The employment experience  manifests itself into the customer experience.   And how successful brands live their difference expertly articulates our conversation driven world and the role of employee decision on the brand experience. Often, the ‘conversation’ about Employment Branding lives externally – for the sole purpose of talent acquisition, candidate experience etc. When in reality, the employer brand represents the work experience aligned managers and leaders strive to cultivate, nurture and deliver everyday in an effort to elevate employee engagement and performance.   I recently read through a list of ‘16 critical touch points of the employment brand’ and it fell way short of actually capturing much of the intent or benefit of employer brand strategy – what happens in the organization when people show up to work everyday (and especially their FIRST DAY or critical initial 12 months which create the foundation for employee engagement – performance and retention).  I had an Employment Branding 2.0 conversation with Peter Clayton at Total Picture Radio and emphasized the importance of extending the brand experience beyond the acceptance of the offer.  Getting the right talent to yes is just the start. What happens next is what really counts.

Employer Brand International is conducing a global research study to investigate the “influencers of employment choice” to investigate why employees choose to join an organization over another. The outcomes of the study will provide insights into which value propositions are considered more important than others across regions, age, gender, tenure, industries, etc.  To access the study,   click here.  EBI will provide you with a complimentary copy of the final research study report. There are only 24 questions in total. Approx completion time is 10 minutes.

Posted in Brand

Tags: Employment Branding

It’s been a tough ride recently for many Managers and Leaders.  Stalled initiatives,  shrinking budgets, program cuts and layoffs.  Short term remedies, perhaps necessary, that result in making the challenge of rallying the troops toward a common purpose, capturing the very best effort and output of your human capital and cultivating confidence in the future a burdensome task.  That is why it isn’t a surprise that the Employer Branding Global Research Study conducted by Employer Brand International cited “building a leadership development program to equip leaders with the capabilities  to better manage the employment experience” as the most effective employer branding initiative.  It’s increasingly clear that leader/manager competency is a necessary area of focus and investment for organizations that hope to navigate through this turbulent economy prepared to compete and capitalize in the future.  And while employees have understanding and appreciation for circumstances that necessitate difficult short term business decisions, it’s often the absence of consistent and transparent communication that erodes confidence, disintegrates trust and derails employee engagement.  The combined effect of an effective internal communications strategy and quality leadership are what’s required and unfortunately, all too often overlooked.  Based on years of research/experience our partners at Modern Survey have identified 5 essential elements to create and sustain high levels of employee engagement.  Their thoughtful white paper is available for download here.

Posted in Employee Engagement, Leadership

Tags: Employment Branding, Leadership

I’ve read that a new blog is created every second.  Why start another?
In a word.  Passion. Not necessarily the personal kind.  But an exploratory journey of the passion that intersects with where we make a living.  Passion at work.

We know it when see it.  An energized workplace.  Authentic leadership.  Open communication.  A culture of consistency, connection, camaraderie and caring. Trust.  Personal growth and development.  Recognition and fun.  Customer loyalty and bottom line business results. The kind of place where everyone wants to work.  Where people come first…and profits follow.

Our premise is passion at work occurs most often when the right person, in the right job is supported through very intentional and strategic action by an organization.  Where leadership is aligned with the mission, vision and values and employees are the ultimate extension of the brand.

Passion happens…on purpose.

And the intent behind our passion project will be to share thoughts, insights and related (most of the time) musings on things closely related to Passion on Purpose. They’ll include recruiting and retention, leadership and employee engagement, training and development, communications and strategy, brand and social media.  And likely include an occasional (or regular) foray into the impact on client acquisition, sales skill and strategy (my own personal passion).

The timing of this blog post is also a bit on purpose, coinciding with the Annual SHRM Conference and Exposition, the largest annual gathering of HR Professionals in the world.

I look forward to heading to New Orleans on Sunday and sharing my thoughts on Employment Branding 2.0 in a mega session Tuesday afternoon.  It’s my contention that there is simply no work more important going on in any organization today than the work our HR community does around getting and keeping the right people (yes, that comes before getting the customer….and they are entirely related).

I hope to shed some light on the evolving nature of Employment Branding, B2E Communications and how best practices can be leveraged to create high engagement work cultures and a sustainable TALENT advantage.

See you in the BIG EASY!

Posted in Brand, News

Tags: Employment Branding, SHRM