Struck dumb and receding

A survey by Weber Shandwick of US employers has revealed some alarming facts about the way employers are responding to the pressures of the economic downturn. The bosses have been found to be somewhat tight lipped about communicating some of the facts to their trusted employees. They have been found wanting when being up front and honest about the likely impact of the global upheaval and US recession on their companies and employees. And this despite the fact that...
> 26% of workers expect their company will have to retrench people
> 62% believe their company will have trouble meeting goals
> 71% say bosses should be communicating more
> 54% of workers have not heard from company leaders at all regarding the impact of the crisis
.. despite 74% having heard colleagues discussing the issue

Stormy waters have been known to drive captains of industry to batten down the hatches until calm waters return, avoiding confrontation and seeking solace in dark corners. Some storms even cause them to jump ship in true Marie Celeste fashion.

Where is the employer brand champion when you need one?

As the spearhead of a company’s brand, upholder of values and beacon for the company’s vision and direction, the company’s leader must inspire employees to make outstanding efforts when times are good and also be the bearer of bad news when external forces conspire to undo all the good work. That person must be truthful, honest and realistic on how the company and its employees will be affected. The leader must also stir them, inspire them and win their respect. Compelling communication is the order of the day. The company’s potential and resilience must be placed forefront in their minds. They must believe in the future and that their company has the strength and resources to ride the storm and power ahead suitably revitalised once skies clear.  

Challenging times have an uncanny knack of exposing company flaws and deficiencies, or revealing truly great companies with unbreakable purpose and direction. Which one is yours?

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and co-founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Creating an employer brand campaign to attract new candidates

When an organisation has defined its Employee Value Proposition, it then needs to create a campaign to ‘spread the good word’ and raise awareness of why its employment proposition is worthy, honest and attractive. Here are some key objectives the campaign must achieve:

> have impact, stimulate curiosity and create a desire to find out more. To facilitate this, people should have information close at hand linking them to your website or blog or a person at the end of a telephone. It should stimulate in them a desire to read about you, ask others about your organisation, or even apply for a job.

> engage with their hearts and their minds and be an unforgettable experience

> have consistency with the employer brand promise and that of the corporate brand

> be complementary with all other advertising, marketing and PR activities – you may have to liaise with your marketing department for this one

> give a simple, clear and compelling reason to work in your organisation

> give an accurate representation of what it is like to work in the organisation that is consistent with the views and beliefs of the present employees, to the extent that people actually look forward to coming to work there and are proud to work there

> give a clear indication of the organisation’s level of commitment to finding the right people and then looking after them

> paints a positive picture and gives the impression that it is fun, challenging, prestigious and rewarding to work there

> preferably has a theme – visual or verbal – that sums up the offer ans sticks in their mind

> the campaign must have ‘stickiness’ and longevity and not be seen as a short term initiative

> must be appropriate for the target audiences – whether it be senior managers, the sales team, the production line workers – the content and method of delivery must be appropriate for their needs

> must be believable, realistic and based on truth – not a slick piece of PR spin

> paints a positive picture of the whole organisation – its products, customers, services, partnerships, management style, culture, philosophy, beliefs and so on.

> makes people think about their future career ambitions, the compatibility of what you are offering and how their present job is stacking up

> must attract positive responses when shown to existing employees – in other words test it before releasing it – if the staff don’t agree with it, bin it and start again

> it must be memorable, eye catching, different, unique, funny... even provocative.

> makes people feel that ‘this could be the job they’ve dreamed about’

> will work equally well across different media.

> must appeal to the age group you are targeting – their tastes, language, habits, interests, hopes and dreams

> must have the endorsement of the CEO and senior managers

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and co-founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Employment figures take a dive – a rallying call for your employer brand

21 October 2008

The job cuts just keep on getting deeper. Pessimism is the order of the day in Australia with predictions that the ailing economy will see 200,000 jobs disappear in the next 12 months.

Optus is ready to shed 200 jobs, Westpac 450 and Optus 115, on top of recent cuts from Ford, Fairfax Media, Starbucks and Boeing. Even education is not immune, with Victoria University slashing 270 staff and La Trobe University 230.  Predictions from National Australia Bank are that unemployment could jump from 4.3% to 6% by the end of 2009, economic growth will fall to 1.25% by the middle of 2009 and interest rates will dip to around 4.5%. Not a pretty picture. Seems like quite a few Australians won’t be enjoying a happy Christmas this year.

Recruiters will have a hard job placing retrenched workers in new jobs. Only the very best are likely to get back into employment before the New Year – a situation aggravated by the many ex-pats, particularly those from the financial services industries, returning to Oz as a result of the even worse downturn in overseas countries such as the US and UK.

This is an alarm bell for all companies who value their most talented people to ensure that they have in place a strong and active employer brand, are reinforcing their commitment to employees and have great faith in the company’s strengths and opportunities for the future. In times of economic distress your top employees are the essential fabric holding the company together that must be protected at all costs in order for it to weather the storm and be in a position to make a quick recovery once conditions improve.

Although every company has an employer brand, whether they like it or not, many are ill conceived and fail to leverage accepted principles that can provide resilience in bad times and a competitive edge in good times. Challenging times like these will separate those companies with well maintained employer brands from those who are suffering with low employee morale, disengaged employees walking out the door to a more certain future, diminishing reputations, low productivity, negative perceptions of the employment proposition and loss of competitive spirit. Once conditions start to improve, a company in this position will experience extended recovery time to regain lost ground – which will prove time consuming, difficult and expensive, with high recruitment and training costs.

It makes sense for companies to review the competency of their employer brand now – is it really engaging with employees, do they recognise the company’s values and vision, is the employment promise being communicated effectively both internally and externally, are they truly inspired by the company leader, can they see a long term, secure and productive future ahead of them?

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Engaging your brand internally

When the time comes to reinvigorate or reinvent your company brand ensure that you align the experience employees have of the brand with the promise made to them.

How can you ensure that your brand gains traction with all of your employees – from the boardroom to the production lines – and that it becomes part and parcel of the company’s culture?

