Snr HR Advisor /Absence Case Manager (32-40 Hours)

ICON Clinical Research; Groningen; On-site; EUR 52,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave entitlements

Health insurance offerings

Retirement planning offerings

Employee assistance programme (LifeWer

Life assurance

Country-specific benefits

Job summary

ICON Clinical Research is seeking an Absence Case Manager in the Netherlands. You will own a diverse portfolio of absence cases, from short-term to long-term disability, and work with employees, managers, and health professionals to ensure timely, compliant reintegration outcomes.

You will coach managers, guide employees through recovery, monitor deadlines, analyze trends, and contribute to ongoing improvements in absence management practices.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent level of education and professional experience.
• At least 3 to 5 years of experience in absence management or case management.
• In-depth knowledge of the Dutch Gatekeeper Improvement Act (Wet verbetering poortwachter) and relevant social security legislation.
• Proven experience managing complex absence and return-to-work cases.
• Excellent communication skills in both Dutch and English.
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing, and advisory skills.
• High level of organizational awareness and professional credibility.
• A proactive, independent, and results-driven approach.

Responsibilities

• Manage and coordinate the end-to-end absence management process in line with the Dutch Gatekeeper Improvement Act ( Wet verbetering poortwachter ).
• Advise, coach, and support managers on absence management and return-to-work matters.
• Guide employees throughout their recovery and reintegration journey.
• Identify potential risks, opportunities, and barriers within absence cases and take proactive action.
• Collaborate closely with Occupational Health Physicians, occupational health providers, Labour Experts, and other internal and external stakeholders.
• Monitor legal deadlines, case documentation, and overall process quality.
• Analyze absence trends and provide recommendations for preventive and sustainable employability initiatives.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of absence management practices, policies, and employee wellbeing programs.

Skills

Absence management experience

Stakeholder management

Dutch & English communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Absence Case Manager

ICON is a global healthcare intelligence and clinical research organisation united by a mission to bring new medicines and treatments to patients faster.

As a values-driven organisation, integrity, collaboration, agility, and inclusion are at the heart of how we work and interact with each other, customers, patients and suppliers.

As an Absence Case Manager, you will take ownership of a diverse portfolio of absence cases, ranging from short-term absences to complex long-term disability and reintegration trajectories.

You will partner closely with employees, managers, HR Business Partners, Occupational Health Physicians, Labour Experts, and external service providers to ensure timely interventions, legal compliance, and successful reintegration outcomes.

What You Will Do:

Through your expertise, coaching skills, and ability to influence others, you will help employees take an active role in their recovery and return-to-work process while supporting managers in navigating complex absence-related challenges.

Key responsibilities include :

• Manage and coordinate the end-to-end absence management process in line with the Dutch Gatekeeper Improvement Act ( Wet verbetering poortwachter ).
• Advise, coach, and support managers on absence management and return-to-work matters.
• Guide employees throughout their recovery and reintegration journey.
• Identify potential risks, opportunities, and barriers within absence cases and take proactive action.
• Collaborate closely with Occupational Health Physicians, occupational health providers, Labour Experts, and other internal and external stakeholders.
• Monitor legal deadlines, case documentation, and overall process quality.
• Analyze absence trends and provide recommendations for preventive and sustainable employability initiatives.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of absence management practices, policies, and employee wellbeing programs.

Your Profile:

You are a highly skilled professional who is able to build trust, navigate complex situations, and influence stakeholders at all organizational levels. You are equally comfortable operating at an operational, tactical, and strategic level and can balance competing interests while maintaining focus on sustainable outcomes.

Required qualifications and experience :

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent level of education and professional experience.
• At least 3 to 5 years of experience in absence management or case management.
• In-depth knowledge of the Dutch Gatekeeper Improvement Act (Wet verbetering poortwachter) and relevant social security legislation.
• Proven experience managing complex absence and return-to-work cases.
• Excellent communication skills in both Dutch and English.
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing, and advisory skills.
• High level of organizational awareness and professional credibility.
• A proactive, independent, and results-driven approach.

You are

• Empathetic while remaining decisive and solution-oriented.
• Able to challenge constructively while maintaining strong working relationships.
• Resilient, adaptable, and capable of managing competing priorities.
• A trusted advisor to employees, managers, and external specialists.
• Skilled at encouraging accountability, ownership, and engagement throughout the reintegration process.

What ICON can offer you:

Our success depends on the quality of our people. That’s why we’ve made it a priority to build a diverse culture that rewards high performance and nurtures talent.

In addition to your competitive salary, ICON offers a range of additional benefits. Our benefits are designed to be competitive within each country and are focused on well-being and work life balance opportunities for you and your family.

Our benefits examples include:

• Various annual leave entitlements
• A range of health insurance offerings to suit you and your family’s needs.
• Competitive retirement planning offerings to maximize savings and plan with confidence for the years ahead.
• Global Employee Assistance Programme, LifeWorks, offering 24-hour access to a global network of over 80,000 independent specialized professionals who are there to support you and your family’s well‑being.
• Life assurance
• Flexible country-specific optional benefits, including childcare vouchers, bike purchase schemes, discounted gym memberships, subsidized travel passes, health assessments, among others.

Visit our careers site (https://careers.iconplc.com/benefits) to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

At ICON, inclusion & belonging are fundamental to our culture and values. We’re dedicated to providing an inclusive and accessible environment for all candidates. ICON is committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or in order to perform the essential functions of a position, please let us know or submit a request here (https://careers.iconplc.com/reasonable-accommodations)