Building a compelling Employer Value Proposition to help our clients grow (and most need help)

Across most of the clients that we meet one thing remains consistent. Be them large global corporates, or one-off SME’s, little thought has been given to their Employer Value Proposition (EVP).

Large corporations often hide behind their brand name, (somewhat arrogantly) assuming it's enough to attract talent. Smaller businesses frequently believe they can't compete, so don't try to develop a compelling EVP at all. Both approaches are deeply flawed when gaining interest, let alone securing, strong candidates.

Furthermore, if hiring decision makers were able to articulate why a star candidate should join their organisation, it places less emphasis on salary and fringe benefits. Strictly speaking, package benefits form part of an EVP, but it’s not, and never should be, the magic bullet.

In fact, too many companies’ hone in on package details. If you are doing this, it’s likely that you are attracting the wrong kind of individual. The industries that I serve – Building Materials & Construction - are much like several others: a close-knit community, with companies fighting over the same, small pool of talent. This often leads to attracting only the mercenary individuals, happy to jump ship at the slightest sniff of extra money.

For clarity, leading business publication, Forbes, defines EVP as: "Your employer brand is your reputation among future and current employees. It is the perception of what it is like to work at your company."

So many companies get it totally wrong.

In a recent report, LinkedIn highlighted that 86 percent of candidates factor in a company’s reputation, with 75 percent researching employer branding before even applying. I liken this to corporate buying habits. Colding calling has been purported to be a dying art, given three-quarters of buying habits have already been made prior to engaging with a supplier.

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What makes for a powerful EVP?

In my experience, when sitting down with an employer for the first time, the following areas have often lacked proper thought or been articulated:

Purpose & Impact

In my experience of recruiting leaders within the industries, stronger candidates will only polish off their CV’s if I can clearly explain what my client’s purpose is. It could be as simple of driving an innovate solution into a stale market, or as meaningful as throughout your competitor’s product range, you reduce carbon footprint by 50%. What is your why?

Two years ago, I met with a board of a ￡200m construction company. They complete a lot of work in social housing and yet none of the conversation, nor what was ‘sold’ to prospective employees centred around the fact that their service fundamentally changed people’s lives that desperately needed it. Candidates will buy into this, especially if their current work lacks a meaningful contribution to society. They want these types of characteristics in their business.

Growth & Development

This was the catalyst for me writing this article. So many companies don’t think to lead with their story. You are likely to have highly skilled salespeople, human resources, and marketers and yet struggle to drive this message.? I’ll often sit down with stakeholders to understand where the business is now and what the immediate, and longer-term plans are for the business.? Additionally, when looking to futureproof succession plans, explain that to the market! If the message is consistent across the entire recruitment process, you’ll be far more successful at attracting and securing the star hire.

I’ve recently hired two directors into a construction product manufacturer. They’d lost long serving staff. The UK business had been cobbled together over the past 20 years through numerous acquisitions.

On the face of it, their story was a mess. However, upon spending time with the Managing Director – who himself was likable and good at articulating where the business was heading – we were able to unearth an extremely compelling message on where they were heading. This included rich investment from a highly successful investor; with plans to increase turnover by 25 percent inside the next three years. None of this was marketed through their website, online collateral, or originally specifications for the role.

People should be people?

I’m not going to whittle on about WFH etc. However, whether we like it or not, prospective employees seek the human touch. Leaders fully expect to work past the traditional 9 to 5. But, gone are the days of not being able to watch their child’s Christmas play, or pick them up on an ad hoc basis when their partner’s working away. Furthermore, employers who offer mental wellness support is viewed more favourably. Shout about this through your online presence!

The latest Britain's Healthiest Workplace survey found that 73% of employees surveyed have at least one form of work-related stress; 41% reported that their work stress had increased in the past year. Candidates are becoming increasingly aware of this fact and seek evidence that you offer the support outlined above.

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Actions to take now

Hopefully, as you’ve been reading this article, it was provoked several ideas and realisms about your own approach to attracting the best candidates.

As a starting point, you should be prioritising:

-???Listening to employees. Whether this be through more structured surveys, or conversations, understanding why longer serving staff stay with you helps form your narrative. New appointees should provide information about what attracted them to your organisation, and how they found the onboarding process.

-????Reflect on the senior leadership teams behaviours, values, motivation and levels of collaboration. Additionally, can they clearly articulate your company’s purpose and legacy? Do they embody how you want to be perceived?

-????From the above, ask yourself, would I work for this business? If not, you’ll now have a clear appreciation for the actions that you need to take to change this perception.

-????Brainstorm your company’s journey with the board. Where you’ve evolved from, the successes and challenges that you face now, and what the future direction is. Where are you investing, diversifying, consolidating?

-?????A couple (and it is only a couple) of my clients have put a lot of work into their EVP. Tip: these were primarily driven between Human Resources and Marketing.

-?????From the above, make sure you articulate these through all social media outlets. Too many career pages are sterile affairs. Make it easy for candidates to be pulled into your story and want to work with you.

A word of warning on the above. A few years ago, creating values and a mission statement was in vogue. I’ve been in dozens of meetings with companies who hide behind these. Upon seeing the environment, I see through a lot of the noise, and so will candidates!

Three years ago, I met with a highly experienced HR Director of a large European interior product manufacturer. She told me that they’d just completed a national workshop with all employees to define their values. For the brief, I asked what these where. She couldn’t remember! Hugely embarrassing moment for me and her.

Be authentic.

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How Collingwood help build EVP’s

Questioning, listening, acting upon. Sounds trite but it’s true. Much of the key points outlined above are pulled together and we go to market with your ‘story’. This is often achieved even with confidential searches.

We also work with stakeholders to refine their approaches to first meet ups – how they approach the ‘courting exercise', who and how many individuals should be involved; how many stages, and what these stages should look like to build the trust, engagement, whilst gaining the insight they require to make decisions.

At the same point, we recognise that this is a two-way process. Being upfront, we have an outrageously high hit rate when it comes to clients interviewing our shortlists. Why? Because we take the time to not only gain an in-depth understanding of what’s needed but spend valuable time assessing the behavioural fit to your organisation.

?And an extremely valuable byproduct of all the above: not only will it greatly improve your ability to attract the best talent, but existing employees are likely to be more engaged, motivated and happy, which leads to greater retention rates.

Get in touch with me for a conversation about how we can help you transform your EVP and secure the best candidate for your next critical hire 07738 771720.