Remember that every company is unique and requires a tailored branding solution. Every workforce is different and requires tailored communications to help them grasp the importnace and relevance of the brand to the job they do and future business success.

You need help – don’t do it alone
The task of creating and managing a company brand involves a lot more than collaborating with those good people in marketing. It must be driven from the top. Make sure you include the people from HR and those satellite businesses that no-one ever seems to talk to.

Don’t be afraid of change
Dust off your vision and mission statements and check them for relevance – did they die a death some time ago while no-one was looking? Are internal beliefs consistent with the brand promise or is there a disconnect that needs fixing?

Will they get the message?
Your internal audiences need to be segmented in the same way you would segment external ones. Tailor communications to the specific needs of each segment. The messages you direct to employees in the factory will not be the same as those that go to senior managers or your sales team.

Don’t blow the budget
If you are creating a new brand or breathing new life into an old one, it is very easy to blow all the budget on external-facing applications and marketing. Plan well ahead to allocate sufficient funds for internal applications and communications. Remember the ‘inside out rule’– if it doesn’t work on the inside first, there isn’t much chance of it working on the outside.

Don’t get carried away with the creative
Ensure that the brand ‘essence’ is worked out well in advance of the creative team warming up their Macintoshes. Work out the essential aspects that underpin your brand – values, mission, vision, benefits etc and how they differentiate it. Work out a strategy for its success. Identify the gaps between the present brand and the aspired brand and how to fix them. Be very, very confident that what you offer is grounded in truth. Employees have the knack of recognising brands that are all ‘front’ where experience of the brand is a far cry from the ‘promise’.

Hit them at all touchpoints
The days of introducing new brand initiatives through the quarterly staff newsletter and hoping for the best are far gone (or are they?). Employees demand and deserve much more. They need to experience the brand dynamically and emotionally in a way that will excite them, inspire them and persuade them that they are part of a great team and a great company that has vision for the future and faith in itself, its products and its employees. The brand and its values need to permeate their environment and the day-to-day workings of the organisation, so they understand it and become part of it.

Their involvement will move you forward
Employee uptake of a new brand requires a considered approach. When planning a new brand or changes to an existing one, involve your employees and inform them what it is, what it means to the company and the important role they play in its success. Gain their input at an early stage so they start to take ownership. Once this happens real and relevant behaviours will emerge consistent with your objectives for the brand.

Measure performance
Changes to a brand or the creation of a new one can be time consuming and expensive exercises. You need to measure their performance before and after, to determine whether you are getting a return on your investment and whether your strategy for the brand moving forward is sound. Because no two brands or cultures are the same, determine the best means of measurement for your particular situation. Are employees engaged by the brand? Do they believe in it? Do they understand its purpose? Can they communicate its value and benefits to customers?

If you’ve successfully followed a comprehensive plan such as our EmployerBrandGuidanceSystem, within six to 12 months you should witness higher scores from employee satisfaction surveys, experience reduced attrition and attract ‘better fit’ job candidates. Your employees will love you for it.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Bankers run for cover

30 September 2008 – Asian and European stock markets tumbled in early trading today after the US House of Representatives failed to adopt a US$700 billion Wall Street bailout measure. Australian shares closed down 4.3 per cent, their lowest close in nearly three years. Financial services companies in particular are destined to experience the worst job and bonus conditions in nearly a decade.

The employment situation is being heralded as the worst since the internet stocks collapse in 2000. The doom merchants are predicting that we are in for a ‘Black October’ and that the situation is likely to get worse in the run up to Christmas. Oh goody.

What can we expect to see happen?
> senior executives will be ‘outplaced’
> performance bonuses from the leading investment banks will diminish, as they fail to reach targets
> performance bonuses will no longer be guaranteed
> more and more layoffs will be necessary, as witnessed by hundreds leaving financial services operations at ANZ, Austock, Wilson HTM and Tolhurst and investment banking operations at B&B, Merrill Lynch, UBS and Lehman Brothers who are all looking like shadows of their former selves
> the long awaited merger between Westpac and St George may result in closer scrutiny of duplications and costs and see more bankers forced onto the market
> trimming of traditional back office cost centres such as IT and human resources has extended to bankers and ‘deal makers’
> the first employees to be laid off will be the most expendable – those with perceived inadequacies, in the least essential positions, the misfits and low performers
> recruitment firms will have to try very hard to place these people in new positions
> pressure will be placed thoughout organisations to cut costs and hold off on new projects
> some companies will slash marketing budgets but some will get nervous and increase spending to protect market position
> employees will work harder to prove their worth and stay employed
> companies will stop recruiting new staff until the dust settles

How does all this affect employer branding? When the dust does finally settle and the machine cranks up again and job candidates smell fresh hope in the air, more so than in nearly a decade will a bulletproof employer brand be necessary to convince these people that yours is a strong, stable and worthwhile organisation with excellent job security.

More so than ever before will you need to reinforce to staff the fundamental employer qualities that have seen the company through these bad times and brought it through intact with renewed ambition to help employees and itself grow and flourish.  

Employer branding consultants have a lot to look forward to. But how long will they have to wait? That is the $700 billion question on many people’s minds.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

When the going gets tough...

The media are convinced about it and the Liberal Party is too. Australia is experiencing a downturn. Interest rates are up, house sales are stagnant, petrol prices are high, retailers are taking out second mortgages, tunnel operators are going broke, tourists are staying away in droves, Macquarie Bank and B&B aren’t as vocal as they used to be and even Harvey Norman’s getting worried. So, as we cringe when the ‘empty’ light on the petrol gauge suddenly illuminates, scrutinise the small car ads, scowl at the price of vegetables for the family dinner and plan a nice holiday in a caravan park close to home... let’s look at what’s happening in the world of employment.

A skills shortage still remains. If you can operate a bulldozer in a quarry or help engineer a new mineshaft, you’ve got it made. For the rest of the country though, the good times are rapidly disappearing about as fast as our ability to beat the All Blacks on their home turf. When things get tough with the economy, companies batten down the hatches, relieve themselves of poor performers and misfits, and job ads start to disappear.

