Companies continue to face unprecedented challenges in recruiting and retaining top talent. Our clients tell us repeatedly that this is their biggest concern and what’s most likely to keep them awake at night.
The latest survey from the British Chambers of Commerce (August 2023) supports this view, with 79% of businesses surveyed facing recruitment difficulties .
Despite this, many companies that we talk to don’t have an employee strategy and their employer brand and reputation have been shaped outside of their control by platforms such as Glassdoor. It is, therefore, more important than ever that companies develop a strategic approach to their employer brand as well as their client-facing brand, and part of that is developing a distinctive and compelling Employee Value Proposition.
What is an Employee Value Proposition?
An Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is the articulation of the employer brand and clearly communicates and provides clarity on why someone should come and work at your company and why they should stay. Companies develop an EVP to provide a consistent experience for current and future employees.
The EVP model has evolved and is no longer a one-way broadcast of the benefits of working for a company. Several years ago, recruiters might have highlighted private healthcare, pension schemes and catered lunches as compelling reasons to join. These things are still important, however prospective employees want to know so much more.
A shared sense of purpose and pride is increasingly critical. A survey by Monster found that 74% of Gen Z rank purpose ahead of a paycheck (vs. 70% of millennials, 66% of Gen X, and 67% of Boomer respondents) . A strong and positive company culture remains a vital asset in both attracting and retaining employees.
But an EVP does not just benefit the employee, it supports the value exchange between you as an employer and your current and future employees. It establishes your expectations for performance, behaviour and the rewards they will get in return, which may include pay and benefits, workspace, meaning and purpose, learning and development opportunities, and anything else an employee stands to gain.
An EVP is a vital tool in this competitive candidate landscape and can help to:
• drive business results and build sustainable growth
• communicate what sets you apart from your competitors
• attract new recruits and clearly communicate who you want to attract
• repel the people you don’t want and who won’t be a good fit for your company
• drive efficiencies in your recruitment process by repelling the many and compelling the few
• retain staff through improved engagement
• improve company culture
• drive the right behaviours across the business and improve the client experience.
How does it differ from a Customer Value Proposition?
A Customer Value Proposition (CVP) is our promise to our clients and why they should buy from us, while an EVP demonstrates why people should join and stay working for us. Both an EVP and CVP are critical to the business strategy and key drivers of long-term growth. The alignment between the two is critical as your clients’ experience with your brand will depend largely on your employees’ delivery of your brand. Thriving companies see employee engagement and marketing as two sides of the same brand coin: you can’t have one without the other. It’s critical to prioritise brand experience for employees as much as for clients.
The message is loud and clear: how well you look after your staff, how you live and breathe your brand values and the ethics you follow, will change how people view your company. In this transparent world, there’s no separation between how you behave towards your employees and your clients. If you treat your clients poorly, potential candidates will look elsewhere. Treat your staff badly, clients will take their business elsewhere.
How do we create an EVP?
A systematic and strategic approach is required to develop an EVP and build a strong employer brand and it involves:
- Conducting research across the business to understand the current views on employer branding both internally and externally.
- Working with cross-function teams, typically HR and Marketing.
- Ensuring leadership and management buy-in and that they understand the importance of developing and delivering a strong EVP. They must ‘walk the walk’ and ‘talk the talk’ and be totally consistent.
- Bringing the whole company on the journey when developing the EVP to ensure ‘buy-in’ early on and to support the activation phase.
- Building the EVP into the entire employee life-cycle so we consistently communicate our EVP across all touchpoints.
- Creating and delivering a communication plan for both the internal and external audiences.
- Delivering company-wide training to implement the EVP.
- Continually update and monitor the EVP.
The Mobas approach works alongside our clients to really understand their brand, business, industry and market drivers, so we can help them develop a compelling EVP. The goal is to attract the right candidates and engage and inspire your current team to deliver their best work. Speak to Mobas today to find out how we can help you win in the war for talent.
[1] https://www.britishchambers.org.uk/news/2023/08/quarterly-recruitment-outlook-people-problem-key-to-tackling-inflation
[2] https://www.monster.com/career-advice/article/gen-z-boss-0816
