EMPLOYER BRANDING – DELIVERING ON PROMISES

 

 

In the last six months, MindShift has seen a marked increase in the number of clients initiating employer branding projects. An ‘employer brand’, a term coined by Simon Barrow in the 1990’s, refers to a ‘package of functional, economic and psychological benefits provided by employment and identified with the employing company.’*

 

Working with employer branding involves understanding target group preferences, formulating employer branding offers and messages, communicating effectively with target groups, measuring impact and revising efforts as needed. However, employer branding is more than nice words and slogans—in order for employer branding to work, companies need to be insightful regarding their own organisations and to deliver on what they promise.

 

With economic forecasts looking gloomy, an increasing interest in employer branding may come as a surprise to many, however MindShift identifies a number of strong drivers behind this trend:

  • Talent Gaps: Many companies slowed or stopped recruiting during the IT downturn and now lack competence at the middle-management level, having insufficient numbers of high performers in their early to mid 30’s. This talent gap becomes especially worrisome as companies consider the growing numbers of key employees entering retirement in the next five years. In order to bridge talent gaps, companies need targeted strategies to identify the most effective means of attracting, recruiting and, importantly, retaining business critical profiles.

     

  • The long-term perspective: Workforce planning has proved a key development area for MindShift clients during 2007 and 2008. A strong workforce plan provides a solid base for understanding talent needs and often underscores the importance of a proactive, systematic and long-term approach to employer branding.

Client case

For one MindShift client, meeting ambitious growth targets hinges on the company’s ability to significantly improve its attractiveness as an employer. In a multi-phase project, MindShift assisted the client to better understand target group preferences and to analyze and reshape employer branding messages and communication strategies. The project also included an audit of the company’s people management structures and processes resulting in an action plan to ensure that people processes demonstrate the employer branding promises made by the company.

 

MindShift believes that successful employer branding work begins with a thorough current situation analysis and a solid implementation plan before the creative work begins.

 

 

 

 

Challenges and trends

The challenges that organisations face when initiating employer branding efforts are numerous. Some challenges relate to the complexity of coordinating actions that bridge borders between HR, Corporate Communications and Marketing. Who takes ownership of employer branding initiatives and who should be involved?

 

Another challenge involves globalisation and diversity among target groups: multinational companies struggle to determine what key messages form the core of their branding strategy. What makes a company a unique and identifiable employer regardless of geography? How can one position oneself to attract both academic and non-academic profiles, and how does one best reach the latter?

 

In Sweden and Finland more people are leaving the labour market then are entering it. MindShift expects that employer branding increasingly will be viewed as a strategic issue, with its success directly linked to companies’ ability to meet business targets.

 

*Barrow, Simon and Mosley, Richard (2005) The employer brand: bringing the best of brand management to people at work. UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

 

 

About MindShift

MindShift is a Human Resource & Organisation consulting firm offering strategic and operational advisory services. Our clients are mid-sized to large multinational corporations from a wide range of industries. MindShift employs seven consultants with international backgrounds in human resource management, organisational development, and business administration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

www.mind-shift.com

MindShift,  Östermalmsgatan 83, 114 50  STOCKHOLM, Sweden
Tel: +46 8 410 238 88, Fax: +46 8 410 238 98
info@mind-shift.com