What do you think of when you hear “employer brand”? Sarah Lybrand, a self-employed journalist, defines this as the organization’s reputation among employees and potential employees. Essentially, the employer brand is the company culture than can attract and retain qualified candidates.
We have a very competitive job market right now so creating a positive employer image is important to hire the cream-of-the-crop employees. This employer brand can be impacted by the potential for advancement within the organization or the benefits and compensation packages offered.
Kathryn Mayer compiled a list of 50 organization and the changes they made to their benefits packages in an article for Employee Benefit News. Companies will offer a wide variety of benefits to attract employees and to provide them with a good work-life balance to retain those employees.
For example, Activision Blizzard started renting new parents the Happiest Baby’s SNOO Smart Sleeper for the first 6 months. The crib is supposed to be responsive and soothe the baby so that new parents aren’t up all night doing that themselves. Activision Blizzard caters their benefits package to people with families so that they don’t have to choose between their family and their careers. Thus, creating a family-oriented employer brand.
Another organization, AutoNation, created a supportive employer brand by offering employer-sponsored critical illness plans that were fully paid by the company. This set AutoNation apart from other employers because very few workplaces offer such insurance and less than 5% of those are paid by the employer.
What have you been doing to heat up your employer brand?