Building a Strong Employer Brand At All Times for a Sustainable Organization

Employer branding is a viral-based perception management program that is intended to raise an organization’s image in the marketplace as a well-managed business, thereby attracting a steady flow of top quality applicants. Simply put, it provides potential employees with a window into what it is like to work both in and for an organization.

Reputation management and employer branding has evolved to become a board-level concern and a key component of market value. Employer branding should be viewed as an ongoing process that is at the heart of the employment experience, providing touch points that begin with initial employer brand awareness and continuing throughout the tenure of employment.

Even during extraordinary periods of economic growth or downturn, employer branding is crucial as all employees are discerning clients, to be attracted, engaged and retained by organizations and employers. Organizations that seize the opportunity to engage with their current and potential employees will differentiate themselves from those that adopt a defensive stance. In order to differentiate with competitors, organizations should remain upbeat and proactively strengthen their employment proposition as well as the promise they make to their employees.

Balancing employer branding with financial viability

Employer branding, like any worthwhile endeavor, needs top management commitment and long-term investment to get it right. By getting the employer brand right, less money is needed to bring good people into the business. No organization can afford to overlook the value provided by access to the world’s best and brightest talent. By strengthening its employer brand, organizations are able to focus less on overcoming the talent shortage, significantly enhance their talent pipeline, improve employee retention and increase shareholder value.

In a Harvard Business Review study, researchers found that employers who invested more in their employees’ training and development outperformed the stock markets by up to 35%. Since there is an established connection between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction, branding can increase customer service levels and customer satisfaction, both of which have an established economic value.

Examples of traditional metrics that have been used to measure ROI on employer branding activities include cost per hire, time to fill, retention rates and turnover rates. A growing number of organizations are also exploring and adopting forward-looking measures that include promotion readiness rating, external versus internal hire ratio, quality-hire ratio and the performance ratings of newly promoted managers.

Making employer branding a part of the recruitment plan

Employees are increasingly behaving like consumers when choosing to join or stay with an employer. A positive employer brand can be a way of differentiating one organization from another and a way of creating a strong, distinctive and attractive identity with which current or potential employees can identify. Today’s leading employers recognize that it is essential to develop good people policies and to communicate these externally as well as internally to attract the best and brightest talent.

Employer branding can be done through creating value propositions in the areas of corporate leadership, organizational values, job function and rewards. The most precious asset an organization has is its reputation in the eyes of the public and potential employees. Reputations are painstakingly built up and can be quickly destroyed.

Potential employees these days make decisions about accepting a position with an organization based on more than just remuneration. Aspects of the organization’s

culture impact both on the initial recruiting success and on retention rates. If the employer brand is right, it will attract staff with a solid cultural fit to the organization, and if the employer brand delivers on its promise, these staff members will be more willing to stay with an organization.

It is clear from lists such as Fortune’s “Best Companies” that being a good employer is good for business, especially during uncertain times. In a downturn, a strong employer brand can improve employee motivation as well as help to keep top people on board.

Ultimately, employer branding is not just about getting more people to apply for a job vacancy – it is about attracting those who are aligned with the organization and believe in it – its vision, values, commitment to employees and clients as well as to ensure employees are a ‘good fit’ with your organization.