We always hear about the importance of building a brand to attract customers. But what we don't hear a lot about is the value of brand-building when it comes to recruiting. At a time when competition for top talent is fierce even in a sputtering economy, employers need to do a lot more than just dangle higher salaries, more flexible hours and referral bonuses to differentiate themselves from the competition.
Kim Cassady, director of global talent at Cornerstone OnDemand, says companies should put as much emphasis on their "employer brand" as they do on the public face they present to customers and the world. But building that brand means more than just throwing money and perks at potential recruits, she says. Cassady suggests four core strategies for developing a reputation as a great company to work for.
Create a Culture by Design
Recruiting today needs to be proactive, and that includes creating a mission statement and culture that's vibrant and attractive to job seekers. After all, in today's uber-connected society, corporate cultures get defined by default unless companies take an active role upfront, says Cornerstone OnDemand CEO Adam Miller. Key to this take-charge process is employee input: put workers -- not managers -- at the center and allow them to identify and describe a company's personality, purpose and rewards.
Tap the Company's Best Asset
A company's most effective brand advocates are its current employees. Just as they help define a company's culture, they should be intricately involved in the recruiting process, says Cassady. Employees can blog on the company's site or for other industry sites. They can talk up the company at networking events. They can even apply on the company's behalf for recognition as a "great place to work." And when there are openings to fill, remember that current staff members are the best resource: companies are 10 times more likely to hire a referred candidate than other applicants.
Keep up Appearances
A company's "employer brand" matters a lot, but not to the exclusion of its overall brand, Cassady notes. To that end, leadership throughout the company is critical. From marketing to human resources to finance to sales, department heads throughout a company should live up to the company's culture and values -- and communicate them effectively to key stakeholders, prospective recruits, customers, and current employees. A good way, explains Cassady, to maintain a strong brand is to set up a LinkedIn company profile, keep the company website up-to-date and make the most of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as a way to engage and inform the outside world. Statistics show that 98 percent of recruiters and hiring managers use social media so when it comes to building a public-facing brand, social media is a big avenue for success.
Differentiate Yourself, and Keep Doing It
Companies that look too much like their competitors have a harder time recruiting top talent based on factors other than compensation, says Cassady. It's critical, she says, that companies strive to set themselves apart from their rivals -- and to think constantly about new ways to do that. Zappos -- which has nap rooms for employees -- Google -- which offers employees free rental cars to run errands, free gyms and, in some cases, free on-site daycare -- and Airbnb -- where workers get $2,000 a year to spend as they wish on travel -- are all good examples of companies who have set themselves apart from the competition.
The perks don't have to be as costly as Google's or as wacky as Zappos', but companies would do well to remember that even small gestures can add up in the eyes of current -- and future -- employees.
Risorse correlate
Vuoi continuare a imparare? Scopri i nostri prodotti, le storie dei clienti e gli ultimi approfondimenti del settore.
Storie dei clienti
In che modo Bristlecone ha creato una cultura della formazione autonoma
Il gruppo Bristlecone (azienda del gruppo Mahindra) è un fornitore di punta di servizi di conversione degli applicativi basati sull'intelligenza artificiale per una supply chain sempre connessa. Questa azienda è nata 25 anni fa e sfrutta un approccio fondato sulla consulenza, con più di 12 hub globali e oltre 2.500 consulenti.
Post del blog
Green HR: strategie e azioni per organizzazioni sempre più sostenibili
Il ruolo e le responsabilità del settore HR sono in costante cambiamento e non soltanto per via dell’inevitabile trasformazione digitale. Negli ultimi anni la sensibilità verso le tematiche ambientali è notevolmente aumentata, specialmente tra le generazioni più giovani, che non sono più disposte a rinunciare ai propri ideali e principi. Per questo, anche la gestione delle risorse umane sta puntando sempre più sull’adozione di strategie e comportamenti green, il colore della sostenibilità che ormai tinge (o almeno dovrebbe) anche il mondo delle aziende, trasformandone valori e pratiche nel rispetto del pianeta e del benessere dei lavoratori. Un contesto più eco-friendly e confortevole, infatti, ha un impatto positivo anche sull’esperienza e sulla salute fisica e mentale dei dipendenti, che vedono così migliorate le loro condizioni di lavoro.
Post del blog
Lavoro ibrido: l’alleato perfetto per promuovere il work-life balance
Negli ultimi anni la pandemia ha rivoluzionato i paradigmi del mondo del lavoro, portando aziende e lavoratori a sperimentare nuove modalità di collaborazione. Il lavoro ibrido rappresenta un buon compromesso tra il rientro in ufficio e il lavoro da remoto tout court. Rispetto al modello tradizionale, basato su una condizione di presenzialismo e su un insieme di comportamenti legati all’ufficio inteso come luogo fisico, in un ambiente ibrido queste norme non sono più efficaci e la cultura deve trasformarsi, offrendo un grado maggiore di flessibilità e agilità ai dipendenti e resilienza alle organizzazioni.