Employers’ focus is now on keeping their top employees engaged and happy. Replacing good employees who leave is going to become much harder. This is where employer branding comes to the fore.

When things start getting tough in the jobs market, employees tend to stay put. Moving becomes more of a risk. The trend will be for employers to take stock of who in the company is performing and who isn’t. Guess what’s going to happen to those who aren’t performing? They’re the ones who are going to be out there looking for new jobs. And if you’re not careful, you’ll be the employer who they finish up with! One thing is certain, the good employees will still be asking for more money. And they’re going to be more confident that they will be harder to replace in the current climate.

So where does that leave you as a responsible and concerned employer? The strength of your employer brand is going to be under greater scrutiny. More than ever will you need to demonstrate that you are differentiated by having a strong employment proposition based around a solid reputation, values, vision and messages that you are communicating effectively both internally and to the marketplace.

Those companies with strong employer brands will gain significant advantage by being able to keep in place high performing talent. How strong is yours? In these changing times, it is now critical to invest in your company’s future by protecting your most important asset – your employees.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Which Employer Branding Consultant?

Employer branding – is it a lot of hot air? What happened to the creative content?

If you need help with employer branding challenges there are three options available.

1/. The recruiter/employer branding consultant
This category of consultant has arisen from the need for recruiters to:
a/. look for an additional revenue stream,
b/. get better results from their recruiting efforts, and
c/. help clients enhance their employment proposition.

By leveraging existing relationships with clients on a recruiter level, their main focus is to help clients develop an EVP (Employee Value Proposition). In my experience, these can be developed quite proficiently, usually involving workshops with employees from various levels within the organisation. The consultant then analyses the results and creates the EVP, which is handed over in report form. End of story.

What confounds me about this approach is that it makes little sense if the report provides no guidance on how the brand can be expressed creatively with messaging and imagery. Yes, the client can hand the report over to their incumbent designer, but not many designers have a competent understanding of employer branding. If they have not been part of the process from the beginning they are at a distinct disadvantage and it tends to show in the results.

Conclusion: they only go so far.

2/. The employer branding consultant
There are consultants out there who are good at the all-encompassing one-day employer branding marathon presentation. They tend to focus on the speaking circuit and writing books on the subject and spend little time practising what they preach.

The better known ones take great pains to inform you that the ‘song and dance routine’ is being replicated at many exciting overseas venues and that they are an award-winning king/queen of the rostrum. These presentations or workshops can be useful if you are looking for a comprehensive information dump on best practice procedures and thinking on an intellectual level.

Their Achilles heel is that they inevitably have no expertise to advise and implement solutions on the necessary creative aspects of employer branding and communication.

Conclusion: they only go so far.

3/. Heywood Innovation
We adopt a holistic approach to building employer brands. We are fortunate in having comprehensive skillsets within our team that cover research, workshops, EVP creation, strategic and creative brand development, communications and brand management. We are confident that our 9-stage EmployerBrandGuidanceSystem has no equal as an end-to-end solution. Our facilitated TeamPlanSystem workshops are dynamic and fast-paced. They are the definitive process for gaining buy-in, generating ideas and perspective, and motivating attendees to focus on issues and opportunities.


Successful employer branding is about the harsh reality of attracting, engaging and retaining top talent with an attractive employment proposition. To achieve this demands more than lashings of theory or an EVP report landing on your desk.

Conclusion: you need expert ‘end-to-end’ help.

If your employer brand needs some work, contact Tony Heywood at Heywood Innovation.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Do you care enough to attract top talent?

How socially responsible is your organisation? Do you realise how important a factor this has become in your ability to attract and retain top talent? Many of the Generation X and Y job candidates prefer a socially responsible organisation over one that relies on ‘old school’ remuneration and benefits. Some might say that they are the caring generation, one that wants to make a difference to the world and one that is increasingly selective when making their next career move.

So what is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development defines corporate responsibility as the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce, their families and the local community and society at large.

So how does an organisation embrace CSR in an honest and meaningful way?

It takes a lot more than a community newsletter and having staff plant a few trees. It requires a close look at the organisation’s behaviours and business practices. Are they totally ethical, responsible and considerate of the impact they have on staff, stakeholders, society and the environment?

“...a genuine attempt by an organisation to build meaningful relationships between the corporate sector and the rest of society”

As with most organisational initiatives, it has to be driven from the top and permeate all the way to the bottom. It must be an integrated part of day-to-day business that is constantly monitored and refined. Employee engagement with CSR only happen when open consultation happens at all levels, from the boardroom to the factory floor. It is a long term commitment, a keystone in the organisation’s foundations, not a flippant overnight PR gesture to satisfy boardroom concerns.

“...operates in ways that meet, or exceed, the ethical, legal, commercial and public expectations that society has of business”

CSR strategies can be wide ranging, such as facilitating disabled workers, considerations for indigenous and ethnic workers, environmental initiatives, safety policies, health & wellbeing programs, flexible work options and community sponsorships.

CSR conscious organisations are tuned in to the power of people and the positive impact an engaged and inspired workforce can have – which inevitably leads to success in the community and success in business.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

Communicating on the inside

For an organisation to achieve optimal employee engagement, it must communicate with its audiences clearly, appropriately and consistently and back this up with appropriate behaviours. Employees need to believe what they read, hear and see.

The CEO and senior team need to champion communications that inform and motivate employees, that consistently reinforce company values and attitudes with a ‘look & feel’ and voice that is recognised as belonging to that organisation. They must demonstrate a caring and responsible attitude and always remain visible and accessible.

Communications play a key role where regular ‘face to face’ meetings are difficult to arrange – either because people are in different locations or they simply cannot find the time as a result of intense workloads. They bridge the gap of painting the bigger picture of ‘what’s happening at the top’ and how it impacts on the way the business is run and its future potential.

Feed in the ‘bigger picture’ messages as well as the day-to-day stuff. Communications to employees should clarify the organisation’s vision, direction and values on an ongoing basis. This will deliver a level of comfort that the organisation is in safe and capable hands and reinforce the importance of the role that employees play in achieving objectives.

