"The challenges are clear, the ambition is there but the path isn't, yet"
30 March 2026, Diegem - Belgian HR leaders are keenly aware of the seismic workforce shifts ahead. A new survey with Belgian HR decision makers conducted by PwC Belgium still finds critical gaps in data capability, change management, regulatory readiness, and strategic positioning are leaving organisations exposed at a time when speed of reinvention is everything. PwC Belgium’s CHRO Survey reveals a workforce transformation paradox. The will is there, but the wiring isn't. HR leaders aren't short on ambition. “The real challenge is closing the gaps and turning that ambition into results. Whether it's upgrading systems, building new skills, rethinking reward, ensuring legal compliance, or earning a stronger voice at the strategy table. The gap between what HR wants to do and what it actually delivers is where the story gets interesting”, says Axel Smits, Workforce Services Leader at PwC Belgium.
The PwC CHRO Survey, conducted among 189 Belgian-based organisations between December 2025 and January 2026, examines how HR decision-makers are navigating the forces reshaping work: from generative AI and talent scarcity to evolving labour law and changing employee expectations.
The will to act is clear but timelines diverge. Nearly three quarters of organisations are planning a strategic workforce analysis, including the impact of GenAI. About half see this as a priority for 2026, while roughly one in four frame it as a medium- to long-term goal. Yet nearly a third of CHROs expect little to no workforce impact from external forces like AI and technological disruptions. A stance that PwC warns could prove costly as AI is already reshaping roles, skills, and operating models.
Data are being collected but the "last mile" remains unsolved. Despite growing investment in people analytics, only about one in three organisations describe their HR function as fully data-driven and benefitting from it. The largest group acknowledges gaining value from analytics but recognises significant room for improvement, while a full quarter still operate primarily on intuition. Crucially, not all HR leaders succeed in translating data insights into concrete, actionable guidance for the line managers who make day-to-day workforce decisions exposing a persistent gap between insight and impact.
When it comes to culture and change, the picture is no more encouraging either. More than half of Belgian organisations admit that culture and change initiatives begin too late or receive insufficient attention during transformations. The survey is unequivocal: organisations that delay culture and change end up managing resistance retroactively, spending more, moving more slowly, and losing momentum precisely when it matters most.
Talent models, too, are shifting but not fast enough. Nearly half of organisations still rely primarily on permanent employees as their dominant talent model, even as roughly one in three expect a strong increase in alternative talent sources (freelancers, strategic partners, platforms, and contingent specialists) within the next two to three years. The direction is clear: HR must evolve from managing headcount to orchestrating a blended skills ecosystem that flexes with strategy.
On compensation, the survey also delivers a pointed message: benchmarking is necessary but no longer sufficient. While the vast majority of organisations benchmark compensation regularly, nearly half still struggle with attraction, retention, and cost control. A notable share say that their current cost structure actively prevents them from hiring and keeping the talent they need. The survey calls for a shift from "match the market" to "compete for value".
On top of all this, regulatory preparedness represents a growing risk. With labour legislation growing in both volume and complexity, close to half of organisations report inconsistent impact assessments and controls. Here as well, the stakes are high: poor or inconsistent compliance doesn't just risk financial sanctions. It damages public trust and reputation.
The path forward requires companies to act decisively and holistically placing workforce strategy at the centre of their business strategy. "The momentum to act is there," concludes Smits. "But momentum alone doesn't deliver results. Action does. Companies that move now, with courage and conviction, will shape the future of work on their terms. Those that wait will find themselves reacting to a world that has already moved on without them. The time for deliberation is over. The time to act is now."
