Employer Branding is crucial for tech companies
Author
Roland Guijs
Research shows that there are as many as 60,000 job vacancies in the technical sector. And 75% of technical companies are struggling to find good personnel. The pool of skilled workers is small, and the demand is high.
How do you ensure that a good welder does not go to work for a competitor down the road on the industrial estate? And with the rise of remote work, that senior engineer now faces competition from companies across the country. How do you make sure that people want to work at yoúr company? Your offline and online presence, focused on recruitment, is crucial for this. This is also known as employer branding, or the employer brand. But how do you build this up?
What is employer branding?
According to Oxford University (source), employer branding is described as: ‘Employer branding is associated with a desire to become an employer of choice and compete effectively in the war for talent.’ In other words, how do you ensure that people want to work for you? And that in the context of the battle for scarce talent.
According to the Randstad Employer Brand Research (source), it appears that people want to feel like an important part of a larger whole, without losing their own identity. As a company, you obviously want to pursue this, but how do you then convey this? This is also known as the Employee Value Proposition (EVP); your external image regarding employment.
What is the difference between employer branding and marketing?
Employer branding is closely connected to the EVP; how do people, or better said; potential new colleagues, perceive your company? Through employer branding you carefully build this image, for example through blogs and videos - whether or not employer branding videos. But also sponsoring events or outdoor advertising.
For instance, ASML being the name sponsor of the Eindhoven Marathon does not yield them any new customers, but is purely focused on building their (employer) image. Marketing, on the other hand, is aimed at communicating the company's proposition to (new) clients, in order to grow the business. It is no coincidence that most companies have a separate careers website, with a sub-brand identity, different tone-of-voice, and appearance. Addressing a relationship requires something quite different than recruiting personnel.
Why should you invest in employer branding?
If your company has job openings and/or growth ambitions, you need to invest in employer branding. Unknown makes unloved, and especially in a time when everyone is competing for talented employees, you want to be at the forefront. Another challenge that technical and other B2B companies face is that they generally have less visibility in society.
For the average citizen (who is not only an employee but also a consumer), a position at Nike or IKEA will stand out more than a similar vacancy at a SaaS company that offers customized B2B solutions. And if people are not aware of your existence, they will be much less likely to apply. By investing in employer branding, you come to the attention of your target audience in a positive way, even if they are, for example, passively searching. Because like so many good things in life, employer branding is also a matter of endurance; that pressing vacancy unfortunately will not be filled immediately upon launching a recruitment campaign.
Benefits of employer branding
Increased employer satisfaction. According to Monsterboard (source), one of the positive side effects of employer branding is that current employees feel prouder of their employer and are more motivated in their work. A win-win situation!
Competitive advantage. With a clear EVP, you differentiate yourself from the competition. Show why people should want to work for you! Good secondary employment conditions are crucial, but also showcase the cool innovations people can work on and the collaborative atmosphere of ‘all hands on deck’.
Filling vacancies faster. This is ultimately what it's all about, namely actually filling those open positions. And according to Nationale Nederlanden (source), an additional benefit is that the match is better, as people have a clearer understanding of what to expect from you.
Whitepaper on Successfully Implementing Employer Branding
Do you want to know more about successfully attracting good personnel through strong employer branding? Then download our free whitepaper. In it, we delve deeper into the different generations, the best practices from ASML and provide concrete tips and advice. Fill in your email address in the field below, and receive the whitepaper directly in your inbox.