“I’ve really no idea what they have in mind”
When communications don’t happen, employee engagement diminishes.
> CEO and senior management start to become invisible
> employees become critical of the senior team and perceive that they don’t care or don’t want to make their intentions known
> employee morale begins to suffer and motivation goes out the window

“I’m busy. I’ll read it next week”
Too much communication on the other hand can be bad. Employees can find it difficult to filter out the important messages that they need to take note of. Communications can become bland, featureless and struggle for original content. They ‘move off the radar’. Once this happens it is very difficult to re-engage with employees.

“That’s not what my manager told me”
Frontline managers often become the messengers of organisational goals, strategy and performance. Care must be taken to ensure that they communicate messages accurately and consistently and have the necessary training and tools to do so. Failure to do so may cause them to shy away from the responsibility or make a half hearted effort which is inconsistent with communications from other managers. Fragmented and diluted messages may do more harm than good. Managers should be well briefed on the objectives and content of communications to ensure enterprise-wide consistency and take up. Organisations should adopt best practice by briefing managers, sharing the information with them and giving them direction on how it should be delivered to employees.

“Some of it got lost in the translation”
Avoid disengagement with other offices and business units. Internal communications are more difficult where offices are in multiple locations or an organisation comprises different business units. They may need to be adjusted to suit local audiences, local culture and languages. What works in Papua New Guinea may not work in Manchester, and what works in a filling station may not work at the refinery. Respect cultural differences and ensure communications are tailored specifically to local conditions. It requires help from people on the ground who possess insight and in-depth knowledge of the local audience –
> does the message need to be adapted? 
> does it need additional explanation?
> does it need to be translated?
> will it cause offence?
> is the style and tone appropriate for this audience?
> will it make any sense?

“We forgot to include the creative WIIFM factor”
One of the main aims of internal communications is to motivate employees and hopefully inspire a change or enhancement in behaviours. To achieve this often means engaging with them creatively on an intellectual and emotional level and delivering on the WIIFM factor – What's In It For Me. By this I mean having a recognisable theme such as sports to provide a performance-related aspect to the communication – teamwork and striving to win... or space travel – the quest to go beyond accepted limits and chart new territory. The hope is that the employee will relate to the metaphor and be inspired by the brand vision, embrace the challenge, engage as a team member and push the boundaries.

“The community has a lot of respect for my employer”
More and more employees want to be reassured that they are working for an employer that conducts itself in an ethical and responsible manner and respects local communities and the environment – an employer that is not subject to adverse media attention for unseemly CSR behaviour and malpractice. The big mistake many companies make is not to involve employees in the development of CSR strategy and communications. Let them contribute and be part of it. Get them to understand what it is all about and how important it is that the required behaviours must be demonstrated by everyone, not just the company. It deserves a lot more effort than just ticking the boxes in the annual CSR report.

Remember that it is highly likely that the investment you make in internal communications will not only have a positive effect on your employees but also on the financial performance of your business.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

Australia – Is your employer brand under threat?

How are the deteriorating economic conditions in global markets affecting companies’ employer brands? Business confidence in Australia has dropped to its lowest levels since the September 2001 terrorist attacks, influenced by soaring food and fuel prices and high interest rates. Regardless of this, it is suggested that unemployment will remain steady at 4.3%.

The National Australia Bank’s monthly business survey indicates that employment conditions have deteriorated to record their first negative monthly reading in over six years.

In Australia Hudson produce a regular report on the state of employment entitled the ‘Hudson Report on Employment Expectations’. This substantial report which has established itself as a key socio-economic indicator for the Australian market surveyed more than 7,000 employers from more than 19 core industry groups.

The results for the July-September 2008 quarter include the following:

> 34.2% of these employers indicated an intention to increase permanent staff levels, a fall of 3.7% over the previous quarter

> figures for individual states were:
ACT 30.0%
WA 52.8%
QLD 42.2%
SA 42.8%
NSW 32.8%
VIC 28.3%
The continuing resources boom is helping maintain employer optimism at the peak, however sentiment in construction/property/engineering is the highest at 53.4% with resources a close second at 45.8%.

> 52.6% expected to maintain present numbers of staff

> 6.6% intend to decrease permanent staff levels

Overall these reports are not painting a particularly bleak picture. Although business confidence has obviously dropped, there is no suggestion of massive layoffs, bankruptcies and recruitment stoppages.
The difficulties experienced by recruiters to find quality talent remain and are unlikely to diminish for some time. Organisations are still faced with the continuing task of retaining top talent and keeping them engaged and motivated.

I guess those people at Heywood Innovation still have a job to do.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

Too many empty chairs...

It seems that despite much publicised recessionary trends we still have too many jobs that can’t be filled. Or is it that too many employment brands aren’t functioning the way they should? Or are people just too interested in excessive amounts of leisure time?

According to a recent Manpower survey Australia in particular is experiencing difficulties getting bums on seats with 52% experiencing difficulty finding staff. Mind you it’s even worse elsewhere - take Singapore for example with 57%, Hong Kong with 61%, Japan 63% and Romania 73%. Anyone want a job in Romania? On a worldwide basis 31% of employers have this challenge.


As you would anticipate, there is a reverse trend in the Americas, where most of the present economic problems are rooted. Here employer numbers having trouble finding employees have more than halved compared with last year.

In biggest demand are skilled manual trades, sales reps, technicians, engineers, management/executives, labourers, administrative assistants, drivers, accounting and finance staff and IT staff. But surely there should be an even bigger demand for employment branding consultants to help sort out this mess! You have our phone number right?


Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singpore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

HI POD - Are your employees leaving before you find out their name?

Listen to HI POD - Are your employees leaving before you find out their name?

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.

Are your employees leaving before you find out their name?

Hey guess what, the latest statistics out there in employer branding land suggest that 25 percent of new recruits decide how long they will stay by the end of the first week in their new job. It goes further to suggest that over 50 percent make that decision by the end of the first month. I guess first impressions count after all.


