Employer marketing, essential for every company today. Conscious (and unconscious) employers’ communication, branding focused on attracting talents, but also on engaging employees. A reflection of experiences that people have with the company, also at the exit point.
Should every company be concern about employer branding?
Employer branding consists of comprehensive activities that permeate today every sphere of communication and business. It is a tube, a megaphone through which the world finds out what kind of employer you are.
It is conscious and unconscious communication of the employer’s brand; it is an echo of your organizational culture. It is a reflection of experiences (good and bad) that people have with you as present, future and past employees.
Employer branding is the story of your employees and the relationships you build with candidates.
The employer’s brand is strongly tight to your marketing recruitment, but also is shaped by your employees, managers and leaders’ personal branding.
The opinion about the employer is created not only on the basis of how you welcome new employees, but also how you engage, develop, communicate, and how you part with people.
For several years now, the business has recognized the great opportunity of well-implemented employer branding. It reduces the retention costs, increases the efficiency of employees and their satisfaction with work. It also translates into the sale of services and products, because customers are more likely to buy from happy employees.
Employer Branding should tell a story about how you make your candidates and employees happy.
Employer branding is about sharing a story what kind of employer you are, what culture you cultivate, what king of work experiences you deliver to your employees.
Therefore, employer branding activities begin with defining the employer’s value proposition (EVP), i.e. defining what the employer has to offer, why employees join, what benefits are obtained (not only material).
Employer branding must be consistent with the company’s strategy. And not always the strategy will be recruiting. Therefore, the employer’s marketing must respond to business goals, to the HR strategy. EB’s strategy must be coherent and defined by measurable goals to bring tangible benefits to the organization.
Recruiting marketing must be responsible. Promises made to candidates should be delivered. So that they feel positively surprised when they come to work.
Employer branding is a very broad concept because many elements influence the employer’s brand. It is not only the experiences of candidates and opinions about the company on the Internet, but also the style and the way you part with employees.
Activities in the area of employer branding include research on the satisfaction of candidates with the recruitment process, but also exit interview (i.e. an interview with a person leaving the company). This is the way you distribute advertisements, write newsletters for employees, run a fanpage, organize integration trips, lead internal and external communication, appreciate and listen to your employees.
To what challenges can Employer Branding respond? What arę the goals and what kind of benefits does it bring to the companies?
Employer branding is for your organization if, for example:
- You wish to attract top talents and lower the cost of recruitment.
- You are faced with the challenge of increasing employee engagement.
- You want your employees to be ambassadors of your brand, recommend the company as a good place to work. (employee advocacy)
- Your new commers tend to leave just few days after they start their job.
- You want to be visible in social media, you want to show off what kind of workplace you create and how happy your employees are.
- You care about improving the experience of candidates applying to your organization (you want to improve the so-called candidate experience).
- You wish to diversify your teams.
What am I doing in employer branding?
I believe employers can and should work on creating places where we want to work. Once they do, satisfied employees will share their experiences and attract new ones to join. To structure the communication about “what kind of employer you are” companies need an employer branding strategy.
I have many years of experience in implementing employer branding projects for employers from various industries. I have coordinated two international projects for young talents and employers in Poland: the GMC Poland competition and the Enactus program.
I organized events that brought together several thousand people a year, dozens of employers, leading to hundreds of successful recruitments, and to building lasting and engaging relationships between employees and employers.
I have advised and implemented employer branding activities for brands such as: PKO Bank Polski, Bank Zachodni WBK, ING Bank Śląski, Budimex, AVON, KPMG, Orange Polska, AXA Group, PZU Group, METRO Group, PwC, Microsoft, Coca-Cola HBC Polska, Saint – Gobain Group.
I consult, advise, inspire, promote authenticity and responsibility in employer branding. Responsibility for promises made to candidates.
