7 Ways to Increase Your Employer Value Proposition
Whether you’re a small business in Poughkeepsie, NY, or a global enterprise, employer branding is more critical than ever in shaping the recruitment process. The rapid emergence of iconic tech brands in the last twenty years has formed job seekers’ consciousness. As career-building becomes a more thoughtful and strategic practice, job seekers are more aware of their employer brand than ever.
Employer Branding is defined as the reputation of a workplace. How are the products and services of the company viewed? What descriptions or feelings are associated with the company name? How do employees feel about working for that company? Are the leadership and executive members recognizable? A strong employer brand is associated with a great work experience, a sense of corporate identity, and a high-value proposition for career growth.
The immediate benefits of having a flock of candidates interested in working for your company are quite obvious: less recruiting costs, minimal staffing agencies, and faster time-to-hire. However, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Companies with a strong candidate following can even impact the internal talent, culture, and engagement quality of an entire organization. Deep-seated benefits include better candidates in general, pride in work culture, engaged employees, and less turnover.
A healthy framework for building up employer branding includes tactical and strategic tools for the short and long-term. It is a holistic process. It focuses on the recruiting, HR, and staffing departments, but also requires leadership and management buy-in to truly work:
- Get clear on your company mission. What do you do and why? Fostering company identity is important in instilling a sense of purpose for employees. Craft a clear mission statement and post it across all marketing and recruiting surface areas. Ensure that it is consistent in all company and recruiting profiles.
- Create a benefits 1-pager. Does your company offer insurance? What other benefits does it offer? What benefits are unique to your company and could be highlighted? Clarity on benefits is a huge plus when it comes to recruiting.
- Leverage social media profiles: Glassdoor, Linkedin and job board profiles, Twitter, and industry-specific sites. Utilizing the mission statement on these sites is critical. Photo visuals of actual employees and the actual workplace are also highly effective.
- Create a referral program. Good people know good people and it’s just an added incentive to bring people on board.
- Educate your entire company on business metrics through routine business updates. Every department has department-specific goals, but they are playing for one team so it’s valuable when everyone is knowledgeable in how the company is doing. Shared knowledge cultivates corporate identity and a sense of responsibility. In the recruiting department specifically, this information can directly benefit the candidate experience.
- Invest in your managers through proper training, mentorship, and support. Managers are the frontlines to your overall employee population. They directly influence the experience of your employees. Great referrals come from highly engaged workforces.
- Do exit interviews. Employees leaving the company are just as important as the ones coming in, and paying attention to their experience can reveal valuable feedback. Make listening to former employees part of your growth process for improving the work experience of your current and future employees.
Not all companies can be Google, but luckily the tools to create and promote an employer brand are more widely accessible than ever. Employer brands have come to shape how people operate in the workforce. As a job seeker, knowing how employer branding shapes your resume is extremely important. As an employer, investing in your brand as an employer can prove extremely fruitful.
At SMART Staffing Group, Inc., we are a Minority- and Woman-Owned business. We’ve helped match ambitious job seekers with strong employer brands since 2014, helping our local and extended community around Poughkeepsie, NY find meaningful work.