HR managers had better be very afraid.

Early leavers bolting for the door cite the following reasons…

1. Lack off cultural fit with the existing team
Did they not get to meet with the team before saying ‘yes’?
2. Misunderstandings as to what their role involved
Was it in writing, was it discussed at length and did they get the chance to discuss the role with fellow workers?
3. Being left unsupervised and unsupported too early
Did they have a supervisor and a buddy system?
4. They were not inducted properly nor given the support at the start
I’ll say that again… Did they have a supervisor and a buddy system?
5. They really were not interested in the first place
The interviewer should be trained to spot this in the application submission and detect any hesitation at the interview
6. They fear not being successful in the role
Perhaps they need more encouragement to get them through the first few weeks and to address any questions and concerns they may have

Employers need to know their own limitations and those of job candidates. A recruitment agency must take on the huge responsibility of identifying both and plan accordingly.

Post placement surveys of each new employee are essential to identify mismatches and misunderstandings so that appropriate action can be taken to rectify the situation. This can be tricky as some candidates have the ability to mask their true feelings down to a fine art, particularly if they have not as yet developed a sufficiently high level of trust in their new employer.

It is generally accepted that there are five key questions to be asked when selecting new employees:

1. Do they understand the organisation’s brand?
Can they identify positive aspects of the organisation’s brand? Can they identify how the organisation is differentiated from others? Do they understand what are the organisation’s values, vision and positioning in the market?

2. Are their behaviours appropriate?
Is the employee stable? Do their recognised habits fit with this role? Do they understand the company culture and know how to fit in?

3. How motivated are they?
Do they want to go the extra mile? Do they have business acumen? Do they want to get involved? Do they have the organisation’s success at heart?

4. How innovative are they?
Can they identify challenges and issues, think through them and find a solution?

5. Knowledge
Can they actually do the job? Do they understand what it entails? Do they have the education and training that enables them to perform the tasks required of them?

6. Comfortable in teams
Do they want to help people? Do they have the people skills to work together as a team and leverage other people’s ideas and involvement?

Tick these boxes and you’re likely to land a long term employee. If they leave early I guess you’d better engage a review of your employer brand. Or perhaps it’s the office wallpaper?


Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

The Importance of People and Brand

People often assume that ‘branding’ is the sole domain of the marketing department in their organisation. In my experience it takes organisations a long time to recognise that brand promises must be delivered by all the people in the organisation, at all levels, all of the time. Customers are quick to spot the inconsistencies in brand delivery when they happen and can be very unforgiving.

Business articles on branding inevitably discuss the broader aspects of organisational, corporate, or employer branding. Organisations are waking up to the concept that having strong brands requires ongoing focus on the roles played by people, service delivery, process efficiencies, environments and consistency of experience delivered to customers by each one. Each relies on the other, with people being the overriding factor that determines overall success.

The employer brand must build positive perceptions externally as well as internally, particularly in the way an organisation promotes itself in the recruitment market place. Job applicants need to experience the company brand from everyone they meet, everything they read and everything they see – from viewing the first recruitment ad, through the interview process and at the point of induction.

It is important for an organisation to test how successful their employer brand is with new recruits, at each touch point that influences the candidate’s perception of the employer brand. This should be extended to identify employee, customer and stakeholder perceptions of the brand and the degree of consistency between them.

The customer experience of the brand should be paramount. Your people need to deliver on the brand promise and consistently develop better experiences for the customer that engage with them and win their hearts. At all customer touch points employees must display appropriate behaviours built on self-esteem, confidence and pride in the organisation.

Employees fully engaged by the brand are a key factor in differentiating businesses from competitors.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.

Share on Facebook

Employer of Choice

Almost 20% of the hits on my branding & communication company's website are from organisations seeking information on employer branding!

Is this 1/.symptomatic of there being no suitable job candidates out there or 2/.are companies afraid that they are just not perceived as great employment opportunities?

Is 1/. or 2/. correct? They both are.

No.1 is definitely the case in an Australian market which presently favours employees as a result of increasing skill shortages. It's a highly competitive market out there, there just aren't the same numbers of candidates looking for those vacancies. The economy has been strong for a long time, unemployment rates are low, we've had it pretty good. Whether or not 2008 is going to be the year of the big recession and big change is still being debated and perhaps may never happen. So what can you do about it?

You focus on No.2

The priority task for HR managers is to attract and retain talent by gaining a better understanding of employment branding and the benefits it provides.

"If the people on the inside don°t understand and respect your brand it's highly likely those on the outside don't.

To become an employer of choice employers need to define, nurture and manage the image and reputation their organisation wishes to grow in the minds of employees. Employer (a.k.a. employment) brands must engage with employees, inspire positive perceptions and communicate all the great things about the employment experience.

All too frequently new employees' job experiences fail to live up to recruitment promises, prompting disappointment and diminishing respect for the organisation's brand. In order to retain and motivate staff, organisations need to regularly reinforce and consistently deliver the offer that was made at the point of recruitment.

It is heartbreaking and increasingly expensive to have a valued employee, one who you considered crucial to your future success, leave and accept a position with a competitor. No employment experience is perfect. There will always be reasons why employees become dissatisfied and look elsewhere for new job opportunities. Most can be overcome and tend to be the result of little or no assistance in helping employees understand the organisation's brand and what it should mean to them, not coping with organisational change and confusion resulting from poor or non-existent communication.

In our experience key requirements of employment branding that have arisen in recent years are:

1/. satisfying employees' work experiences
2/. positioning the brand in the minds of employees and nurturing a positive perception
3/. regular communication to inform and motivate them and inspire respect for company culture, vision, procedures, policies, fellow employees and the executive team
4/. continuing education to help them work better and achieve more
5/. recognising and celebrating achievements and milestones

Listed below are situations that are likely to prompt organisations to consider their employment brand and related communications. Do you recognise any of them?

