Businesses must ensure the everyday reality of working for them matches their employer brand, according to Steve Rockey, people director of Home Grown Hotels and Lime Wood Group.
Speaking at the 'Brand who: How to use your employer brand to attract the right people' event, hosted by Davidson Asset Management, Rockey explained the issues which can be caused if the reality does not match what's advertised.
“We like to use Instagram to show customers and potential employees what we serve and how our business operates,” he said. “This creates an image of what the company is like, and when someone walks through the door to start a job with us, there must not be a disconnect.
“If your employer brand is clear and honest, however, you will attract the kind of people that will fit in your business.”
Holly Glover, ?director of human resources at the Farncombe Estate, agreed. “It’s very important to have a consistent tone when it comes to your employer brand,” she said. “It’s no good having someone arrive on their first day and all the glitz and glamour falls away. We've found using pictures very helpful in getting our message across quickly.”
Zuleika Fennell, managing director at Corbin and King, added that the employer brand should be led by the people of the business not the senior leadership team. “We didn’t want our brand to be led centrally,” she said. “When we were establishing our values, we spoke to everyone, from the leaders to the pot washers, to find out what we stood for.
“From that, we were able to work out the four pillars of our values that really represent us.”
Rockey added that a successful employer brand is made up of three components: HR, marketing and operations. “HR makes sure it gets seen by the people you want to hire,” he said. “Marketing makes it look pretty. And operations make sure it works right. Those are the three main parts, and you need finance in the background working with it too.”
