Whiplash Team, 3rd February 2023
A matter of experiences
For organisations, customers are not only external. Employees are internal customers who need to be taken care of. Good management of the employee experience or EX, that is, of their experiences in and their perception of their workplace, is essential to retain the best talent.
To attract and retain the most qualified talent organisations have various tools, including employer branding and what is known as employee experience (EX). Although both are linked, they are not the same.
Employer branding focuses on the conscious effort that the company makes to position its brand as a good employer. The key is to carry out actions that have a powerful and positive influence on the perception of the brand, both among potential candidates and current employees.
Thus, a successful employer branding strategy must meet the expectations of both potential employees and current ones. This will allow the HR department not only to obtain the best profiles when filling a vacancy but also to retain the best talent.
Experiences matter
Retaining talent involves adequately managing the employee’s experience, that is, what they encounter and live while they are at their workplace.
Let’s not forget that the best advertising for a brand is the one given by its users. In this case the employees. They are the ones who, through their opinions about what and how they feel in their workplace, will indirectly help entice other profiles that could be attractive for the employer brand.
For this reason, there must be consistency between what the company shows in its employer branding strategy and what it offers, and what employees actually find or experience when working for a company.
If there is a discordance between the value that the company proposes to its potential candidates and what they perceive once they start providing their services to the organisation, there will undoubtedly be problems.
Finding a balance between expectations and experiences
According to Harvard Business Review magazine, 80% of employees who leave a company voluntarily do so because they have had a bad experience. Either with their superiors, with how the work is organised, with the workspace itself, with the culture of the organisation or with its values.
To become a brand ambassador, workers must feel satisfied and proud to work for the organisation. Otherwise, they will hardly be able to say that they have had a good experience. Therefore, they will not value their time at the company as positive, thus negatively influencing the perception of the employer brand.
Finding the balance to align the expectations of the candidates and their actual experience in the workplace is the key. For this, it is necessary to be very clear about what the candidates want from their workplace and then get down to work so that their expectations are met.
Aligned messages and experiences
Aligning the messages of the employer branding strategy with the on-site experience of the employees will require effort and a deep understanding of the organisation, its purpose, its culture and its values.
In addition, there must be a thorough plan of the messages, the style, the tone of voice, the narrative and the actions carried out continuously during the hiring processes.
It is important to establish realistic expectations of what it is like to work for the organisation and what it is like on a day-to-day basis, to avoid disappointing those who start their journey through the organisation.
Finally, it is necessary to accompany the employee during the on-boarding period, ensuring that their experience at the workplace is as close to the expectation they had of being part of the organisation.