> launch of a new corporate brand
> merger or acquisition of new organisation
> change in organisation's culture or vision, perhaps inspired by new CEO
> company restructuring
> launch of new workplace initiatives
> changes in internal procedures or processes
> employee awards scheme
> employee social and environmental initiatives
> launch of new products
> brand repositioning to fend off competitors or tackle new markets
> brand extensions add new complexity
> appointment of new CEO or management team
> workforce retrenchments and reallocation of resources
> brand needs realigning with core values
> brand perception gap between managers and workforce
> business units have differing perceptions and motivations
> new employee induction materials
> training materials
> graduate recruitment
> documentation of organisation's procedures and policies
> regular communications to inform and motivate employees
> intranet not available or not working
> launch of new products or interest in new area of business
> HR is overstretched and needs external help

As you can see from the above, your employer brand can be challenged on many fronts.

To overcome these challenges, stakeholders need to be able to:

> identify and focus on key issues affecting the success of the organisation's employment brand
> recognise the gap between current and desired perceptions of the employment brand and how it measures up to those of competitor brands
> seek professional help to generate ideas and solutions.

To provide clarity on what is working and what is not, I recommend you make the following a priority. Audit your branded applications and communications collateral. Determine whether they are building a positive perception of your organisation, its positioning, its products and its employees. Gather information from current and prospective employees and measure their perceptions and motivations. Determine where the gaps are and what needs realigning. With this insight you will be well on your way to understanding what needs fixing. How you fix it is the big challenge.

In my experience managers tasked with this employer brand review are 'too close to the coalface' to make an unbiased and objective appraisal of the situation. An experienced external consultant is often the answer.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singpore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

What is Worse for Your Business – An Empty Chair or a Chair with the Wrong Person Sitting in it?

The employment marketplace today favours the workers. In other words there are more positions than candidates, with the result that employers are struggling to create and retain the teams they crave for. Often out of desperation it is all too easy to install the wrong person with catastrophic results.

Candidates, especially professionals, increasingly pose a new question of their potential employers … WIFM?

So what do candidates want? – increasingly, financial return is not the leading priority. You need to offer much more than this.

“I want advancement, mentoring and inspirational leadership”.
“I want interesting work, flexibility and a respectful and relaxed atmosphere”.
“I prefer to work in a results-driven environment”.
“I need to work in an organisation whose morals and ethics match mine”.
“I want variety and challenges”.
“I need to know that my efforts are valued and stand for something”.
“Where will I be in 1, 3, 5 years … will I stay that long?”

Candidates insist on the truth. An employer’s eloquent and persuasive description of their company and employment opportunity must match the experience of the candidate when they start work. An employment experience is viewed as a transaction – productivity and knowledge traded for a promise.

If the position does not live up to their expectations from day one, if promises are not kept, should anticipated objectives not be achieved, then the deal is off. There is little remorse or loyalty, because there are presently many options available. In short, employers are in danger of wasting a lot of time and money in the process of recruiting, hiring and training good people, only to see them walk out the door.

If the keystone to any successful business or enterprise is its people and their combined input, productivity and knowledge, then few things can be more destructive than ‘poor fit’ employees – individuals whose core values, visions, standards and objectives (either personal or professional) do not match those of the business and its leaders.

What has this to do with branding?

What is worse for your business – an empty chair or a chair with the wrong person sitting in it? Creating an effective employer brand, marketing it and believing in it can help minimise or remove both from your list of worries.

A canny employer has to think beyond the traditional job advertisement which details a salary, hours and job description or even relying on a recruitment consultant to solve your problems.

A well considered and executed employment brand will attract the right type of candidate rather than a volume response. It will help market and promote your organisation and add value to your marketing and promotional spend and activity.

Tell the truth. Work out what is truly positive and unique about your employment offer. What do you offer other than a wage and a desk? When they get home, how do you think your employees feel and talk about their day at work? How do they express your brand to family, colleagues, friends and peers?

For many organisations employment branding is a brave step. It requires of them to look within, analyse the truth of who and what they are, listen to the positives and negatives and build a promise around the deliverables. Don’t however promise the earth if you can only deliver the sky. People will leave – it will cost you time and money and your business will suffer.

Does it work? Yes it does! I am creative director here at Heywood Innovation. I contacted Heywood Innovation after viewing its website. From the simple, clear and concise way the organisation portrayed its objectives, methodologies and aspirations relating to Brand Design I knew that a strong synergy existed. While no position existed at the time, the strength of alignment between the organisation and the individual dictated that one be created… and here I am.

Employment branding works – it is effective, efficient and productive.

Find out more by contacting Heywood Innovation. Alternatively you could spend barrels more money running yet more ads or giving your recruiter yet another brief.

Neil Cookson is Creative Director at Heywood Innovation in Sydney.
neil@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg


Share on Facebook

Plant the Branding Seed in Your Employees’ Minds and Watch Your Company Grow

Employees are probably the most important factor when building a company brand. Why? I’ll explain. They influence the way customers perceive your brand and their desire to invest in it and be satisfied by it. They are at the front line of customer interaction with your brand and directly influence its performance. They must understand the brand and be motivated by it.

Fulfillment
A company’s inability to identify and fulfil customer expectations can destroy the potential of its brand. Every interaction between customer and employee determines the future relationship between that customer and your company. Failure to deliver the promise that your brand makes to the world can undermine customer loyalty and point them in the direction of your competitors. Put simply, it’s all about the ‘feel good factor’. Their ability to relate to the brand – what it has to offer and how value is delivered.

Many companies find it hard to realise that all the customer is interested in is getting a result. This requires constant focus on the customer experience through the entire sales process. This is often referred to as ‘end-to-end customer management’.

This focus on customer needs demands fast and efficient service, convenience, access to sales-related information, cross-fertilisation of purchasing opportunities and having solutions to all their problems.

Delivery of your ‘brand promise’ requires its manifestation at every point of customer contact from stationery, advertising, packaging, physical environments and your website, to such things as how your phones are answered and the clothes your salesforce wear.

Employees are critical in creating and reinforcing a successful customer experience and thereby building respect and loyalty to your brand. The outcome is positive ‘word of mouth’ communication about your brand.

