Working Abroad Career Guide for Belgium

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Country Profile
In the past half century, Belgium has prospered as a modern, technologically advanced country and a member of NATO and the EU. Belgians say their nation is at the crossroads of Europe, and with the majority of Western European capitals within 1,000 km of Brussels, it's true. Only 10 million people live in Belgium, and many of them are expatriates, but the country is headquarters to the European Union, NATO, and hundreds of international corporations. Brussels, its capital, is a cosmopolitan, dynamic city with much to offer the foreign job seeker.

Belgians are divided ethnically into the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south. While Brussels is geographically located in the Flemish region, French is more often spoken there, interspersed with some English. There is also a large group of German speakers in the eastern part of the
country.

Besides the Netherlands, Belgium has the highest population density in Europe, and its deep social, political, religious, and linguistic divisions mean that, unlike many other European countries, Belgium does not have a strong sense of national identity. It is difficult to discuss working in Belgium without recognizes this issue, and foreign job-seekers must have not only good job skills but also highly developed linguistic skills to compete with Belgian nationals.

Professional Resources
There are numerous chambers of commerce in cities throughout Belgium. The major telephone directories for Belgium include the Europages, among others.

Belgium Economic & Commercial Information is just one of the many business and career-related periodicals in the country. The magazine is a multilingual quarterly publication covering external trade. Many useful books about Belgian business have been published lately, as well.

The Begium Foriegn Trade Board has a new website which incorporates trade statistics, surveys and relevant business links. The organization also hosts seminars and disseminates information about foreign markets to Belgian companies.

Foreigners seeking to work in Belgium can find fellowship and networking opportunities through a variety of organizations for expatriates, including Lion's Club International and Professional Women International.

Job Search Resources
Belgium has many very good public, private, and online resources for foreign job-seekers. For English speakers, the first stop on the job hunt should be Focus Career Services. It's a nonprofit organization that assists foreign job-seekers in Brussels with networking, small business services, career counseling, job hunting, work permit information, and more. It also has a well-stocked reference library, hosts networking groups, and sponsors local networking events, such as Women on the Move and Global Living, which is planned for March 2002. For those who are in between jobs, Focus Career Services offers volunteer opportunities.

Other job resources in Belgium include career websites, which usually offer listings and career profiles in English, Flemish, and French; government-sponsored employment offices, which give job hunters information on where to look for jobs, help with preparing their CVs, and job counseling; and staffing agencies and recruiting firms. Jobscareer Belgium is a good place to start a job search. Foreigners seeking Belgian jobs may also have luck perusing the job advertisements in some of the major newspapers, such as De Standaard, or attending any of a number of job fairs and career events.

Financial Considerations
Belgium has one of the highest standards of living in Europe. Brussels, the capital, is a very expensive city in which to live and work. Because it is the headquarters of the European Union, NATO, and hundreds of international corporations, the market for goods, services, housing, and transportation is very competitive.

Belgium currently uses both the euro and the Belgian Franc (BF); salaries range from 720,000 BF ($16,000 U.S.) to 4,800,000 BF ($107,000 U.S.), depending on experience.

The Belgian real estate market is highly decentralized. In order to get information about a large number of properties, you'll need to contact quite a few real estate agents. It's wise to use licensed and well known agents, whether you're renting or buying, because there are a number of untrustworthy agents on the market.

The National Health System is made up of health funds that almost all residents of Belgium are required to join. Residents may choose which fund to join, and most offer the same coverage. Employees are reimbursed for medical benefits, but they must pay a co-payment depending on their income and employment status.

The standard work week in Belgium is Monday through Friday, 37.5 hours, and cannot exceed 40 hours. Overtime must be compensated by overtime pay and an equal amount of paid time off. Employees who have completed at least a full year's service typically receive 24 days of vacation time annually.

Employment Trends
In Belgium, as in other areas of the world, there has been a huge growth in the IT sector. According to government statistics, software sales have been growing at a rate of more than 17 percent a year. Belgium also has a large construction and mechanical engineering industry. The construction industry alone employs about 7 percent of the working population according to a Belgian Finance Department report, and accounts for 10 percent of the country's GDP.

Belgian's financial industry has been experiencing mergers lately, mostly between companies in insurance and banking. Belgium is the tenth largest market economy in the OECD group and services make up the largest part of its economy, accounting for 70 percent of its GDP.

Resume/CV's
Job applications in Belgium differ from those in most other countries in one major respect. Because the country is divided into different linguistic areas, your cover letter, and resume must be in one of several languages: Dutch (Flemish), French, German or English, depending on the company and its location. Applicants who are bi- or trilingual are in great demand.

