In a world of technological advancement, the dynamics of talent acquisition are changing. In today’s market, the best recruiting practices are all embedded in a company’s marketing. Recruiting the best talent now involves and requires searching for candidates on social platforms, active participation in social media networks to showcase culture, innovation, and company accomplishments – all important aspects to establish with a thoughtful employer branding initiative. Employees are leaving their jobs at an alarming rate, and not having a strong emphasis on employer branding to attract and retain high potential employees can stop your business from growing and ultimately bury your company in the ground.
Let’s see some examples of great employer branding.
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines places a heavy emphasis on the training of their employees, providing some of the most competitive benefits such as terrific travel privileges and ProfitSharing (the first company in the airline industry to offer this), and most recently, turning an incident of a Southwest flight attendant climbing and laying inside a plane’s overhead compartment into a positive branding moment about having a culture that fosters an environment where employees can demonstrate their unique personalities and sense of humor. Most recently being named Employer Brand of the Year by HR Dive, the Southwest Airlines brand has been a staple of what employer branding should be in today’s job market. Southwest Airlines currently holds a 4.3 rating on Indeed and Glassdoor and has also made the list of Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work for 10 consecutive years.
HubSpot
HubSpot was announced as this year’s #1 Best Place to Work in 2020 on Glassdoor, which was determined by employees who share feedback on Glassdoor about their companies’ culture, workplace, and their jobs. Their Diversity, Inclusion, & Belonging (DI&B) initiative and hiring their first-ever director for it allowed them to publish a new diversity webpage, a 2019 company diversity data report, expanding their resource group to provide resources for women, people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, and working parents has catapulted their way to the top in the eyes of top-rated prospective employees. Not only does HubSpot have a great diversity initiative, but they are also placing a focus of providing remote work for their employees. They hired a remote work and inclusion program manager for this initiative and even launched a remote work careers page. Along with learning & development, these are the things that most employees seek in a new job, and HubSpot has taken it to the next level by focusing their employer branding on the future, not the present.
Bain & Company
Bain & Company, the 2010, 2014, 2017, and 2019 #1 Best Place to Work by Glassdoor, was named #2 on the list behind HubSpot for 2020, and even expanded its rankings to Brazil, where it was named #7 on Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work in Brazil list. Bain & Company has a very unique approach to culture. Offering 4-6 month externships for their employees to work at an organization of their choice, permanent and temporary global relocation opportunities, happy hours, team outings, a diversity, inclusion, and collaboration initiative, and their infamous “Take Two” perk that allows eligible “Bainies” to take two months off to rejuvenate and/or fulfill their personal goals consistently puts Bain & Company at the top of the list.
Not such a big deal?
If you’re not convinced yet, take a look at these important stats:
– 84% of candidates say a company’s reputation as an employer is important. 55% of job seekers have abandoned applications after reading negative reviews online. And half say they wouldn’t work for a company with a bad reputation, even for a pay increase, according to TalentNow.
– Companies with a strong employer brand see a 43% decrease in cost hiring than those of their weaker competitors.
– According to LinkedIn, companies that have a strong talent brand get 31% higher InMail acceptance rate.
– 94% of candidates are likely to apply if the employer brand is managed correctly.
– More than 50% of job applicants are willing to be paid less if they can work for a well-known company with a strong employer brand.
Employer Branding is the key to taking your organization to the next level. Remember, it is not only the customers who keep your company afloat, but it is also the people. Invest in improving your employer brand today.