Resource Planning

To what extent should organisations adopt 'employer branding' strategies aimed at (1) potential employees and (2) existing employees?

When an organisation deploys ‘employer branding’ strategies, it seeks to position itself as an employer of choice. Interrelated ingredients of ‘employer branding’ involve the organisation’s mission, diversity/inclusion practices and the employee lifecycle. The strategic impetus for such strategies is to (1) cultivate status as an employer, (2) entice future high-performing employees, and (3) retain current employees (Latzke et al., 2021).

How future employees are enticed to join an organisation depends on the reach and effectiveness of its communication channels (Latzke et al., 2021). One approach is to have an online presence through social media platforms (i.e., Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook) dedicated to displaying the employee experience. This would allow the organisation to reach a global audience, circulate user-targeted content, and engage with prospective employees. Related to this is a professional website highlighting the workplace culture, rewards/benefits, testimonials, and opportunities. Beyond digital spaces, an organisation could represent itself at industry-specific conferences or job fairs. A tactical combination of approaches would amplify the message that an organisation is a credible employer and distinct from its commercial rivals (Armstrong & Taylor, 2023). However, maintaining consistent branding in these spaces can be expensive and time-consuming. Of crucial consideration would be the value organisations place on the level of investment versus measurable return.

Strategies intended for existing employees can be more nuanced. For example, how regularly and effectively an organisation internally communicates can be impactful (Armstrong & Taylor, 2023). How meetings are organised, the tone of emails, and marketing literature compound the experience of working for an organisation. Reward and recognition programmes bolster the employee experience by highlighting contributions and engendering satisfaction (Latzke et al., 2021). With the strategies deployed for future employees, cost and time are critical assets needed to adopt these tactics. However, one consequence, if implemented inadequately, is employee resistance. Mainly dissonance occurs between the organisation’s messaging and the working reality of its employees.

How do you think organisations can best manage the 'mixed signals' referred to by the authors?

An organisation's ‘mixed signals’ indicate contradictory or inconsistent messaging to prospective and/or incumbent employees (Latzke et al., 2021). The sources of assorted ‘signalling’ are myriad (i.e., customer services, internal departments, policies/procedures); however, the detrimental impact on internal/external confidence is acute. Cultivating status as an employer of choice complements perceived trustworthiness and reliability (Armstrong & Taylor, 2023). When an organisation’s channels/communication platforms offer brand variations, it can adversely affect the internal/external experience (Latzke et al., 2021).

There are several strategies organisations can adopt to mitigate the proliferation of ‘mixed signals'. For instance, establishing straightforward and foundational narratives of the organisation’s brand (i.e., values, culture, mission) wherever it has a presence. Aligning an organisation’s principles baselines the relationship between its communications and actions (i.e., external promotion of work-life balance versus internal pressure to work on-call) (Armstrong & Taylor, 2023). Regular assessment and evaluation of practices/policies against the brand’s messaging are strongly associated with this. This can alleviate areas of discord between the employee and manager experience. Such disparity and dissonance have the potential to happen, despite working for the same organisation, if practices/policies are unevenly implemented (Armstrong & Taylor, 2023).