Companies make huge investments in their brand names when it comes to the products and services they sell. A well-branded name speaks of trust, quality, sustainability, and people often buy because of the brand.
But what about the situation when a company needs to attract more employees with proper education and a positive work attitude? A company could be attractive to a customer, but is it attractive for future employees? To become attractive as an employer and to successfully compete for the best recruits, a company should consider Employer branding. It is not something new; however, nowadays companies are increasingly starting to realize the importance of having a great brand name among current and future employees, as well as trainees willing to start their career. It usually affects even the local reviews and communities.
Let’s face it — in some sectors, the demand for highly qualified employees is higher than what the market can offer.
The educated and carefully-made choice of an employer and workplace is extremely relevant in the field of information and communication technologies (ICT), where employees are in great demand, and the supply manages to satisfy the hunger of the market with difficulty.This puts job seekers in an advantageous position, and the companies often try to manipulate their choice. Of course, it is not about creating illusions, but rather about fair play based on already established rules. There’s an accurate term for this — “employer branding,” or “building a good employer brand” — that may not be something you talk about at any human resource conference in the country, but definitely not a terra incognita for ICT companies and other companies actively seeking ICT professionals, according to experts in the field.
What Employer Branding Actually Is
According to the definition, Employer Branding is the “combined and mixed efforts of an organization to communicate with existing and potential staff about what identifies it as a great place to work.” The phrase was relatively young in 1990 but was finally defined in December 1996 in the Journal of Brand Management by Simon Barrow, chairman of the People in Business, and Tim Amber, Senior Fellow of the London Business School. In their joint work, their first publication describing the application of techniques of brand management to the management of human resources. They define the employer brand as a “package of functional, economic and psychological benefits provided by employment and identified by designating company.”
A great brand name helps compete with other companies for the best employees
The first reason for the introduction of an employer brand is the serious struggle to find quality Internet marketing professionals. The second one should be that technology company and others who earnestly seek ICT staff has the resources to invest in their employer brand.
The third is that a large percentage of tech employees belong to the newer generations. To these generations, it is not only important to work and receive a salary. It is much more important to enjoy what they do for a living, to be respected for their style and personality, and to be recognized for their individual contribution. Adequate management of the employer brand helps understand the potential and current employees in companies.
The process of establishing a good employer brand does not end with glossy brochures showing beautiful faces and well-arranged messages. It is an attractive image of the life in the company, and the expectations from the human resources management are high. If you look at the criteria identified by popular studies, the preferred employer will have strong human resource management.
Usually, the first contact is the job interview
Usually, the job interview leaves a really great impact on the applicant. It could be considered as “The face of a company.” Unfortunately, perhaps everyone can complain about the bad impression the arrogant behavior of the interviewer left on them.
But who is the interviewer? In the past, they were a person who put the interviewee to a test, which the successful candidate would pass. Now, however, the reality is different, and many of the employers and the ICT specialists have come to the realization that the roles of the interviewer and the interviewee have become very similar.
However, not every employer behaves the same way when conducting job interviews. Behavior depends mainly on the maturity of the employer as a person, as well as the competitive situation in which they are. Thus, if the employer understands that the employees are a valuable resource that must be won and developed for the long term, they will make a better impression on the candidate at the interview.
Employer branding is a complicated long-term process. Properly conducted, it will make a company the number one choice of people looking to build their career. Thus, the company will become more competitive.
