Employer Branding Increasingly Viewed as Critical

According to a new report from branding agency Brandemix, corporate marketing had finally come around to embracing the idea that employment brand is critical to success,

The 6th annual State of Employer Branding Survey finds that while in the past, the practice was largely an output of HR/Talent Acquisition, that’s now changing for the better. This year’s response to the question “Who Was Part of Your EVP Initiative?”points to an evenly blended stakeholder team consisting of marketing, internal communications, corporate communications, and talent acquisition.

This is a sign that in a historically tight candidate market, companies have been forced into the realization that strong employer branding does more than simply fill open positions. The data shows that increases conversion, application rates, as well as retention – a trifecta of positive impact.

Among other findings are:

• The top two goals for creating an employer brand were “Recognition as an Employer of Choice” and “Ease in attracting candidates.”
• The top-mentioned materials that have changed or will change based on recent employer branding initiatives are career sites (63%) and social media (50%).

According to Brandermix founder Jody Ordioni: “The internet, including social media, has truly leveled the playing field, allowing a low barrier of entry for small companies to successfully compete for talent against more sizable, well-known firms,” says Ordioni. “That should be great news for non-profits, healthcare and start-ups.”

While it has long been given lip-service, corporate marketing teams have been notoriously dismissive of their peers in talent acquisition. With the recent pressures on labor and hiring, investments of time, dollars, and attention are finally making their way to EB. While this is a hopeful sign that “they finally get it”, the question remains if this recognition will last or if it is simply a paint-point reaction. Time will tell.

By Martin Burns

Martin Burns is a former Managing Editor & Analyst for RecruitingDaily.com. Referred to as someone who’s “kind of done it all in recruiting”, Martin Burns is a talent acquisition practitioner as well as commentator. For the past three years, he has been reporting on and analyzing news that impacts the TA industry, first as founding Editor at Recruiting News Network, and now as Managing Editor of RecruitingDaily. Prior to this, his career has included leading, as well as consulting with, talent acquisition organizations for some of the world's most significant brands. He speaks at global conferences on talent acquisition, maintains an active presence in the global recruitment community, and generally has fun mucking around in the conversation the industry has in who it is, and where it’s going. His industry-leading Facebook group “Talent Product Plays” is considered a must-join by practitioners and vendors alike.