on place 10 in the category Mid Large!

We participated in the Trust Index, Great Place To Work's employee survey. Based on the results of this survey, HeadFirst Group is Great Place To Work-Certified™. Not only that, but as an organization we are among the 40 Best Workplaces Netherlands 2024!

On June 27, the final ranking was announced by Great Place To Work. HeadFirst Group ended up on place 10 in the Mid Large category (250 to 499 employees). We are very proud of this achievement. You can watch the aftermovie of the event here.

Frontrunners on good employment practices

René Brouwers, managing director of Great Place To Work, says: "This year the 40 Best Workplaces once again set the standard for safe work cultures. Environments where everyone can be themselves, rewards are equal and the proverbial door really is always open. So in a time when anxiety cultures and burnout are the order of the day, these organizations can rightfully call themselves frontrunners in the field of being good employers."

100% based on employee feedback

The Best Workplaces 2024 list is based on the Trust Index™, Great Place To Work's employee survey. This survey tells companies how they score on trust according to their own employees. At a score of 70% or higher, an organization may call itself Great Place To Work-Certified™. This certification is 100% based on employee feedback. Certified organizations had a chance to win a spot on the Best Workplaces 2024 list. Winners earned the title Best Workplace according to their own employees.

In early June, as part of the JINC Boss of Tomorrow initiative, we had the privilege of hosting two students who stepped into the shoes of our CEO, Marion Van Happen.

Dominique and Inha got to work with TikTok and thought about how we could use it to recruit new colleagues.

JINC Boss of Tomorrow offers young people between the ages of 8 and 16 from neighborhoods with socioeconomic disadvantages the opportunity to take a seat in the chair of a CEO, director or politician. During this day, they participate in meetings and think about specific issues. It offers young people the chance to step out of their often small world and take a look at the workplace, where they gain valuable insights, gain self-confidence and make contacts for the future. All essential for their future success in the job market.

HeadFirst Group is committed to a better world beyond the job market. We are committed to improving the lives of people around the world. Do you think this is important in a new employer? Then you've come to the right place. Check out our vacancies here or contact us.

In a world that is constantly changing, the courage to look ahead and explore new paths is the basis of leadership. That's why HeadFirst Group is taking the lead into the next world of work. The world we believe in is driven by technology and is free of prejudice, regardless of contract form. We dare to lead.

Therefore, we have created an ambitious plan through which we are taking steps toward this next world of work. This plan is based on the following five themes;

Tech enables touch

We believe that by making smart use of automation and AI, the end-to-end process of sourcing, matching, contracting and paying professionals can be fully digitized, allowing us to add personal touches at the moments when they really add value for clients. The main driver of this added value is our platform brand Striive and our other tech products ProUnity and OpenTalent.

HeadFirst Group has experienced a digital transformation from traditional labor market service provider to HR-tech solutions provider with a technology platform and various forms of labor market services with a human touch. We will continue this path unabated in 2024.

Continuous improvement

By 2023, we have laid the groundwork for continuous feedback loops from our different types of clients: customers, independent professionals and partners. The common thread from this feedback serves as input to our improvement roadmap for our processes, technology and how our colleagues work around our core processes: matching, contracting and funding. We learn everyday!

We do the same with our candidate and employee experience. Based on feedback from candidates in the hiring process for our job openings and our existing employees, we make improvements in the hiring process, the onboarding process, around our learning opportunities, in our benefits, in our locations, etc. With the goal of becoming an even better employer for our people. Specifically, we have set ourselves the goal of achieving a rating of 8+ in the next Great Place to Work measurement by the end of 2024.

Scarcity in the labor market

We will face scarcity in the labor market for many years to come, due in part to the structurally growing demand for STEM professionals and under pressure from an aging population. Talent scarcity will force organizations to be as creative as possible. This also applies to us. With all the different solutions to labor market issues available in our group, we will be able to demonstrate such creativity. Our solutions combine technology and human touch to meet any customer demand.

Sustainability Policy

As a leading HR-tech solutions provider and growing platform, HeadFirst Group takes its role in the labor market and in society very seriously. To make our impact as concrete as possible, we have organized our ESG impact along these four axes: (1) sustainability, (2) decent work and lifelong learning, (3) diversity and inclusion, and (4) governance and ethics. In each of these areas, we are developing new initiatives and making choices about how we - together with our employees, customers, suppliers and independent professionals - will contribute to a more beautiful world. To bring these initiatives together, the HeadFirst Group Foundation was created, in which budget has been made available to develop concrete initiatives that fall under the four aforementioned axes and encourage colleagues to be socially and sustainably active. And we believe that achieving B-Corp certification complements our ESG ambitions.

Challenges of Dutch labor law

The amount of legislation in the Netherlands regarding the labor market is large and more and more is being added. In line with our public affairs agenda, we continue to campaign for a good solution that combats false self-employment at the bottom of the labor market, while allowing conscious self-employed workers at the top of the market to run their businesses without restrictions.

Working at HeadFirst Group

At HeadFirst Group, we believe in continuous improvement and remain committed to innovation and growth. Together with our partners, clients and professionals, we are building a future of work that is inclusive, sustainable and technologically advanced.

Do you also want to work on The next world of work? Take a look at our vacancies and discover how you can contribute to our growth and innovation. Together we can shape the future of work.