Employer branding has become so much of a buzzword that encapsulates many processes and practices. However, at its core, it’s about the way that your company is perceived by potential future employees.
As it always is in branding, you should start putting in place a long-term strategy to keep employees bound by a set of values, ethics, and a sense of purpose. After more the last years of muddy waters where lots of company processes had to be reshaped to fit the reality of a truly dynamic workforce, we thought addressing employer branding as a process is necessary.
Moving from process to people
One of the forthcoming trends that companies will face sooner or later is that people right now require more personal interactions. In the past year more than ever we rediscovered the importance of meaningful connections, and companies will have to look at the way that their employees will interact with them, with their colleagues, their community, and so on. Most of the employers on the market put many resources into the processes, in getting those results above their competitors, but perhaps the most important demand is creating a climate for their employees to grow.
Gone are the days when recruiting was merely a mundane process filled with paperwork and robotic algorithms. It’s time to embrace a new era where the spotlight shines on people.
Goodbye, Soulless Automation. Pre-screening CVs isn’t just inefficient because it is time consuming, but also because companies of the future would want to assess their candidates beyond official recognitions that fit on a sheet of paper. Recruitment has to live under the predicament of becoming personal and of serving not only the company or only the candidate, but the best interest of both, simultaneously.
Recruitment is, at its core, a human endeavor. It’s about building relationships, understanding motivations, and discovering that spark of brilliance hidden within each candidate. By embracing the human touch, recruiters can unleash their powers of empathy to read between the lines – and HR tech solutions are only a layer of intelligence that’s applied on top of these priorities to make attaining them easier.
It is all about the experience
Let’s be honest—candidates have endured their fair share of recruitment horrors. From the dreaded black hole of applications to never-ending interview processes resembling an episode of ‘Game of Thrones’, the candidate experience has often been a treacherous path to navigate.
Engage with candidates, keep them informed, and treat them like the valued individuals they are. The result? A genuine, positive experience that your candidate will definitely share with their peers whether you decide to collaborate or not. Worst case, you become the voice of good practices in your industry. And in the era of Glassdoor reviews, a little employer branding done well never hurt anyone.
What makes a more quality working environment than a company realizing their employees’ experiences will become the way that future possible employees will know about a company?
The future of work is starting to look hybrid. A survey from IBM shows that 75% would like to work remotely occasionally, and 54% would like to go only to the office. Future-facing companies must adapt their benefits on how future work will look.
One good thing about this metric is that it can’t be faked. The way people are treated at the workplace is not something you can sweep under the rug, and it will eventually become common knowledge in your industry. And this applies to multi-billion corporations as well as startups and small businesses. Taking care of your talent the entire period that they work for you, being fair and making active efforts to bring out the best in every employee is definitely a metric that’s here to stay when it comes to the future of employer branding. The cancel generation listens to social metrics like this one and has started to call out companies who are careless when it comes to their human resource.
Purpose, Ethics & Values
But why is it so important to have them in line with all things above? To make a long story short, the time when values were just a page on the website that nobody cares about are long gone. Companies have to practice what they preach and to create a sustainable ecosystem that pays attention to people. Whether it’s the employees or the community, the companies’ values and their ethics are a matter of public interest. And it only makes sense.
People are increasingly aware that businesses would fail without the public support, and they use this as a social leverage. Being transparent and forward about your activity only increases trust and it creates a comfortable workplace. Without a clear set of values at the core of your activity, employer branding stops being credible.
As the recruitment landscape is shaped by the increasing talent shortage, it has become vital for companies to uphold their values – and there’s no better time to start showcasing them than the recruitment process itself, aka the first time a possible future employee interacts with your company. Just like brand touchpoints we go through when making a purchase decision – or even more so – touching base with an employer is equally valuable and will be judged as such by every candidate of the 21st century.
In this era where individuals recognize the value of their skills for businesses, aligning recruitment practices with company values becomes an essential element in attracting and retaining top talent. Maintaining company values during recruitment is significant, as it serves as a powerful tool to overcome the challenges of talent scarcity.
Here are the 4 benefits to practicing what you preach throughout the recruitment process:
Attracting the Right Talent
Skilled professionals are in high demand, and candidates possess the luxury of choice. They are not just looking for a paycheck, but for an organization that aligns with their own values, purpose, and vision. By upholding company values throughout the recruitment process, you establish your organization as a beacon for like-minded individuals who are seeking more than just a job.
When your recruitment practices embody the values that drive your organization, you attract candidates who resonate with those values. This alignment leads to a stronger employer-employee relationship, increased employee satisfaction, and improved retention rates. After all, employees who believe in and align with the company’s values are more likely to be engaged, motivated, and invested in the long-term success of the organization.
Ensuring Cultural Fit
Company values define the collective beliefs, behaviors, and norms that drive the company culture. Evaluate candidates not only based on their skills and qualifications, but also on their alignment with your culture and values.
By placing a strong emphasis on cultural fit, you ensure that new hires seamlessly integrate into the existing organizational ecosystem. They bring a shared sense of purpose, work ethic, and mindset that harmonizes with the company’s values. This leads to stronger teamwork, better collaboration, and ultimately, a more cohesive and productive work environment.
Retaining Top Talent
A real challenge, particularly in times and industries facing talent scarcity. However, upholding company values during recruitment plays a vital role in nurturing and retaining your most valuable employees.
When candidates perceive the alignment of their personal values with the organization’s values during the recruitment process, they are more likely to stay engaged and committed in the long run. By reinforcing these values throughout their employment journey, you create an environment where employees feel a sense of belonging, purpose, and fulfillment. This, in turn, fosters loyalty, reduces turnover, and cultivates a strong employer brand that keeps attracting high-quality talent.
Strengthening the Employer Brand
Your company’s reputation and employer brand are paramount, especially in the face of corporate abuse that many of the Millennials have unfortunately experienced in pre-pandemic times. Candidates extensively research and evaluate potential employers before making career decisions. A strong employer brand built on the foundation of authentic values becomes a magnet for top talent.
When your recruitment process consistently reflects the organization’s values, it shows your commitment to integrity, fairness, inclusivity, and other values that resonate with individuals seeking purposeful and fulfilling work environments. A positive employer brand attracts not only skilled professionals but also those who share your company’s values, thereby fostering a diverse and vibrant workforce.
Real Corporate Responsibility
If a community is aware of its people, that community will prosper through all kinds of social needs. After all, CSR is about helping communities in every way ranging from sustainability to helping bridge the gap between the underprivileged and growth opportunities, and so on. In the present climate, a future-facing company must think more about the world around us in an empathic way, rather than a way that they will benefit from.
And while CSR has been around for some time, it’s only recently that people have started to take a closer look at the way it’s done. The more we evolve and we infuse the workplace with new generations of people with different values and outlooks on life, the better we understand their values, especially since new generations are more attentive to the bigger social picture every company paints through its activity.
