The Manager of the Year is a Happy Rebel

Roeselare - 12 January 2023 - Yesterday, Rika Coppens was awarded Trends Manager of the Year for her outstanding performance and societal contribution. Since 2017, Rika Coppens has been leading House of HR, which is conquering Europe with its specialised and digital HR solutions. The jury commended her for her outstanding results, specifically citing her successful completion of 16 acquisitions in 2022, her emphasis on digitalization, her support of underrepresented groups in the workforce, and her ability to cultivate a strong and cohesive company culture. In her acceptance speech, Coppens urged fellow entrepreneurs to prioritize hiring talent from underprivileged backgrounds as a New Year resolution.

Recognising sustainable leadership

"Rika Coppens was elected because she is a rock-solid manager, achieving brilliant results in a sector of great societal importance," Wim Verhoeven, Trends Editor-in-chief, put it.

This election marks the culmination of an impressive year for House of HR, during which the company completed 16 acquisitions, and welcomed Bain Capital as its new primary shareholder. This positions House of HR strongly for further growth as a specialised HR service provider in key European markets.

The jury praised Coppens for her exceptional creativity and her leadership in the digitalisation of House of HR's business model. They also recognized her focus on sustainability, particularly her commitment to empowering underprivileged groups through the international non-profit JobRoad, for which House of HR and Accent are the main funders. Most importantly, the jury underscored Coppen’s ability to rally her team of more than 5,000 employees around these shared values.

Innovative intrapreneurship with social relevance

Rika Coppens calls herself a ‘missionary of work’. "’We change lives’ is the House of HR saying. Through work, people can integrate society. Work ensures prosperity, but also well-being," explains the passionate business leader.

House of HR’s mission is powered by a robust corporate culture, embodied by its employees, known as “Happy Rebels”.  They are united by a shared societal purpose, and encouraged to pursue internal entrepreneurship interests.

"Our decentralised structure gives people the opportunity to take initiatives that can then develop into innovative HR solutions.  This ensures we always remain one step ahead. The outcome of these endeavours are digital solutions like Nowjobs (a digital matching platform for students and flexi-jobbers), Gighouse (a platform for freelancers), and SWOP (centralisation of job vacancies, combined with job coaching in one app)," says a proud Rika Coppens.

Strong financial results

House of HR’s focus on societal value and a robust corporate culture has resulted in impressive financial performance, including above-market-average profitability. The company generated a 2.2 billion Euros turnover in 2021 and experienced an organic growth rate of 8%, outpacing comparable industry players by 5-6% over the past years. To complement this, the company has been capitalising on growth through strategic acquisition to broaden its scope, technology and market.

2022 was a significant year for House of HR, as the company completed a total of 16 acquisitions. In May, US-based Bain Capital Partners, one of the largest private investment firms in the world, acquired 55% of HOHR’s capital, making it the largest private equity acquisition in Belgian history.

This transaction positions House of HR competitively for continued growth, both through strategic acquisitions and organic growth. To support this, House of HR grants its subsidiaries a lot of autonomy, empowering them to achieve their own ambitions. This approach remains a core principle of the company.

Regarding the award, Coppens states:  "This is an acknowledgement for the entire House of HR team. Thanks to the dedication of our more than 5,000 Happy Rebels, we have established House of HR as a successful European HR service provider. A major challenge for all employers today is to optimise talents well-being and engagement at work. We also strive to achieve that every day within the big House of HR family."

Bio Rika Coppens

• CEO of House of HR since 2017
• Previously also CEO of Accent Jobs from 2017 to 2020f
• Joined the group when Conny Vandendriessche asked her to lead House of HR and its temp-work arm Accent Jobs
• Has served on the Board of Directors of House of HR since 2016
• Was CFO at Zenitel and EFR Group (Breda), where she also became CEO
• Started her career as an audit manager at PriceWaterhouseCoopers
• Studied commercial engineering at KU Leuven
• Is a non-executive Director at Colruyt Group, La Lorraine Bakery Group and Euronext
• Was named 1 of the 50 most influential women worldwide in the HR sector in 2022 (SIA)

End of press release.