On the back of a brilliant 12 months in 2022, and as a definite sign…
We brought together 10 companies to share their employer brand experiences. The result? An easy-to-follow 10 Step Employer Brand Action Plan.
Our roundtable event Workplace 2025: Defining the Successful Employer Brand of the Future welcomed senior leaders from companies including Aviva, BP, National Trust, Brightside Group, the Driver Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), Las Iguanas and the CIPR. They discussed their views, experiences and challenges of implementing employer brand into their businesses.
What is employer brand?
Your employer brand (EB) tells everyone exactly who you are as an employer – and delivering on that promise. It’s the set of attributes and qualities that set you apart from others. It’s the entire experience an employee has with your company. It’s your company DNA. This means creating an employee value proposition (EVP) for employees and potential recruits to believe in, with a vision and set of values that encapsulate the behaviours required by both the employee and the employer to enable success.
Why is employer branding important?
To succeed you need to bring your people with you, attracting and retaining the best talent to drive your business forward and become the stakeholders of change. For this to happen, the organisation needs an employer brand solution which is strong enough to cope with change, yet flexible enough to adapt as needed.
How to develop an employer branding strategy
10 Step Action Plan
- Define a clear process
- Engage key leaders and stakeholders
- Recruit your dream team
- Define your purpose
- Be prepared for the long haul
- Fid your truth
- Discover your advocates
- Test and learn
- Don’t be daunted by digital
- Tailor your approach
To download the full action plan as a PDF, click here.
What we did
Brought together 10 experienced professionals from the worlds of HR, internal communications, talent, engagement, reward and leadership.
What we got
10 practical recommendations of how to future proof your business and create the successful employer brand of the future – that will attract and retain the next generation workforce.
Action 1: Define a clear process
Agreeing a process means your employer brand journey is tangible, gets everyone on the same page and ensures you stay on track. It starts with stakeholders and insight and goes right through to design and implementation.
Action 2: Engage key leaders and stakeholders
Your CEO and senior leadership team need to be clear that employer brand is far more than just an attraction and recruitment tool, but a holistic strategy to ensure that people apply and stay in your organisation. Use hard facts to get their buy in.
Action 3: Recruit your dream team
Collaboration is key to success; marketing, HR, internal communications, L&D, social, PR and even IT need to work together. Find your people, agree the process, define the priorities and split the workload.
Action 4: Define your purpose
People want more than just a job; they want to make a difference. Involve everyone in finding your purpose, and aim to ensure it runs through your whole business.
Action 5: Be prepared for the long haul
Now you have a process (and the people) in place, remember it’s never-ending! A good employer brand is based on insight and employee feedback, which means it will be constantly evolving.
Action 6: Find your truth
Your employer brand must tell the truth or you’ll get found out when people check social media, or leave because it’s not as you ‘sold it’. Important for attracting Millennials and Generation Z. Values and benefits should match reality.
Action 7: Discover your advocates
Word of mouth is powerful. Conversations will shape your brand and make it real. Find those with influence in your company and engage them – remember your alumni, too.
Action 8: Test and learn
Test your ideas for evidence and success. This could mean piloting an initiative in a specific department, office or country and ironing out any kinks or problems prior to a full-scale roll out.
Action 9: Don’t be daunted by digital
With new technology, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Remember it’s just a platform. Go back to basics; audience, messaging, channels, test and prove. You don’t always need new technology. Use channels employees are already on – do what feels right for your business.
Action 10: Tailor your approach
Every business has slightly different cultures within it – perhaps across countries or divisions – adapt your approach to audience, location and needs. But make sure you always reflect those core values and truth.
Get creative
Your employer brand is your brand, so comms for employee touch points should be just as strong as your external brand.
A big thanks
A big thank you to the senior leaders who took part in our frank, round-table discussion: Aviva, National Trust, Brightside, St James Place, Las Iguanas, DVSA, BP, Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR).
