We’re in the midst of a jobseeker’s market, and candidates are in the driver’s seat.
With less than half of India’s talent pool deemed fit for employment, organisations are being pushed to compete for top talent, coming to the table with higher wages, enhanced flexibility, hiring incentives, and quicker hiring decisions, just to gain an edge.
POSITIVE HIRING PLANS
Thirty-eight percent of Indian. companies are actively increasing staff, with key industries driving the trend.
- IT and technology: 40%
- Banking, Finance and Insurance: 31%
- Manufacturing: 31%
Source: Manpower Group Employment Outlook, March 2022.
Salary boosts and added perks, though, are just one piece of recruitment and retention in the post-pandemic landscape. Career resources like Glassdoor and Indeed Company Pages have radically opened up insights into the inner workings of companies via employee reviews and ratings—and, often, if a candidate does not like what they see, it is likely that they would consider other opportunities.
This direct, immediate access has heightened the importance of employer branding and, at the same time, empowered firms to take more control over it. So, what, specifically, should you be doing to understand, refine, and enhance your employer branding? Consult with an expert—but before that, take some time to understand where your organisation stands right now with a view of what’s working and what could be holding you back from attracting and retaining top talent.
CONSIDER THIS...
77% of candidates say that online reviews on sites like Indeed, Glassdoor influenced their decision on where (what companies) to apply for jobs.
Source: IN Decipher/ Focus Vision Data (2019)
Defining employer branding
Employer branding is a key differentiator in today’s increasingly competitive candidate market. Your employer branding, ultimately, is the story your organisation tells about itself and its reputation. That reputation comes from many sources, from the attributes and values you are actively messaging to what your current and former employees are sharing via social media, reviews and word of mouth.
Often, enterprises believe they have solved for employer branding—that their business is well-known and well-regarded in the space. A passive approach, though, can lead to recruiting and retention hurdles. As markets evolve and candidate wants and needs shift, a powerful promise—the core of an employer brand—may not be as compelling. Or, in some cases, employee sentiment—online reviews, social media posts, word of mouth—directly contradicts your long-standing employer branding. If that is the case, it is important to step back and reassess.
Creating—and maintaining—a positive employer brand
For the majority of jobseekers, employer branding centers on employee experience—that employee feedback and reviews are the most accurate representation of an employer brand. This, then, tends to drive the search process: accordingly to Indeed’s data, 81%* of jobseekers say they research reviews and ratings before applying for a job and 65%** say they would reconsider accepting an offer from a company that had negative online or peer reviews. It is clear from this that employer branding matters—especially now.
Identifying and overcoming employer branding hurdles
Despite the importance of a strong employer brand, 40% of Indian companies do not have an employer branding strategy in place while others do not have the framework in place to effectively monitor and respond to much-needed shifts in their existing messaging. Others, still, are not clear on the direct impact employer branding has on their business, or the warning signs to look for that indicate theirs could be suffering.
So how do you know if your employer branding needs work? While there are a host of tell-tale signs, one of the most common is a drop in qualified applicants—or constantly losing engaged applicants to the competition. If that is happening, there is a good chance there is a deep disconnect between the story you are telling and your employees’ authentic experiences within your organisation. Here is how to tell if yours is falling short—and what to do next.
First, listen—and act—on employee insights
While it is essential to have a well-crafted employer brand, employee experience is even more critical: employee voice is considered three times more credible than a CEO’s messaging.
Cultivating employee influence is an essential step in not just creating a strong employer brand but ensuring it is properly disseminated—and trusted—in the marketplace. Too often, though, companies market what they wish was true or, even, what used to be true or what they believe to be true: according to a KRC Research study, just 19% of 2,000 global employees surveyed felt strongly their experience syncs with their employer’s public-facing employer brand.
Understandably, this lack of authenticity whether intentional or not can have a significant impact on candidate engagement and consideration. A new report suggests that the rate of application per job has increased to 48% in India. In a country that has 53 million unemployed people, 35 million are actively seeking work, whereas 17 million are inactive jobseekers.
To identify and overcome these disconnects, tap into your greatest resource: your employees. Interview across departments and ranks, and understand if you are truly meeting your brand promise, at least from an employee perspective.
As you are kicking off these conversations, be sure to use direct, data-driven prompts. For example, instead of, “Why do you think people are posting negative reviews about our benefits packages?” frame questions in what you know to be the truth. “We are being told employees feel our benefits are lagging behind competitive companies. What are some benefits you’d like to see added?”
Likewise for more broad-based cultural questions. Employees are not likely to respond to questions like, “What are some leadership challenges?” while a question like, “Some of your colleagues have expressed frustration over a lack of growth opportunities. What do you think we could do to improve?” will likely spark thoughtful feedback.
Armed with a clearer view of what is and is not resonating and what matters to your staff right now, you will be better positioned to articulate your present-day employer brand. This, then, will ensure employee reviews and branding are more authentic and better aligned—and that will help candidates self-select more effectively. They will understand what your business represents and, from an employee perspective, how you stand apart from the competition.
Next, activate employee influencers
During your employee interviews, you will also want to identify employee advocates who can help organically and authentically share their experiences in the marketplace. Then, with a better-aligned employer brand in place, use those influencers to spread the word.
With a better-aligned employer brand, you should also dig into your jobseeker-facing platforms. Refresh company profiles, respond to reviews, update Glassdoor and Indeed Company Pages, and share employee insights and behind-the-scenes content on your social media platforms. Ideally, get employees to post and share directly to your company profiles—and theirs. The more candidates and jobseekers can understand your unique culture and employee experience, the more likely they are to engage—and accept your offer.
Finally, promote your brand to jobseekers and employees
Once your employer brand is more shored up—and your employee advocates are at the ready—promote your employer brand via social, employee reviews, and curated experiences on sites like Glassdoor and Indeed Company Pages. In doing this, you will get added exposure and give current and recent employees a chance to chime in and share their experiences with your business.
Together, these elements will help paint a picture of why people want to join—and stay at—your organisation. This not only drives more traffic—and talent—to your job posts, but keeps them engaged and moving forward with you over the competition.
* Indeed data (2021), n=500
** Indeed data (2019), n=500
