Employee Value Proposition

Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is the balance of the rewards and benefits that are received by employees in return for their performance at the workplace. Organizations generally develop an EVP to provide a consistent platform for employer brand communication and experience management.

It has become closely related to the concept of employer branding, in terms of the term EVP being used to define the underlying 'offer' on which an organization's employer brand marketing and management activities are based. In this context, the EVP is often referred to as the Employer Brand Proposition. All organizations should develop a statement of why the total work experience at their organization is superior to that at other organizations

The value proposition should identify the unique people policies, processes and programs that demonstrate the organization’s commitment to i.e., employee growth, management development, ongoing employee recognition, community service, etc. Contained within the value proposition are the central reasons that people will choose to commit themselves to an organization. The EVP should be actively communicated in all recruitment efforts, and in letters offering employment, the EVP should take the focus off of compensation as the primary "offer."

Study and analyse the data

The first stage is to review and dissect all of the data you currently available. This might include employee engagement, on-boarding or exit surveys and recruitment and retention metrics. Analyse all data by key employee populations to identify trends and key themes. Remember to look beyond the top line numbers – the real insights come from the verbatim comments of employees that provide context to the numbers.

Discuss and Discover

This is the most important step in developing your EVP and should involve key stakeholders including senior management, HR, marketing and most importantly existing and target employees. It is also a step that can cause much debate, particularly between marketing and HR professionals.

This stage should include interviews with key stakeholders and focus groups with employees to dive deeper into key themes identified in step one.  

External customer value propositions are often based on a “tell” approach, where a brand will define what it wants to stand for and then use marketing channels to deliver this brand promise. However, an EVP is an employee-centric approach that is aligned to existing HR strategies because it has been informed by existing employees.

Develop your EVP

Now it is time to develop your EVP. Based on all of the research and insights from steps one and two, you need to craft your value proposition that should be a simple overarching statement that will become the essence of your employee experience and employer brand commitment.

At this stage you should also clarify the key areas of focus to support your EVP, such as Career Development, Work-Life balance or CSR. But keep these areas focused and don’t try to be all things to all people.

Importantly, you should also test your EVP against your HR strategy. If your EVP does not support your HR strategy then you need to revise it.

Deliver your message

Now it is time to implement your EVP across the employee experience from your recruitment processes, through to on-boarding, career development and even through the exit stage. You should ensure that the message and intent of the EVP is delivered at each of these stages in materials such as recruitment adverts, performance development materials and remuneration discussions.

And finally, build in methods to measure the EVP by incorporating it into your employee surveys and people metrics. This will help you demonstrate the value of the EVP, return on investment and financial benefits to the organisation.