An Employer’s brand is what shapes the perception of an employee, a potential employee, or a former employee with regards to your organization. It is what sets you apart from other employers and defines you as a great employer to work for, an employer of choice, a Top employer.
Fortune Magazine ranks Google as No. 1 amongst 2008 Top Employers. What is it that makes Google so grand? What is it that urges the world’s prime talents to fiercely strive for a Google job? It’s much more than perks and benefits, it’s the image that Google imprints in the minds of employees/ prospective employees/ stakeholders, the means they use to connect with them on an emotional level, the way they position themselves as not only a global Top search engine but also as a global Top employer- all this combines to formulate the company’s ”Employer Brand”. It is fundamental for employers to take a holistic approach to branding throughout all activities related to the employment process as the ‘’perceived’’ power of a company’s brand is directly representative of the ‘’actual’’ power of the brand.
A few tips below:
1. Manage “Job Postings” with Diligence: More often than not, job seekers are drawn to minuscule particulars of the job- they wish to discover all there is to know about it and no amount of detail is superfluous. As an employer aiming to have your employer brand prevail, make sure all vacancies you publish (online, in the newspaper, etc…) comprise a thorough and eloquent job description. Throw in supplementary excitement stimuli here and there (about perks/ benefits/ development opportunities). Include your Logo and a brief and concise narrative of who you are, what you do as a company and what the company stands for. Incite candidates to want to join you and to want the job no matter what! Let everyone know that you are hiring while putting your best resources and efforts into making it a pleasant experience for job seekers. At the same time make it very clear that you are firmly and steadfastly committed to your employees by expounding on such items as company culture, retention programs, employee satisfaction surveys and employment standards! Differentiate your company in the Job Posting by expounding on not just all the items you require of prospective candidates but also all the items that make your company a preferred place to work. (Would you like to learn more about how Bayt.com can help you better expose your brand? Visit our recruiting solutions section).
2. Manage your “Company Website” with Diligence: With typically no less than 8 hours of works a day, 5 days a week in the same office, a company becomes an employee’s second domicile and its staff becomes, voluntarily or not, a second family. Therefore, you can undoubtedly count on prospective candidates to pay your website a visit to dig into details that would ease their hearts and minds. Make sure your website is a winning one! This is not simply a matter of using the right graphics, colors, images, backgrounds and formats. You need to make sure your vision, mission statement, values and culture are all very clearly and concisely articulated. Show potential candidates why they should and would want to join your organization and the benefits they will reap once part of your team. Including pictures and videos and biographies of your existing staff/ management and keeping content up-to-date would also contribute to make your website even more compelling and your vacancies even more in demand. Similarly a Press Corner can shed invaluable light on the company’s recent news and a Community Service section assuming the company engages in such activities sheds further light on the company’s values and culture. (Siemens, Coca Cola & Google and more of the best corporate websites 2008 were talked about in the financial times: take a look and get inspired)
3. Manage “Candidate Job Applications” with Diligence: Hiring managers and recruiters all over the world receive gargantuan masses of job applications every single working day, some of which may be appealing enough to call the subject in for an interview, and others of candidates who could be unqualified, overqualified or simply totally irrelevant. However, this does not imply unfit candidates can be ignored and left in the midst of uncertainty. An employer aiming to have their employer brand prevail does, of course use all means available to screen and qualify talent and source only the best , however they do, as well, take the time to actually reply to all applicants, regardless of whether or not they were successful enough to proceed to the next stage! There is nothing more frustrating to a candidate than not being acknowledged by a company after putting the time and effort to research it, apply to it, and trust it enough to want to join it. Your employer brand is calling you to take action: a simple “thank you, you have not made it to the interview phase” will, not only ease the candidate’s doubt, but will also showcase the professional and dedicated HR professional that you are, and the respectful and considerate organization that your company is. Brand yourself the right way – make every point of contact with the outside world a professional one!
4. Manage “Job Interviewees” with Diligence: They have developed interest in your company, they have researched your line of work and your culture and liked it, they have succeeded in getting to you via their compelling job application, they are now here for the interview - your employer brand has, hitherto, been on the right track, but it does not end here! The interview represents the perfect setting for you to convey an exemplary image about your company and yourself! Do be on time, do be professional, do be friendly and most importantly, do put the interviewee at ease. Remember, you are not simply making a mere business transaction. You are aiming at recruiting a “relationship” before recruiting an “employee”. Aim at guaranteeing a winning relationship via the recruitment process whether the prospective employee does or does not get the job! Solid recruiting relationships translate into a more solid employer brand.
5. Manage “Employees” with Diligence: Nothing can boost an employer brand better than having existing employees willingly want to brag about your organization! Satisfied employees often tend to volunteer to tell stories about their company’s unrivaled success, unique culture, and exquisite bundle of values! Make your employees happy: Reward them when due, support them when needed, and leave the doors open for communication at all times just so they know they can come to you for both positive and negative feedback. Transparency, integrity, support and gratitude is what talents are after in their quest for their ideal employer today!
This article originally appeared in bayt.com.
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