Every company has an employer brand and failing to manage it properly can lead to real difficulties when it comes to recruiting the best people. It is the outward expression of your employee value proposition and can set your organisation apart as an employer of choice.

In a world where there is a shortage of key skills across all sectors, managing the employer brand has become a business-critical activity. A lack of key talent is already putting pressure on organisations and so a strategic and creative approach is necessary to ensure companies are more attractive to both current employees and talented candidates than their competitors.

A best-practice employer branding strategy presents the story of your organisation in a way that will both engage a potential employee and encourage an existing employee to stay. It brings the mission, values and culture to life through great storytelling, whether about the amazing people already working for you or the incredible work that the company does.

Our work ranges from building employer brand websites to filming staff, who are the ambassadors of our clients’ brands, in locations from New York to Cardiff. We strive to cut through the white noise in the recruitment sector in creative ways that have a real impact and make a lasting impression on those looking for career opportunities and a vibrant work environment.

Articulating the employee value proposition

Through our content we blend the key elements of the employee value proposition, such as pay and employee benefits, with the attributes and qualities that are often intangible, make an organisation distinctive, and promise a particular kind of employee experience. Highlighting your organisation’s values, people strategy and policies using powerful content formats leaves a lasting impression.

We use a broad range of formats from video, animation and gamification to simple written text. And we support clients in transferring their employer brand and employee value proposition into the social arena with everything from targeted social campaigns to the creation of social cards and video clips. There are huge benefits to such employer brand activity, including:

• Attracting top talent: by highlighting your company’s values, a job seeker can readily see that they align with their own
• Retaining staff: if talented employees feel they are part of a company with a strong culture and values they are more likely to stay
• Increasing productivity: employees who feel they are part of a company with a good culture and values are often more engaged and productive
• Saving money on recruitment: a strong employer brand attracts applications and encourages staff to stay, saving time and money on recruitment and training.

Powerful stories in employee engagement

Organisations are currently seeing the results of the Great Resignation that was sparked by Covid-19 and has seen large numbers of people reconsider their careers and leave the workforce. In addition, the ageing population has seen a rising number of workers reaching retirement. Little wonder, perhaps, that more companies are focusing on their employer branding and employee value proposition to stand out in a shrinking talent pool.

While pay and benefits remain a key attraction for recruits and existing employees alike, it can be hard for a company to distinguish itself in these areas. Almost every company is searching for great tech talent, for example, but competing on pay with the tech giants of Silicon Valley is difficult. But for a new generation of talented candidates across all disciplines, an attractive employee value proposition includes a company culture and values that align with their own.

If this is a story your organisation can tell, then an employer branding agency like ours can help you tell it in memorable and powerful ways that could provide a genuine competitive edge. Appealing to the heart as well as the mind of prospective employees is key to employer branding strategies. So, explaining your values and culture as well as practical issues such as career development is essential in attracting the right talent.

An authentic employee experience

A recent report by STEM recruiter SThree found that for 81% of STEM professionals purpose was the main influence driving their careers and 53% would rather work for an organisation that aligns with their own personal values. Employee engagement around these issues has become essential.

And according to the CIPD’s People Professional 2030: a collective view of future trends report, there is an increasing demand for responsible business, transparency and accountability, suggesting areas where employer brand management needs attention. But in seeking to meet these emerging demands, keeping an employer brand authentic is critically important.

One of the major headaches for human resources departments is new recruits leaving very soon after joining the organisation because the realities of work and the employee value proposition don’t reflect the promise of the employer brand. Because of this we work hard to understand and articulate what a company really offers, from purposeful work to flexible working and work-life balance.

For example, our award-winning CGI globes helped one recycling company demonstrate the huge benefits its operations have for society as part of its employer branding campaign, alongside an interactive game that enabled prospective employees to control a recycling truck. They don’t embellish what the company does but simply tell the real story of the company purpose in an unusually compelling way.

Employee retention and engagement

Current employees are a huge part of the equation. Not only do companies need to keep their key talent, but those who currently or previously worked for you are likely to use social media in their professional lives and can have an enormous impact on your employer brand. For these two reasons, keeping them engaged and enthused with the company’s operations is essential.

In one project, for example, we encouraged current employees at an airline to engage with the addition of ground-breaking aircraft to their fleet with a competition called ’Pimp my A380’. The employee engagement campaign invited staff to design their own livery or interior for the aircraft and more than 10,000 designs were submitted.

Another important role of the employer brand is to ensure the company appeals to as wide a talent pool as possible. That means demonstrating diversity in the workplace to reassure talent from every walk of life that they are welcome. That may be as simple as picturing the diverse workforce or it may be more subtle, in explaining how elements of the employee value proposition, such as flexible working and maternity leave, can make working easier for women.

Ultimately, your employer branding can inspire existing employees and attract the right talent, but it is likely to be the more practical side of the employee contact that seals the deal and every perk is important. A creative and memorable employer brand working hand-in-hand with a competitive employee value proposition should be at the heart of any talent management strategy. It can help fill critical roles and in the current labour market, companies that can do that will be the ones that succeed.