About Sjoerd Boermans
Sjoerd Boermans leads the global HR technology, workforce strategy and recruitment at Just Eat Takeaway.com across 12 countries. He oversees the HR tech stack for hiring and managing employed couriers in continental Europe, including courier marketing (CRM), applicant tracking, hiring processes, and onboarding tools. In addition, Sjoerd leads the workforce strategy and recruitment operations for the courier function globally.
How has the evolving nature of work impacted your HR strategies, technology and processes?
The focus of HR technology has shifted from purely executing functional tasks to elevating the employee experience. For instance, looking at data collection during recruitment, that used to be treated as just another checkbox. But now we see it as crucial to make the whole process an engaging experience for applicants and new hires in our workflows. It's no longer sufficient to just gather the data—we aim to collect it in a way to eventually impress candidates. That shift to focusing more on end-to-end experiences rather than pure functionality is really key.
How does your organisation navigate the complexities of operating under multiple jurisdictions with varying localisation requirements and business processes?
We employ couriers across hundreds of continental European spots, which amplifies localised regulations around employment legislation we need to adhere to. Our approach has been to build a core HR centralised system backbone, but on the front end we provide flexibility to accommodate different localised processes. The underlying generic process is standardised but we add the flexibility around that stable centre to adjust to country nuances—tweaking the process steps when needed without altering the underlying sequence.
How important and how do you ensure your HR platform remains flexible and adaptive to the changing needs of your business?
I believe it's extremely important for an HR platform to be adaptable as workforce needs shift so rapidly. Without that agility to change as required, you risk becoming outdated in just a few years. We drive constant innovation aimed at enhancing our systems and processes. If your HR technology is not agile and adaptive enough, you'll quickly outgrow it. And with AI on the horizon, you need interfaces that can integrate advanced technologies when ready.
What are your top two or three priorities when considering an HR solution or platform?
The top priority is adaptability, without question. In this fast-changing world, a system has to be ready to adjust as needed. Personalisation is also key—the platform should deliver consumer-grade, tailored experiences like we've come to expect when shopping online. It must be personalised, it must be easy, it must be intuitive, and all those elements should also be experienced in the HR platform. Users today expect superb experiences, so HR solutions need to provide that through adaptability and personalisation.
Does your organisation operate with a majority remote or dispersed workforce?
In a unique way, yes. Our couriers begin and end their delivery shifts at the front of their homes, essentially working "remotely" in terms of centralised offices. But they are out making deliveries throughout each shift, then return home when done. So we do have a large remote contingent, but remote with a twist in our case.
Have you noticed a shift in employee expectations regarding flexibility and adaptability in the workplace in the last two years?
Absolutely, however in an unexpected way for our business. But now we also see a group of couriers being interested in more stability, meaning that they also request a certain set of fixed shifts. As delivery work sometimes is a second job, having set schedules makes it easier to coordinate with their primary role. So while adaptability remains crucial from our end, employees now want flexibility and predictability. We've had to support both models.
About Just Eat Takeaway.com
Just Eat Takeaway.com (LSE: JET, AMS: TKWY) is one of the world’s leading global online food delivery companies.
Headquartered in Amsterdam, the Company is focused on connecting consumers and Partners through its platforms. With 699,000 connected Partners, Just Eat Takeaway.com offers consumers a wide variety of choices from restaurants to retail.
Just Eat Takeaway.com has rapidly grown to become a leading online food delivery marketplace with operations in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Poland, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.