How do your employees stack up?
Ask these questions... Are your employees motivated to embrace the ‘brand promise’? Do they have an understanding of how to enhance the customer experience? Are they committed achievers who can articulate the brand with passion and conviction?

How often are employees challenged internally to express their understanding of the brand?
Apart from their understanding of the sales process and transactions, have you asked them recently to describe what your brand is all about to ascertain whether they are ready to interface with your customers? What incentives do you have in place to excite them and motivate them? Do they understand the consequences of not living the brand?

Here are 10 tips on 'planting the brand' in the minds of your customers

1. Training
Empower employees with a deep understanding of the brand and also product and service knowledge and ensure they can deliver it. Make them understand the key role they play in building a positive perception of the brand in the minds of customers.

2. Systems
Have systems in place whereby employees can process customer requests in a timely and efficient manner.

3. Empowerment
Encourage employees to exercise their own judgment when interacting with customers.

4. Information
Most interactions with customers are very short, requiring customer and/or product information to be at employees’ fingertips.

5. Dealing with complaints
Where a genuine mistake occurs, have a system in place whereby the employee can quickly repair any damage to the customer’s perception of the product/service and ensure the mistake does not repeat itself.

6. Rewarding sales and service
Set performance goals not only for sales but also for solving problems and delighting a customer. Applaud great service and 'going the extra mile'.

7. Communications
Maintain regular communications between customer and company, and also within the company to keep everyone focused and ‘on the boil’. Internal marketing of the brand is as important as that which is directed to customers. It must be equally persuasive.

8. Responding to change
Employees can react adversely to change - ensure they are informed of what change is happening, why it has happened, what role they play, and what are its benefits.

9. First impressions
New employees must not only be instructed in workplace procedures but be inspired and motivated by the company brand, its values, culture, achievements and the dedication behind it that is securing its success.

10. Service first and last
Ensure your employees understand that service is a major success factor for every consumer-facing brand.

What value employees?
When it comes to employees, companies tend to view them:
- as expenses to be minimised
- as assets that can build brand value

For many companies it requires a fundamental shift in attitude to achieve the latter. These ‘brand ambassadors’ are a high value consideration in brand building. Those companies which fail to recognise this value run the risk of weakening the brand offer, alienating customers and missing out on an opportunity to grow their business.

Share on Facebook

Create an Effective Employment Brand

The importance of an effective employment brand cannot be underestimated. It helps attract, motivate and retain the lifeblood of a company – its employees. In a highly competitive recruitment market where standout talent is increasingly rare, it makes sense for a company to invest in a strong employment brand to get the best results from their recruitment efforts.

Although the concept of employment branding has been around for decades, many organisations have yet to realise the importance of having a strong employment brand. This can be a costly mistake, especially with the continuing strong demand for talent across many industries and professions.

The importance of employment branding stems as much from the continuing shortage of talent as it does from the realisation that value is created not so much by organisations themselves, but by the talented people within them. When it comes to recruiting, every organisation has the same goal – to hire the best talent available. To retain your top talent and attract others just like them, you must figure out exactly what your company stands for and what makes it an attractive employment proposition. You must then convince them why they should work there and not somewhere else.

This is where employment branding comes in.

The pending retirement of many baby-boomers, the shrinking pool of skilled workers aged 35 to 44 and an increased emphasis on knowledge workers, are forcing companies to the front line for new talent and are driving up the need for employment branding programmes. Companies that are not prepared to confront these challenges and fail to understand the need for increased investment in talent attraction and management will almost certainly see their business performance progressively suffer.

What is an Employment Brand?
The employment brand provides an expression of the attributes that characterise the employee experience. In essence it provides a window into what it is like to work both in and for an organisation.

Employment brands are increasingly recognised as the most important factor by which top talent select an employer. A strong employment brand can attract even the most passive prospects to an organisation and predispose them to consider employment opportunities, even when they wouldn’t consider openings anywhere else.

The ultimate goal is to build a strong employment brand that will succeed in attracting and retaining key talent. However, in order to be successful, companies need to realise employment branding is a process, not a project, and that only an ongoing commitment to it will deliver results.

The Benefits of a strong Employment Brand
An effective employment brand should urge people to find out more about the organisation. It must encourage them to visit your website, to ask others about the organisation and to apply for your job.

Employment branding isn’t just about getting more people to apply for your job vacancy – it is about attracting those who are aligned with your company and believe in it – its vision, values, commitment to its employees and customers and more, to ensure employees are a ‘good fit’ with your organisation.

An employment brand aims to attract and nurture employees who will ultimately delight the customer by living the brand and exuding commitment and confidence.

An employment brand should convey the image of the ‘ideal job at their dream company’

Besides appealing to external job candidates, a strong employment brand builds and reinforces the public’s image of the organisation’s vision, culture, work practices, management style and growth opportunities. It should build the perception that people are motivated, proud and happy to work there and are willing to ‘go the extra mile’ for the company.

Start internally
Any disconnect between what the employment brand claims and what it actually is can backfire on the company, resulting in an employment brand that is quickly labelled as ‘all front and no substance’ that will not stand up to the scrutiny of talented individuals. It will lead to disengagement and turnover of employees who feel the company hasn’t kept its employment promise.

Actions speak louder than words.

A strong employer brand can drive the right applicants to your company, and keep them there, as long as you ‘live your brand from the inside out’. In other words, you must make good on the promise that was made at the point of engagement.

Start your employment branding efforts by first looking internally and engaging in dialogue with present employees. By collecting and analysing employment experience information from employees, companies are able to identify employment attributes that are legitimate and resonate powerfully with existing employees. Employment branding messages are then crafted that are aligned with the mission, vision, values and culture of the organisation.

Employer Value Proposition (EVP)
An EVP comprises everything employees experience while being a part of an organisation. If your EVP inspires a positive experience there is a good chance your employees will choose to remain with your organisation rather than being lured away by competitors. It encourages your people to embrace shared goals – success, productivity, and satisfaction – on personal and professional levels.

