Job Branding: Beyond Ads, Postings and Job Descriptions

• Author: Anna Kassulke
• Posted: June 4, 2007
• Category: Recruitment Communications, Employment Branding
• Tags: No Tags
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Part one in a two part series:

Employer branding does not stop with identifying your organization’s DNA. It marks the beginning of an ongoing communication process, with employees and potential employees.

A recent survey of 600 employees found that an organization’s reputation as an employer is important in a candidate’s decision to work for them in 9 out of 10 cases.

• 86 percent would not work for an organization with a bad reputation, even if they offered more financial incentives than one with a good reputation.

• 61 percent said they would not work for a company whose vision, values and culture did not match theirs.

• 23 percent said they would resign if the organization did not stick to its culture or branding

• To sustain an organization’s culture and branding with existing constituents, communication, professional development, employee involvement, management style and a consistent image demand continual vigilance.

This research clearly shows that clear, honest communication with all employees is vital, and yet many organizations neglect this.

UK-based Personnel Today surveyed people who drove the recruitment processes in their organizations. 95% of them believed that branding is important, and 80% said that it will become more so. And yet less than a quarter of them were given the responsibility of employer branding. Nowadays it is critical that HR is viewed as a strategic partner; it should be responsible for branding, as branding heavily impacts the bottom line.

It is time to act now, because realistic, accurate branding will give your company the edge when it comes to hooking and keeping the right talent for your organization. Let’s assume you’ve done your employer branding; now is the time to implement it and measure the results.

Your organization needs to be recognized, so you need to develop a communication theme that is compelling, targets the right candidates, and sends out a distinctive message about what is different or better about being employed by your organization.

Jacky Carter, Director of Hays, hits the nail on the head when she says, ‘When an engineer considers future employers, a certain firm instantaneously springs to mind. When an accountant seeks a move, certain companies are approached before others. This is the power of employment branding and is a major differential in the recruitment marketplace.’ She goes on to explain that with job branding, unlike employer branding, is not just about defining the compensation package and position description: it is about honestly projecting the organization’s culture, vision and employment experience, too.

Around 53% of employees disagreed or strongly disagreed with the fact that their current employer provides them with ‘a clear sense of why their organization is a great place to work.’ Hudson researchers maintain that the implication of this response is that retention rates will fall, and attracting top talent by word of mouth could also potentially fail. This particular report concludes that ‘good employment branding requires integrity,’ and that ‘poor employment branding undermines loyalty.’ So, ‘communication is key’ and should be ‘embraced by all of the company’s leadership, from the CEO down.’

Tomorrow, part two: Getting Beyond Blah