Organizations that attract the best talent pool get one thing right – Employer Brand.
Today, candidates often turn to websites like Glassdoor, Comparably, or Blind to sneak through the reviews of organizations they want to build a career with. There is no more hiding from the truth.
An authentic and strong employer brand is the key to winning the talent war. Any organization must invest and focus on building an employer brand that the brightest pool of candidates looks up to.
But what exactly is an employer brand, and how is it different from employer branding?
An employer brand is a company’s identity that makes it different and able to stand out from the competition.
An employer brand includes the market’s perception of your organization as an employer and describes your promise to employees in exchange for their talent, experience, or skills.
Your employer brand Is an extension of your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) while Employer branding is the strategy for building a memorable and recognizable employer brand.
The common mistake most organizations make is that they focus solely on customer perception rather than the company’s employer brand, which is determined based on employee and candidate experience. The focus should be on enhancing the employer brand since it emerges as the business identity of an organization.
2023 has just begun, and it is time to rethink your employer branding strategy. So, here are some actionable that can help you power up your employer brand in 2023.
1. Make Employee Benefits a Part of your Employer Branding
Employers MUST connect with their workforce more meaningfully, now more than ever. Employers should engage with employees throughout the year by organizing microsites, showcasing the company’s onboarding materials, unique employee benefits, health and wellness programs, and DEI initiatives.
A well-designed employee benefits program can significantly boost engagement with your employees and in turn your candidates. It will create a strong company culture, and increase the workforce’s appreciation for all the perks you offer.
2. Build a Creative Work Environment
Work to instil an environment of creativity that empowers team members to collaborate and collectively invest in their work. Unleash the creativity of every team member by removing all hindrances that could prevent creative and efficient workflows. Giving your workforce the freedom to be creative and collaborative can give everyone the feeling of helping create something new, unique, and exciting. Give your talent the wings to thrive.
3. Develop an Employer Value Proposition
Embarking upon a developing a research-based Employer Value Proposition (EVP) is an actionable employer branding initiative that can help develop a strong reputation for your organization as an employer of choice. It refers to your company’s unique benefits and experiences as an employer.
Developing an EVP is essential because it helps create a clear and compelling message about what it is like to work at your company and what benefits employees can expect. It can attract the best candidates and encourage them to apply for jobs at the company.
4. Offer Employee Wellbeing Programs
Offering employee well-being programs can benefit both the company and its employees. For the employees, these programs usually include health and wellness initiatives, employee resource groups, and employee assistance programs that make them feel valued, supported, and satisfied at work.
Well-being programs can help improve their physical and mental health, leading to better job performance and satisfaction.
For the company, offering such programs can improve employee satisfaction and retention, leading to a more stable and productive workforce. It can also enhance the company’s reputation as a supportive and caring employer, attracting potential employees.
5. Enhance the Careers Website of your Company
Your careers website will effectively attract and recruit top talent and communicate your company’s employer brand to potential employees. It is where candidates and potential employees learn about the job openings and the company’s culture and values.
A newly-enhanced careers website can also help you attract a diverse pool of candidates and showcase your culture and employer brand. It can include information about company mission, vision, benefits, and career development opportunities, which can be attractive to potential employees.
In addition, a careers website can help a company to streamline its hiring process by allowing candidates to apply for jobs and upload their resumes directly through the website. It can save time and resources for the company and make the application process more convenient for candidates. When was the last time you refreshed your company’s careers website. If it’s been over 2 years, add this to your planning list.
6. Demonstrate that Your Company Listens to Feedback
Demonstrating that your company listens to employee feedback is essential for several reasons. Firstly, it can help to improve employee satisfaction and engagement. It can lead to higher levels of productivity and commitment toward the company. When employees feel that their opinions and suggestions are valued and considered, they are more likely to feel a sense of ownership and pride in their work.
Secondly, demonstrating that a company listens to employee feedback can help to create a positive company culture and foster a sense of trust and respect between employees and management. It can also help to improve communication and collaboration within the company.
Finally, showing that a company values and listens to employee feedback can attract potential employees. It can create a positive employer brand and make the company more appealing. By actively seeking and responding to employee feedback, a company can show that it is committed to continuous improvement and creating a positive work environment for its employees.
7. Focus on the Employee Experience within your Employer Brand Messaging
Focusing on the employee experience within your employer brand messaging is essential because it helps a company to communicate its culture and values to potential employees. It allows a company to showcase what makes it unique and to attract candidates who align with its mission and values.
By highlighting the positive aspects of working at the company and the benefits employees can expect, a company can differentiate itself from its competitors and stand out as a desirable workplace. It can create a positive employer brand, which can attract potential employees.
Focusing on the employee experience within your employer brand messaging is also essential for attracting and retaining top talent, improving employee satisfaction and engagement, and creating a positive and authentic culture.
8. Build Diversity & Inclusion into Your Employer Brand
Companies should focus on building up and implementing DEI initiatives as it can help to attract a diverse pool of candidates and create a more inclusive workplace culture. A diverse workforce can bring various perspectives and experiences to the table, leading to improved decision-making and creativity.
Additionally, building diversity and inclusion into a company’s employer brand can improve its reputation and make it more attractive to potential employees. It can also help to improve employee satisfaction and retention, as employees are more likely to feel valued and supported in a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Finally, building diversity and inclusion into a company’s employer brand can help to improve the company’s bottom line. Studies have shown that diverse and inclusive companies tend to outperform their peers and are more successful in the long term.
FAQs
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What mistakes do companies make that result in poor employer branding?
The common mistake most organizations make is that they focus solely on customer perception rather than on the company’s employer brand, which is determined based on employee and candidate experience. At the end of the day, the focus should be on enhancing the employer brand since it emerges as the business identity of an organization.
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Why must a company develop its EVP?
An Employer Value Proposition (EVP) is an actionable employment branding initiative that can help develop a strong employer brand. It refers to your company’s unique benefits and experiences as an employer. Developing an EVP is essential because it helps create a clear and compelling message about what it is like to work at the company and what benefits employees can expect. It can attract the best candidates and encourage them to apply for jobs at the company.
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Why should companies enhance their career site?
A careers website helps companies attract a diverse pool of candidates and showcase their career opportunities and employer brand assets and EVP. It can include information about company culture, benefits, and career development opportunities, which can be attractive to potential employees. So much has changed over the past two years that if you haven’t updated your content you will not be keeping up with your competitors or your audience?
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Why does a company need to take employee feedback seriously?
It is important to own your narrative and not asking for or addressing employee feedback only means that they will be sharing it in a more public way. Showing that a company values and listens to employee feedback can be attractive to potential employees. It can create a positive employer brand and make the company more appealing. By actively seeking and responding to employee feedback, a company can show that it is committed to continuous improvement and creating a positive work environment for its employees.
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Why should the company invest in its employee’s training and upskilling?
When an organization invests in employee training programs and skill development activities, it attracts top talent. This element could decide for candidates to work with a company. There is no reason for a capable candidate with excellent skills to opt for a company with no training potential or growth opportunities.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jody Ordioni is the author of “The Talent Brand.” In her role as Founder and Chief Brand Officer of Brandemix, she leads the firm in creating brand-aligned talent communications that connect employees to cultures, companies, and business goals. She engages with HR professionals and corporate teams on how to build and promote talent brands, and implement best-practice talent acquisition and engagement strategies across all media and platforms. She has been named a "recruitment thought leader to follow" and her mission is to integrate marketing, human resources, internal communications, and social media to foster a seamless brand experience through the employee lifecycle.