As all employees are different, the task for the employer value proposition is to appeal to as many employee segments as possible, specifically to those candidates who will be a good fit with your organisation.

You need a unique employer value proposition to underpin your employment brand. Once organisations have a strong grasp of employment attributes that are realistic and achievable, they can begin to align them with the messages senior management wants to convey, as well as those the target audience wants to hear.

Communications plan
Once organisations have agreed on compelling employment messages, the next step is to select the appropriate communication channels for their target groups. An ideal approach is to use a variety of channels. The most popular communication channels include print advertisements, career expos, radio commercials, on-campus presentations and the company website. The key is to find the channel that resonates most with your target audience.

Evaluate your efforts
As organisations roll out their employment brand initiatives, careful thought should be given to how success will be evaluated and what metrics will be captured to measure success ie

> whether the number of job applicants has increased
> whether applicants are of higher quality than before the branding initiative
> the length of time it takes to fill key positions pre- and post-branding.

Organisations should also consider evaluating the ‘candidate experience’, as this can have an impact on a company’s brand. Conduct surveys of new employees who have applied through various recruitment channels and evaluate what their experiences have been. Did they have to speak with a dozen people to get to the right person? Was their interviewer well-prepared? How were they treated? Did anyone ever get back to them regarding the hiring decision?

Those candidates who have had a bad experience with a company will undoubtedly tell other people, thus undermining the company’s credibility. Remember, it is not just what you say about your employment brand – it is also about what others say about it.

Organisations must also remember to track internal metrics. This is because a strong employment brand also influences employee engagement and retention. If an organisation is ‘living’ the employment brand, employee turnover should reduce, as the organisation is delivering on the promise made to recent hires and present employees.

A long-term solution
The importance of employment branding cannot be overstated. In order to stand apart from every other career destination available to talented individuals, organisations need to understand, invest in and live by their employment brand. It is one of the few long-term solutions to the talent crunch.

The simple fact is that recruiters cannot achieve the best results if their client has not invested in building a strong employment brand, particularly if the company’s website and literature are poorly presented and not attuned to the needs of job seekers.

Whereas most employment strategies are short term and ‘reactive’ to job openings, building an employment brand is a longer-term solution designed to differentiate your offer and stimulate a steady flow in the talent pipeline


Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singpore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

Share on Facebook

How to Recruit an Effective Employment Branding Consultant

It seems like every recruitment agency in Australia is also expert at employment branding. Which is a good thing for employers .... or is it? A Google search reveals recruitment agencies of all sizes touting their expertise in the employment branding arena. If you are an employer and want information on the subject, this is where you will find it. At your fingertips is a definitive explanation of all aspects of employment branding. It’s great stuff. The larger recruitment agencies in particular have taken it upon themselves to educate the market and vie for a leadership position. It’s what clients want from these agencies. In many cases it is what they now demand. No longer are they content with simply having someone help fill vacancies, they want reassurance that advice for their clients is also forthcoming on being a better employer and ensuring new staff stay put. It makes a lot of sense. The need for employment branding has accelerated at such a pace that if you do not offer it as one of your core recruitment services, you are severely disadvantaged from both a revenue and credibility perspective.

The depth of information offered on some of the agency sites is remarkable. But what are they offering? Satisfaction surveys, workshops, developing Employee Value Propositions, communicating more frequently ... It appears that here are companies that know how to make your staff happy, retain them, and get you closer to that ‘employer of choice’ nomination. Or can they?

Recruiting is one of the most competitive of industries, in a market where talent is in high demand. Operating on the ‘front line’ provides agencies with great insight to the challenges and opportunities faced by their clients and how competitors are manoeuvring in the marketplace. This access to employment trends and shifting employee preferences is very valuable to employers. Recent ‘hands-on’ experience working alongside one of the larger global agencies however has revealed to us fundamental aspects of employment branding that are not being addressed by agencies – creativity and employer marketing.

It’s fine to have an employment brand but if you don’t have creative marketing activities that cut through the clutter, differentiate you and attract and engage new talent, you probably won’t have a business for much longer.

You need cut-through creativity that attracts talent, presses the employment hot buttons, articulates the offer, inspires action, delights, engages, satisfies and signs on the dotted line.

Branding is a complex and demanding subject. Its ability to change people’s perceptions does not happen overnight. It demands a thorough investigation of the company in question, including the competency of its brand, its values, vision and beliefs, and the way in which it communicates with its audiences. My experience, particularly with SMEs, is that adjustments to their company brand and its perception by key audiences are inevitable. The ability to deliver persuasive and appealing communications that resonate with employees and build positive perceptions is equally vital.

Your company brand precedes your employment brand. If you don’t have the brand fundamentals in place kiss goodbye to the dollars you invest in employer marketing activities.

Some key questions have to be asked. Does the company have the fundamentals in place? Does it have strong values and vision? Does it really care for its employees? Is it differentiated from competitors? Does it go out of its way to strengthen employees’ work experiences? Does it command respect for its achievements? Is it a good communicator? Is it comfortable committing this to paper and substantiating claims of competency? Saying you can and proving it are two very different things. It will prove a real reputation killer if you can’t. Your job applicants and employees, or lack of them, will soon let you know.

To gain traction with employees, communications must be creative, well written, intelligent and address their key employment experience needs.

It also requires determined skills to communicate clearly with employees to win their confidence and satisfy them that their employer places great emphasis on talented and motivated employees and has their interests at heart.

Your company needs to have in place its values, vision and philosophy, have its culture defined and have a clear understanding of its employer reputation and what drives it.

There will never be a substitute for expertise. We have a concern that agencies can flaunt the ‘employment branding’ offer to suit marketplace demand. Recruitment agencies can be very good at recruiting. It requires a different set of talents however to define a company’s brand, differentiate the employment offer and apply creative marketing to influence people’s perceptions of that company as a capable employer.

Heywood Innovation works with companies to explore and define brand fundamentals, improve perceptions and understanding of the employment offer and communicate positive aspects of the employment experience in print and online media. Only then will your recruitment agency have a good chance of hooking the big fish in the talent pool.

Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.

Share on Facebook