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Awards
About the awards
LearnTech believes technology is a driving force in a rapidly changing world of work. It will be instrumental in designing more efficient processes, creating an engaging employee and learning experience and enable better decision making. The L&D award will go to a Benelux L&D team that concluded a strong learning project in 2024-2025.
Ready to vote?
Important: You can only vote once. Voting ends on August 31 at 23h59 CET.
L&D PROJECT OF THE YEAR
And the nominees are…
Salary & Language Training: Non-Dutch-speaking trainees receive a salary from Infrabel to follow a language training program, funded by Infrabel, to improve their Dutch from level A2 to B2. Language & Safety: The two are inseparably linked, so in addition to formal language training, trainees also have internship days to learn the job of Railway Worker. Multicultural Reality: The project responds to the growing multicultural societal reality, where the importance of clear language in a training and work environment is central. Inclusivity & Diversity: A clear translation and positioning of Infrabel’s HR policy centered around inclusivity and diversity, as well as sustainable employment. Opportunities for Non-Native Speakers: The project creates unprecedented opportunities for non-Dutch-speaking job seekers with a migration background and limited Dutch proficiency.
At Ontex, we’ve reimagined learning to be inclusive, accessible, and globally scalable. Our learning ecosystem bridges the gap between white and blue collar roles, ensuring every employee—from line operator to executive—has access to relevant, high-impact learning. This project is not just about tools; it’s about culture, empowerment, and strategic alignment. We believe this initiative sets a new standard for how learning can drive business success and employee growth. Winning this award would recognize the dedication of our global L&D team and the passion of the local and functional L&D SPOCs with which they adopted the new approach. It will also reinforce our commitment to continuous improvement and innovation.
As Europe’s leading architecture and engineering consultancy, Sweco is committed to designing tomorrow’s sustainable communities and cities. Our Project Management enhancement initiative addresses increasing project complexity through a blend of classroom expertise and cutting-edge AI support. Our comprehensive training program for engineers, consultants, and managers combines soft skills like commercial awareness and conflict management with functional training in project management and financial leadership. Critically, our seasoned Project Managers played a pivotal role in designing and delivering these programs, ensuring they address real-world challenges. By co-facilitating sessions and sharing practical insights, they enriched the learning experience and provided actionable knowledge. Innovatively, we integrated AI technology via SwecoGPT, capturing training transcripts and developing concise learning nuggets alongside an AI assistant for personalized on-the-job support. Launched with strong executive sponsorship in Q2 2025, this initiative fosters continuous learning, significantly improving efficiency and client satisfaction. Executive leadership involvement and extensive input from Project Managers underscore our commitment to this initiative. With aspirations to evolve this program into a rolling effort, we aim to measure long-term impact through elevated project efficiency and client contentment. Sweco’s forward-thinking training program prepares employees for future complexities, showcasing our dedication to sustainability and excellence.
Curious about more inspiring stories and projects?
We also present an award for HRtech team and startup of the year
The selection process
- Nomination Phase: Fill in the application form. Deadline applications: Monday, June 15, 2025, 23:59h.
- The candidates that match the criteria will be evaluated by the jury.
- The Jury selects the candidates. These candidates will be published on the website.
- Public voting will be possible from June 25 till August 31, 2025.
- Public voting ends August 31, 2025, 23:59h.
- Two laureates will be selected through public voting & jury expert opinions (40%-60%).
- Jury meeting September 5, 2025. The laureates convince the jury for one last time.
- Presentation of the L&D award @ the gala dinner on October 10, 2025.
The jury
Nicholas De Poorter
Nicholas De Poorter is an investor at Strada Partners, a Belgian private equity firm focused on Software, Business Services, and Healthcare. Within the firm, he is responsible for Invincible Software Holdings (ISH), a platform of founder-led B2B SaaS companies built in partnership with two experienced software entrepreneurs who lead day-to-day operations across the group.
Nicholas also serves as Head of M&A at ISH, where he is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and executing acquisitions from end to end. His focus lies in building a strong and coherent portfolio of independent software businesses with long-term growth potential.
