Living in Belgium: An expat’s checklist of things you need to do
Before diving into the world of Belgian chocolates, comics and beer, there are a few necessities expats need to take care of from their first week in Belgium.
14th June 2017
Winning the Talent War
attracting and retaining fresh blood to your business
19th May 2017
Evolution is key to just about everything, and it’s not limited to the natural world either. In business we need to evolve to stay ahead of the market, to develop new trends and to keep the lifeblood of a business flowing. Most importantly, we need to know how to evolve our business practices to retain our most precious present employees, and to attract future employees, filled with fresh energy and new perspectives.
Twenty First Century Pandemic
managing burnout in the workplace
19th May 2017
First coined as a term in the seventies, over the years burnout has not just become widely recognised, but has rooted itself firmly into our society. To give you an idea of the pandemic proportions it has taken on, the Japanese and Chinese even have terms for ‘death-by-burnout’, caused by the alarming rate of suicides due to stress. It’s easy to blame the employer, but often times contributing factors are not necessarily within the company’s control. Tackling burnout instead means maintaining a careful balance between the professional and personal.
Hotel Highlights
the movings and shakings of the hotel industry
19th May 2017
2016 was without doubt a difficult year for the hotel industry, with Brussels most definitely taking the biggest knock and occupancy rates plummeting by more than 20%. This was largely attributed to terrorist actions and in a smaller part due to the rise of the likes of homestay networks such as AirBnB. Not being one to dwell on the past, ReLocate looks toward a bright and shiny second half of 2017 which by all accounts will be an upturn kind of year for the hotel industry. We bring you all the wonderful concepts of the future of hotels, how the hotel industry is going to reshape itself to keep up with the competition, and what we can expect in the year to come.
Choosing the Right School
readying yourself and your family for relocation
24th January 2017
An essential part of starting a new life in a new city, a new country, or the beginning of a new phase in education is ensuring that the school you choose for your children is a good fit. In the course of an expat’s school life, they may attend a number of different schools, so ensuring a smooth transition is fundamental to the happiness of your precious sons and daughters and their future academic plans.
Leuven MindGate
laying the foundations for Belgium’s first International House
24th January 2017
Mohamed Ridouani, alderman for SP.A in Leuven
Let’s make an equation containing three elements: city + international companies + (international) talent. The desired outcome: an attractive environment, wealth, social cohesion. Or, in other words, an attractive brand. You, dear reader, will surely be aware that a happy worker is a happy company is a happy city is a happy resident is a happy worker…. ReLocate has recently focused on a number of things that can contribute to a companies’ wellbeing – and their employees – today we’d like to focus on what cities can do. A survey among 1.264 international workers tells us: a lot.
Belgium: Big in BioTech
our very own Silicon Valley, for biotechnology
24th January 2017
Just as the US has Silicon Valley, Flanders has Biotech Valley. Or rather ís, because the activities of the Life Sciences and pharmaceutical industry are so dense you need a magnifier to discover every spin-off and start-up. Flanders is Big in Life Sciences, of global stature as a matter of fact, and that, as you might imagine, generates an inflow of knowledge workers, also known as expats.
Creatives International
Flanders DC: the ultimate cross-fertilisation stomping ground
10th November 2016
Fashion designer Dries Van Noten and multi disciplinary artist Koen Vanmechelen, to name just two, are both ambassadors of the Flemish creative industry that will likely ring a bell for most people. Successful examples, not only because of the quality of their work, but thanks to their business-spirit too. The Flemish government cherishes and stimulates this kind of creative entrepreneur and in order to offer them a platform created Flanders DC in 2004. Flanders DC could be considered the ultimate stomping ground for a healthy cross-fertilisation of business, technology and (artistic) creativity. So what’s in it for Belgium? Fertile soil for international companies and a future proof job market.
Mobility after Brexit
the business and individual perspectives
10th November 2016
The general take on Brexit is that there is much uncertainty surrounding the outcome of any negotiations. Let’s remember that change is good, and along with uncertainty there is always possibility. In the modus operandi of the British populace: “Keep Calm and Carry On”, how can businesses calmly tackle this uncertainty, not only for their own operational purposes but also to ensure that their employees, both present and future, are reassured of their legal standing? How can individuals carry on and protect their rights to work, study or just reside in their adopted EU member state?
The Heavens
Exploring Global Tax Havens
10th November 2016
Alain Vandenborre stands in one of his high-security vaults in the basement of the Singapore Freeport. He is showing one of the diamonds, worth $300,000, from his collection. Mr. Vandenborre is one of the co-founders of the Singapore Freeport and currently the head of the Singapore Diamond Exchange. Many major companies are based at the Singapore Freeport, including Malca-Amit, Christie’s, Deutsche Bank and Brink’s. Singapore
‘The Heavens’ is a photographic documentary research project by Paolo Woods and Gabriele Galimberti, which sheds light on the obscure workings of tax havens. The book presents us with a picture-perfect image of shells, doors and polished shoes. It’s playing at being James Bond, only the villains look stunningly uninspiring and they hardly ever get caught.