About the founders
Dr. Brigitte van Lierop, co-founder of the methodology of Inclusive Job Design
Together with Prof. Dr. Frans Nijhuis, Brigitte developed the methodology of Inclusive Job Design. After Frans passed away in 2015, Brigitte continued developing and refining the methodology, now together with the partners in countries like Norway and Belgium.
Brigitte:
I firmly believe that people with disabilities have a rightful place in society, including the opportunity to participate in the labour market in ways that align with their abilities. To make this a reality, organisations focused on increasing employment for individuals with disabilities must learn to leverage their resources and expertise effectively, ensuring meaningful opportunities are created.
In this context, I collabourate with governmental institutions, companies, organisations, and service providers, offering support through organisational development, research, and policy advising. My work focuses on designing and implementing strategies that enhance the employment prospects of people with disabilities. Additionally, I actively contribute to the development of policies that aim to break barriers and foster inclusion.
Driven by a passion for making a difference and backed by deep knowledge in the field, I engage as an independent consultant, trainer, and researcher in various projects. My mission is to improve the employment landscape for people with disabilities, ensuring sustainable and impactful outcomes.
Dr. Brigitte van Lierop: Relevant international projects
Together with partners from Lithuania, Germany, Portugal, Finland, Belgium, Austria, Spain and led by Dr. Brigitte van Lierop and Yuri Nikitin, practical materials were developed based on research on behavioural change to use by all involved in ‘opening doors of SME’s’ to become more inclusive.
Materials included action guidelines how to organise specific campaigns/events, a manual for employers how to become more inclusive as well as instruction videos, 28 stories about successful inclusion as well as 25 videos supporting the stories.
Project of the European Commission, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion.
Period 2021 – 2023
Work4All: Suitable Work for Everyone
In the Work4All project, seven vocational education institutions from six European countries (the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Lithuania and Italy) collaborated to apply and test the methodology of Inclusive Job Design.
Dr. Brigitte van Lierop, as expert was responsible for the training and application of the methodology in all countries, leading to a curriculum and manual for VET providers.
Period 2018 – 2021.
Together with partners from Slovenia, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal and Lithuania knowledge and experiences will be exchanged in using an ’employer-based approach’ when working towards an inclusive labour market.
The methodology of Inclusive Job Design as best practice is part of it.
Period 2018 – 2020.
Together with Flemish partners, Bulgarian partners and Finnish partners. Flemish partners are trained by Dr. Brigitte van Lierop in Inclusive Job Design.
Pilots take place in 15 – 30 companies
Period 2017 – 2020.
The Inclusive Job Design in Italy pilot project, conducted in 2017 and supervised by Dr. Brigitte van Lierop, involved six social cooperatives. Participants learned the IJD methodology through workshops and applied it as “IJD consultants” in the cooperatives. A total of 16 cases were analysed.
Key outcomes were:
Employers benefited from cost and time savings, improved service quality, and opportunities to develop new services. Employees gained access to sustainable jobs in an inclusive environment.
The project highlights IJD’s ability to address employers’ challenges, promote inclusive hiring, and create meaningful roles for people with disabilities on the competitive labour market. Further research is recommended to explore its broader applications and outcomes.
Under supervision of Dr. Brigitte van Lierop, professional universities worked together on the development of an international module for Bachelor students, focusing on the labour market integration of people with disabilities (EU Lifelong Learning Programme subsidy fund).
Module Enabling Employability for All: focus on disability.
https://www.scribd.com/document/324233688/Student-Handbook-EMPLOY4all-DISABIL-Final-2010
Institutional Strengthening of işkur and improved employment strategy and vocational rehabilitation for disabled “.
A project in Izmir, Turkey aimed at improving the policy and implementation of policies for the labour market integration of people with disabilities in Turkey, with the aim of increasing equality in the labour market of people with disabilities (Matra Project). Dr. Brigitte van Lierop was part of the research team.
Evaluation: In Izmir, 100 persons with disabilities were employed as a result of this project, carried out between 2007 and 2008.
Opti-Work: Research project led by Dr. Brigitte van Lierop in fifteen European countries (Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and United Kingdom) with the aim of developing instruments to optimise strategies for people with disabilities into work (FP6 project).