In the current climate of labour shortages, offering a traditional salary and benefits won't always convince candidates to join a company. That's why developing a strong employer brand will help you stand out from the competition by showcasing your identity, your culture, and your value proposition. By finding where your branding meets your desired candidates' expectations, you will facilitate hiring. But how can you build a strong brand image? What makes you an attractive employer? Here are five key factors to develop in this area.
What is an employer brand?
An employer brand is the image that you project as a company to your employees (internally), but also to the public and potential candidates (externally).
Employer brand is based on various factors, including:
- HR practices
- Values
- Corporate culture
- Reputation (internal and external)
According to a study conducted by StepStone with 5,929 people in eight countries, 95% of job seekers check a company's employer reputation before applying. An employer brand must therefore be carefully developed based on a set of measures that cover the areas mentioned above. We give you five in this article, but of course, this list is not exhaustive.
1. Make sure your image matches your narrative
The image your company projects should represent your identity and your HR practices. The first step is to survey your employees to evaluate their perception of your company. The human resources and marketing departments can work together to create this survey. Once the responses have been collected, you can update your mission, vision, and values. In addition to guiding your business decisions, your mission, vision and values help rally the troops and integrate new workers. If you promote values that are not applied on the ground, your reputation in the hiring market will suffer.
The objective is to set up a framework that aligns with your narrative. This is how you will improve your chances of your teams being loyal to you and becoming your ambassadors. Similarly, you may need to revisit your employee value proposition (EVP) strategy. It is an intrinsic part of creating a strong employer brand and covers the seven key factors of compensation, benefits, rewards, corporate culture, vision, career development, and working environment.
2. Get your employees involved in improving your employer brand
Include your employees in the whole process of redefining your brand communication strategy. After all, your reputation as an employer is communicated through them. They are also your point of contact with a qualified talent pool.
For example, let's say you are looking for an IT manager and your staff member knows the right person to hire. If they were happy in their job, they would speak highly of the company and maybe even recruit that person for you.
A strong and positive employer image will therefore not only attract job seekers but also retain current employees by boosting their commitment.
3. Optimize your hiring and departure management process
Paying close attention to the hiring and offboarding process will certainly help your projected image. Before offering an interview, make sure you have communicated your expectations. This will give you a better chance of quickly finding a candidate who meets your requirements.
In the same way, set out a framework for employees who leave the company. One of your former employees might look to come back to work with you one day, or if they have fond memories of the company, they could recommend you to a friend. In times of labour shortages, these references mean a lot.
4. Offer development and support programs
Training and development programs are just as essential for the company as for its employees. From the company's point of view, such programs keep the company competitive and on the lookout for industry trends and developments. For employees, they are part of a stimulating work environment that allows them to evolve and flourish. As it happens, when employees are happy, they stay in their jobs. By offering your employees development programs, you will quickly build a reputation as a caring employer, which is an asset to your employer brand.
5. Share employee testimonials
A testimonial from a satisfied employee is a resource worth considering in convincing job seekers to join your team. Use your website, newsletter, and social media to give an idea of what to expect if they come to work for your company. These positive stories will help spread a positive image of your company.
The measures listed above will help you enhance your image without incurring significant costs. But there are many others. For example, you could introduce flexible working hours or remote working, which are very popular with younger generations, for whom the balance between professional and private life is important. Establishing flexible holidays, measures supporting work-family balance, and support for mental health are other avenues you could consider.
Whatever your choices, a strong employer brand will optimize your hiring by reducing the cost per hire by up to 50% and increasing your employee retention rate. You will go from being an employer among many to an employer of choice.