To date, he has led five acquisitions in the HRtech space, specifically in recruitment and people management software. This experience has provided him with deep insight into the technologies and business models that are redefining the future of work.
Before joining Strada in 2023, Nicholas held M&A roles at PwC, Cargill (Food & AgTech), and Kraken (Crypto). He holds a Master’s degree in Business Engineering from KU Leuven.
Nicholas De Poorter
Strada Partners
Investment Manager Strada Partners + Jury President
Ann Guinée
Ann Guinée
Ann has a strong connection with the world of digitisation, in all layers of the organisation. At Beltug, Ann is responsible for the communication with the members and facilitates many of the member-events on various topics.
This allows her to be in direct conversation with the Belgian ICT business users and gain insights on their drive and on the challenges they face.
Her energy boosts when she can talk to Belgian companies, listen to their stories and hear about their priorities.
Ann Guinée
Communication Manager Beltug
Communication Manager Beltug
Kristof Van der Stadt
Kristof Van der Stadt
Kristof Van der Stadt is an experienced journalist with a strong technical background in computers and consumer electronics. His passion for information and communication technology has driven him to become a respected figure in the industry. With a focus on telecoms, enterprise computing, and the impact of social media on business, Kristof’s expertise allows him to analyze and report on complex subjects with clarity and depth. He has contributed to both business-to-consumer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) magazines, sharpening his skills in print and online journalism. Known for his comprehensive understanding of the tech landscape, Kristof combines his technical knowledge with a talent for explaining intricate concepts to a wide audience.
Kristof Van der Stadt
Editor in Chief DataNews
Editor in Chief DataNews
Hilde Haems
Hilde Haems
A seasoned HR professional with 37 years of experience on the counter. In addition to HR, the rubric includes a passion for business and innovation. Currently working at Ackermans & van Haaren. Her career started at ING, and has built up further at Allen & Overy, RGF staffing and SD Worx.
Hilde Haems
Chief Human Capital Officer Ackermans & van Haaren
Chief Human Capital Officer Ackermans & van Haaren
Kathleen Vangronsvelt
Kathleen Vangronsvelt
Kathleen combines a broad business experience as HR Professional (DHL Aviation, AB Inbev, H.Essers, Belfius) with academic skills (PhD in Business Economics “Values at work” – KU Leuven). Her work was published in both top-ranked academic and practitioners’ journals and presented at national and international conferences. She taught at Rotterdam School of Management, IESEG Paris and – up until today – Antwerp Management School.
The combination of business and academia enables her to translate a wealth of scientific knowledge into hands-on insights and workable solutions. Her domain of expertise focuses on realizing individuals’ potential in a work context and spans topics such as values and authenticity at work, leadership, resilience and well-being, enabling diversity in teams and strategic HRM.
Her background in psychology (Master – KU Leuven) and mediation (Post Graduate – KU Leuven) empowers her to optimize the learning experience for a group, and to understand the deeper motivations and processes behind some questions and events.
Kathleen Vangronsvelt
Professor Organizational Behavior & HRM Antwerp Management School
Professor Organizational Behavior & HRM Antwerp Management School
Congratulations to our winner of 2024
L&D Project of the year
Etex
Nobi, “Grow” in Japanese, is a systematic learning landscape using FLOWSPARKS that combines e-learning with hands-on guidance. Nobi impacts all blue-collar employees, addressing the need for seamless skill transitions from many near retirement employees to new hires who join Etex. Boost trainings are organized to train the new employees. For current employees, MOC Nobi trainings are organised to update and expand their knowledge. Digital and practical tests confirm these new acquired competences. All these competences are logged by the master trainers and supervisors. In that way, Nobi helps identify training gaps quickly but also helps to predict future gaps. This helps to fulfill our main goal: build a smart factory with an adaptable workforce, preparing us for future challenges. Since implementing Nobi, training time has decreased from 8 weeks to just 2, allowing employees to work independently 6 weeks earlier and reducing costs. The training gap has decreased from 600 points to just 65, with the goal of reaching zero soon. This project ensures long-term success and adaptability for our workforce and organization.