Your cover letter, tailored to the specific position, must be handwritten. It should be a single page, correct in the appropriate language, and include specific comments regarding what contributions you can make to the company.

The resume is generally two pages in length (unless you are a recent graduate or have worked only a short time), and includes the following:
• Contact information
• Education—list schools (locations, dates attended, study emphases, and degrees) in reverse-chronological order. Include special training and internships.
• Professional Experience—also in reverse-chronological order, with dates of employment, responsibilities and accomplishments
• Language and computer competencies, and any other skills
• Personal Interests—hobbies and other significant pastimes
• Personal information—age, marital status and children, citizenship.

With your cover letter and resume, most Belgian employers expect you to include a photograph.

Information Technology
In terms of work distribution, systems integration accounts for about 20 percent of the IT market; the second largest sector is consulting. Facilities management is another growing sector of IT. There are presently more than 3,000 computer companies in Belgium; 431 perform consulting work and another 1,759 primarily deal with software development.

Software developed in the United States is often adapted within months to the Belgian market, and compared to other sectors, the demand for software developers is strong. The largest recruiters in this field are Cap Gemini, IBM, Sema, and Altran.

Job seekers looking for work in Belgium's IT industry need up-to-date skills and knowledge of computers, systems, and programming. As in all other employment sectors in the nation, language skills are very important. Because English dominates the programming field, proficiency in multiple languages is less important to the foreign IT job-seeker than in other fields.

Organizations for the Belgian IT industry include the Internationale Federation Informatique Processing (Federation of Information Association in Belgium) which has a website with job openings and relevant links in Belgium and abroad.

Interviewing Advice
Employment in Belgium typically requires excellent language skills. Usually candidates are thoroughly tested for language fluency, especially if the position requires business interaction with Flemish, French, German, or English-speaking groups.

Business practice in Belgium is quite formal, and a system of hierarchy is followed in everyday operations. Age, seniority, and position are valued. Respect and courtesy are the norm. While dress codes vary with the industry or company, for an interview business suits are expected of both men and women. Belgians place strong emphasis on carriage and posture, and look with disfavor on casual physical contact, such as patting on the back.

At the beginning and end of the interview (or any business meeting), everyone present shakes hands with everyone else, including the secretary. You should address each person by title, but remember that terms of address will vary with the region. Even business cards are printed in French on one side and Flemish on the other.

During the interview, expect formality and strong eye contact. Belgians look for honesty, competence, quiet self-confidence, and creativity; neither arrogance nor negativity is appropriate.

Engineering
Belgium needs engineers in many specialties, from mechanical, technical, and civil engineers to chemical engineers and research scientists for its highly developed chemical and pharmaceutical industry. Engineers in Belgian tend to concentrate on either major projects handled largely by engineering consultancies or niche activities that allow engineers to use highly specialized expertise.

Engineering in Belgium is not regulated; in fact, it is so specialized that employees are not required to have any special qualifications to work. But according to Belgian law, if a profession is not regulated, an individual must have worked in the field for two of the last ten years of his employment. In addition to an engineering degree in a specialized field and several years of experience, foreign workers in Belgium usually need a basic understanding of French or Flemish, as well as English and German.

Organizations serving Belgium's engineering industry include AGORIA and the Flemish Aerospace Group. The top publication for the sector is Industrie Magazine.

Work Permits
Citizens of EU and EC countries do not need work permits to work in Belgium, but citizens of all other countries must have a work permit before settling in the country.

The employer, not the individual, files the work permit application, and before a permit is granted, the employer must prove that no Belgian or European Union citizen is able to do the job. Normally, the foreign worker will receive a Permit B, which is only valid for one employer and must be renewed each year. After a certain number of years, the worker may apply for a Permit A, which allows him to work for any employer in Belgium, not just the original one.

Those who wish to be self-employed in Belgium must apply for a Professional Card. The application process can take up to a year, and the permit must be renewed annually.

Accounting & Finance
Belgium has long been recognized as a center for international banking and finance in Europe. It pioneered many of the electronic payment systems that are used around the world today. There are more than 120 banks in Belgium.

Accounting and finance are highly competitive fields, and employers usually look for candidates with backgrounds in accounting, finance, and law. In particular, job seekers with accounting certification and MBAs or legal degrees do well in the job market. As in other industries, language skills are also important.

