Employer Brand - "So what do you actually do?"

It's a common question I get asked almost every time I'm introduced to someone new. "So, what do you do at Hilti? - Employer Brand? What's that?". To be truthful, it's both a simple answer, and a complicated answer - the easy answer? It's the best job you could have. The complicated answer? - it's a bit of everything, multiple roles, skills, departments, it could be large projects, small tasks - to explain in more detail, it's best to go back to the basics - What is "Employer Brand"?

What is Employer Brand?

In short, an Employer Brand is an employers reputation as a great place to work, it's their Employer Value Proposition (EVP) - what makes company X a great place to work? What sets them apart from their competition? Why would someone choose to join your company over another, and what makes employees stay at that company.

A common misconception about Employer Brand is that it's the image of a company from an external perspective only (with the sole aim of attracting talent) - but that's just half of it. It is also about the internal employer brand - Why does someone stay at a company once they have joined, and what stops them from leaving?

What is your role?

Good Question! People that work in employer brand will relate to the feeling of not belonging to one particular team or department. Normally, it's common for Employer Branding professionals to fall into the Human Resources or Talent Acquisition department however the role itself encompasses a variety of different tasks and departments. We're somewhere in the middle of Human Resources, Talent Acquisition, Brand & Communication & Digital Marketing.

The way I describe it to people is "Our job is to tell the world what it's like to work at Hilti". Previously I mistakenly used to say "We sell Hilti to the outside world" - however I firmly believe that you shouldn't have to "sell" it to people if where you work is truly amazing - and that's why my role is so easy - it really isn't difficult when you work for a company that genuinely is a great place to work.

In any given day I could be managing a website, analysing traffic and channel performance using Google Analytics, creating content for social media channels whilst managing the communities, creating and implementing sponsored advertising campaigns, planning, creating and filming video content, optimising SEO for career pages, analysing recruitment funnels and optimising the full recruitment process alongside recruitment teams - you name it, chances are we're involved at some point - it's a busy job, but if you like variety and the old cliche - "No two days are the same" - then this is the job for you.

In terms of my own personal responsibilities and role I work as a "Project Manager - Social Media & Employer Brand" - I work remotely for our Headquarters based in Schaan, Liechtenstein but based physically in our GB office in Manchester. We're a team of 2 (so naturally workload is always high! - but keeps you busy!) and I help to support colleagues in each of our 120+ countries on Employer Brand topics, but to list (some) of what I do...

• Responsible for career website globally. Technical issues, user experience, SEO, training on the CMS, assisting with localisation, reporting on success and KPI's using Google Analytics and other tools.
• Responsible for Employer Brand / HR content and community management for our Global Hilti Group social media channels.
• Manage Employer Brand social media channels such as Glassdoor and providing teams guidance on responding to reviews / overall branding of the page
• Global reporting on the success of Employer Brand (Career website performance, Social Media performance etc)
• Training teams on the use of social media for talent attraction purposes
• EVP implementation and training - What is our EVP? How do we communicate our EVP?
• Ad-Hoc projects (Launch of new systems, training, software)
• Monitor current social media and employer branding trends to keep Hilti at the forefront of recruitment technology / initiatives

How did you get into Employer Brand?

3 years ago I joined the GB recruitment team as a Sourcing Specialist. I previously worked within recruitment agencies, specialising in Engineering recruitment within Aerospace, Military & Defence and commercial airlines before moving in-house with Hilti. My role was to support the recruitment teams with the supply of talent into "hard-to-fill" positions using new channels and methods. I identified early on that we were perhaps not as strong using social media to attract talent as we could have been, so began to manage content, campaigns and sponsored advertising which boosted the brand image, and ultimately lead to an increase in applications.

I was then asked to join a global project which was to define a LinkedIn strategy including content, responsibilities, training and best practise - which was being led by the Global Head of Employer Brand. After working closely together on this project, a position became available within the team - and I was lucky enough to be offered the role and have loved every minute of the last two years!

What do you enjoy most about the role?

For me, it's the variety. As discussed above, we get involved in so many different tasks and work with so many different departments globally - it never get's boring. It's very fast paced and you learn SO much.

When I joined, I wasn't an expert in Social Media, I had no clue what SEO even meant - and I definitely didn't have any experience in digital marketing, sponsored campaigns or Google Analytics. I get to work with people in these departments that are truly amazing at what they do - and over the last 2 years I've learnt so much. Now I understand SEO, now I can use Google Analytics to understand user behaviour and understand where to invest our resources, I'm asked to deliver training as the "expert" on topics that previously I didn't have a clue about. I consider myself very lucky to be in such a diverse role, and am looking forward to the next few years delivering a variety of results back to the business.

Finally, what do you enjoy the most about working at Hilti?

Many reasons, but to keep it short(ish..) Hilti's culture is unique. Every company says the same, but Hilti has a strong set of values that are truly lived by all employees each day. Every employee, regardless of where they are based or seniority level is willing to help you without any notice. It's a family run company, with a family feel - and you definitely feel that. It's not often you find a company of 29,000+ employees that still feels family run.

Secondly, it's the global aspect of the business. I've been lucky enough to travel all over the world in my role meeting different nationalities and experiencing different cultures. You learn to work in different ways, and learn how to tackle challenges from a different mindset - which only enhances your own skills and experiences

Lastly - it's the development. Hilti allows you to move cross functionally. I've seen people start in finance, move to sales, move to marketing, move to logistics - maybe they didn't have the deepest knowledge about the role or departments they were moving into - but based on management identifying existing skills, experience and abilities which they could utilise in their new role, which is rare! You learn so much from some of the most talented colleagues. I've developed personally, and professionally - what more could you ask for?

What would you say to someone interested in joining Hilti?

Go for it. It was the best decision I made. If you fit our core values and you want to join a global business with endless opportunities (and yes, we work hard - but it doesn't feel like work if you love what you do!) then Hilti is the place for you.

Don't just take my word for it though, checkout some of our Glassdoor Reviews!