The new PwC Campus: where sustainability, growth and talent meet

Thursday, 16 June 2022 - Today, PwC Belgium officially opens the doors of its brand-new, ultra-modern headquarters, PwC Campus in Brussels. The opening was formally inaugurated by Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. The new premises follow high standards of sustainability, connectivity and collaboration. The result is a space that boosts innovation and upskilling, thus providing an answer to Belgians’ concerns for successfully moving towards a more sustainable society, stimulating skills and talent and creating an environment for businesses to thrive, as revealed by a recent PwC survey, polling almost 2,000 citizens and 125 of Belgium’s key leaders. Fueled by these insights, PwC reaches out the hand to governments and businesses alike to grasp this opportunity to leverage our country’s possibilities.

Opening the door to the future: A new landmark for all talent

PwC Campus in Brussels is a space that brings people together to connect and create, a place where human connection isn’t just cultivated, but cherished and intensified. Under construction since 2019, it’s already a prominent landmark on the Brussels ring. Its ingenious design inspires creativity and imagination, facilitates interaction and close collaboration. Not only its looks and easy-access, but also its sustainability are almost second to none.

Constructed by Ghelamco and covering over 20,000m², PwC Campus in Brussels - located at Culliganlaan 5 in Diegem - will be the go-to space for PwC Belgium’s more than 2,500 people, its clients and partners. PwC Campus has been cleverly designed to be a true meeting space, where people, from both within and outside PwC, can connect, conceive new ideas and devise novel solutions. With its focus on exchange and collaboration, the new PwC Campus functions as a talent hub to enable people to come together to create precious links that help them think outside of the box and develop their skills.

With an EPB value of 49, the new PwC Campus is an energy neutral (BEN) building, reflecting PwC’s net zero commitment by 2030. With its strategic location close to Brussels Airport, PwC Campus encourages people to make use of public transport (train, tram) or to opt for sustainable mobility, thanks to the infrastructure provided, such as a bicycle parking area and charging points for electric vehicles.

Study shows how to put Belgium back on the map by 2030

Celebrating this important milestone in its 100-year history in Belgium, PwC believes Belgium needs an inspiring story that builds on its strengths and gives young people hope for the future. In this context, PwC launched a survey across Belgium, in collaboration with Kantar Research, to gather the perspectives of almost 2,000 members of the general public as well as 125 of the country’s most influential leaders (in the space of politics, academia, business and media) with regards to the key opportunities for Belgium with the sound ambition of preparing a better future towards 2030.

It confirmed that, while Belgium remains an attractive place to live and work, Belgium's key leaders indicate that the country could make use of its strong foundations even more. As the survey reveals, both the general public and the country’s key leaders identify three intertwined key opportunities:

1. the transition to a circular economy
2. the impulse to stimulate skills and education to become a true talent haven for Europe
3. the need to catalyse opportunities for an entrepreneurial climate and enable start-ups to grow

Looking at priorities for the future, the general public place quality of healthcare at the top, with employment and job creation in second place and efficiency of government coming in third, underscoring people’s tendency to focus on the country’s immediate priorities. While efficiency of government’s a priority for key leaders, they also focus more on issues considered crucial for the future, such as quality of education, the environment and digitalisation.

Access to the education system and the quality of the education system rank relatively high in the survey. However, both the general public and Belgium's key leaders see room for improvement in the quality of education on offer, with the latter group almost twice as convinced of the need. The study reveals how the country could build more on its sense of pride: Belgium has many assets as a country, but the general public only identifies mostly the healthcare system (50%) and social security (59%), whereas Belgium's key leaders see many more assets that can be leveraged.

The majority of both the general public and Belgium’s key leaders have little confidence that the government as a sole actor is up to meeting the major challenges that lie ahead. Instead, many identify an important role for businesses in this. There’s general optimism for the future and a confidence that the country has the potential to build on its assets, which include strong industries, research and innovation, a central location in Europe and advanced skills and talents.

Fueled by these insights, PwC Belgium is looking to apply its specialist expertise to help chart a path to the future with forward-looking solutions and platforms over the next few years.

Axel Smits, Chairman of PwC Belgium: “Our new PwC Campus is a reflection of our commitment to the future and an expression of a company that genuinely puts its people first. It’s been carefully designed to create a home away from home for our people, clients and partners. It not only offers young talent, both inside and outside the organisation, every opportunity to develop creatively and grow, but also stimulates that growth.

2030 will be a landmark year for Belgium as the country marks 200 years of independence. We believe that Belgium has the potential to become the 'talent haven' of Europe. With PwC's long standing expertise and connections within the economic fabric of Belgium, we also want to inspire others to look at the future and embrace these opportunities for the benefit of our next generations. Our PwC Campus underlines this ambition. This is why we continue to be committed to creating solutions that enable innovation, engagement and upskilling. As a true people business, we want to be part of co-creating that vision and path forward.”

Survey methodology

The survey was run by the Belgian office of Kantar, the world's leading data, insights and consulting company, between 11 October 2021 and 31 January 2022 and consisted of a qualitative online questionnaire, answered by 1,998 members of the general public over the age of 18. One hundred and twenty-five of Belgium’s key leaders (politicians, business leaders, academics, union heads, media representatives, etc.) were interviewed in person via telephone or in face-to-face meetings to gain qualitative and semi-qualitative input.

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