Resources that could be quite useful to the foreign job seeker include the European Accounting Association, which aims to link accountants throughout Europe and provides accounting information and research. There are also several important Belgian periodicals covering accounting and finance, including The Belgian Journal of Banking & Finance.

Cultural Advice
The Belgians are known for their chocolates, waffles, French fries (which they invented, contrary to the name), and beer. They value hard work, good entertainment, and those who have a zest for life. The Flemish tend to be a bit more reserved than the Walloons, who exude warmth, but the Belgians in general are genuinely friendly once they get to know someone.

Even with all this warmth and humor, Belgians value their privacy. Don't talk about private matters in public conversations. Initial meetings are usually very formal, and Belgians appreciate politeness and gentleness. Keep your hands out of your pockets when you're talking to them, and avoid gesturing, pointing, or snapping your
fingers.

In social gatherings, expect a good deal of handshaking and eye contact. Invitations and replies are often done on very good stationery. While those who know each other well may embrace or address each other by first names, such behavior is not typical in a business setting or among casual acquaintances.

Belgians traditionally have not been likely to invite others to dine in their homes; however, the practice of doing so is becoming more popular. If you're invited to dinner, bring flowers or chocolates, but avoid flowers that signify inappropriate things. Avoid giving wine or liquor to your hosts, unless they are very close friends. Avoid discussing personal topics and asking what someone does for a living. Safe topics include the arts, sports, and Belgian culture or history.

Sales & Marketing
Belgium's distribution and sales system is highly developed and regulated by law. Most sales are performed through intermediaries, distributors, and agents. Because of the small size of the country, the distribution territory normally covers the Benelux countries—the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg—and sometimes Germany
and France.

In the past, Belgians have preferred to go through intermediaries rather than directly to the seller, but direct sales techniques, where marketing and sales are performed via the telephone, mail, and e-mail, are becoming more common. Sales intermediaries in Belgium normally fall into one of three categories: distributor, agent, and commercial agent.

Employers always welcome candidates with previous sales or marketing experience, but outstanding language skills are probably the most important qualification for working in this field. This means that this field is not always the easiest one for newcomers to the country to enter. Both the World Association of Opinion and Marketing Research Professionals and the European Direct Marketing Association are located in Brussels.

General Business
The demand for general business managers and consultants remains strong in Belgium, particularly in Brussels, which is home to a large number of international companies and organizations of every size and description. Gaining these positions requires a variety of executive management skills, including leadership, delegation, decision-making, and superb communication skills. Candidates with previous experience in a multinational environment, along with an internationally recognized MBA and professional diplomas, are highly sought after.

A useful website for those interested in Belgium's business scene and related careers is the one maintained by FOCUS Career Services, which offers news, career and networking advice, a resource center, and a list of helpful links. Other good resources for the foreign job seeker interested in business in Belgium include The Directory of Management Consultants.

This is just a small sample of the information packed in the 75+ pages of the Going Global Guide for Belgium. About Going Global Career Guides:

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Country Career Guides Table of Contents

I. COUNTRY PROFILE

II. JOB-SEARCH RESOURCES
1.Online Job Sites
2.Government-Sponsored Employment Offices
3.Job Fairs/Career Events
4.Staffing Agencies/Temporary Help Firms
5.Newspapers that Publish Job Advertisements
6.Other Resources

III. EMPLOYMENT TRENDS AND OPPORTUNITIES

General Trends
Information Technology
1. Certification/Education Requirements
2. Organizations/Trade Associations
3. Publications
4. Other Resources
Engineering
1. Certification/Education Requirements
2. Organizations/Trade Associations
3. Publications
4. Other Resources
Accounting and Finance
1. Certification/Education Requirements
2. Organizations/Trade Associations
3. Publications
4. Other Resources
Sales and Marketing
1. Certification/Education Requirements
2. Organizations/Trade Associations
3. Publications
4. Other Resources
General Business
1. Certification/Education Requirements
2. Organizations/Trade Associations
3. Publications
4. Other Resources

IV. PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AND RESOURCES
1.Business Organizations/Trade Councils
2.Chambers of Commerce
3.Telephone Directories
4.Publications
5.Other Resources

VI. FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS ( Cost of living, salaries, health insurance, taxes, vacation/leave, benefits, etc)

VII. WORK PERMITS/VISAS

VIII. JOB APPLICATION GUIDELINES
1.Cover Letter Guidelines and Sample
2.Resume/CV Guidelines and Samples

IX. INTERVIEWING ADVICE

X. CULTURAL ADVICE

XI. COUNTRY RESOURCE BOOKS