Christmas is just around the corner and that means one thing; it’s time to start thinking about how you can make your employees’ experience the best it can be in 2016.
Taken from our latest whitepaper, here are 12 Employer Branding Tips from HR directors and comms professionals at companies including Nationwide, Aviva, ODEON, Morrisons and BNP Paribas.
So, grab yourself a mince pie (and maybe a cheeky mulled wine) and learn from some of the best in the business.
- Remember that employer brand is about more than attraction and recruitment
“Don’t make the mistake of seeing an employer brand strategy as just an exercise to support recruitment – it’s about engaging with your existing employees too.” Jack Winters Global Internal Communications Lead, IMI Precision
- Let Millennials add value to your business
“Young mentors are training board members who are now adopting iPads for use in the workplace. This helps build links across the company and facilitate community and bring together dispirit populations. Gen Y likes to add value and this is a great example of where they can.” Rachel Appleton HR Director, BNP Paribas
- Stop arguing about who owns employer brand
“Whilst the debate over whether employer branding should be led by HR or marketing continues, it’s not the debate we should be having! The focus of future discussions should be on the skills, experiences and capabilities required to successfully execute the employer brand strategy and the structure of the team that supports it.” Brett Minchington CEO, Employer Brand International and Employer Branding College
- Your CEO should be visible to all employees
“Our CEO plays a pivotal role in terms of employee engagement and he uses tools such as twitter and our internal employee channels to connect directly with employees.” Lee Griffiths Resourcing, Brand & Attraction Manager, Nationwide
- Remember diversity doesn’t just mean demographic groups, it’s about the individual
“True engagement with employees is about treating them like an individual. Know your people and what motivates them! It’s disrespectful to be labelled as a certain thing.” Andrew Crowe Engagement Manager, Morrisons
- Internal communications needs to stop relying on email
“We need to break out of the email paradigm and we are on the cusp of articulating more productive ways of working with Yammer.” Simon Field, Senior Communications Advisor, BP
- Think global from the outset
“Be careful when you are a global company to ensure your framework is flexible enough to be adapted to the nuances of the different markets you operate in. When businesses are too centralised then all the definitions and plans that come out of Corporate HQ often don’t make sense or are irrelevant/wishy washy to other regions and cultures.” Jack Winters Global Internal Communications Lead, IMI Precision
- Be clear and transparent about what you’re offering
“People perform best when there’s a clear deal, and when we keep our side of the bargain. If that’s employer branding, I say bring it on.” Kathryn Pritchard Group Chief People Officer, ODEON UCI Cinema Holdings Ltd
- Let your people tell your story
“We have people stories on our intranet that demonstrate the diversity of our people.” Jon Hawkins Head of Internal Communications, Aviva
- Think clearly about your measurement metrics
“We are studying attrition, increase in retention and also how we capture the more qualitative feedback about our culture.” Global Talent and Development, FTSE 100 Financial Service Company
- Benchmark yourself against your competitors
“We studied competitors and looked at best practice amongst leading companies. We did a lot of peer-to-peer networking.” Melvin Rogers Director of HR, Sytner Group
- Put your values front and centre
“We are a values-driven organisation so we tend to attract people who share those values regardless of age.” Lisa Stanley, Head of Communications, Triodos Bank
What’s your advice?
What will you be focusing on in the New Year? Let us know in the comments below.
