July 2, 2024
Our recent Brainfood webinar focused on how to make your organization’s employer value proposition (EVP) an MVP in supporting employee recruitment, retention and engagement. During our session, four experienced panelists shared their insight and lessons learned as they have helped organizations create and implement compelling and differentiating EVPs. Below are 5 key takeaways.
1. A strong and authentic EVP has substantive benefits. – As our panelists noted, companies can’t be everything to everyone. Developing a clear EVP helps your organization determine who you are as an employer and provides focus to how you bring that to life. And in a crowded talent marketplace, a compelling EVP helps you stand out to potential candidates, while simultaneously reminding current employees why they chose to join your organization and why they stay.
2. The journey to creating a clear EVP has common steps. – For most organizations, it starts with taking a close look internally. How do you currently communicate to employees about your employee experience? What feedback have you already gathered as part of employer of choice award entries, engagement surveys and HR metrics? Next, organizations typically conduct leadership interviews and employee focus groups and administer surveys, to collect input across the organization. Finally, researching how competitors position themselves as employers – including organizations that you might compete with for talent – will help ensure that your EVP differentiates you from others. The data and feedback gathered are then analyzed to determine the three to five core attributes that serve as the foundation for the EVP.
3. Rollout requires a multifaceted approach. – An effective internal and external rollout, as affirmed by our panelists, requires a phased, multichannel approach that includes educating key internal audiences such as people leaders, human resources, the talent acquisition team and employee resource group leaders to help amplify the message and ensure consistent communication. Internally, the EVP is embedded in just about every facet of the employee lifecycle, from onboarding to development to annual reviews to benefits. Externally, the EVP comes to life on the career website; sites like Glassdoor, LinkedIn and Indeed; paid recruitment marketing ads; job descriptions; and recruiter talking points, among others.
4. Metrics help identify successes and areas needing support. – Our panelists shared a variety of metrics they have used to track their EVP, including regularly reviewing key themes and determining which ones need additional support, looking at engagement survey scores, tracking engagement on social media and reviewing time to fill jobs. Though the methods may vary for each organization, the panelists agreed that establishing these metrics early on and then seeing how they changed once the EVP was rolled out was helpful.
5. Initial and ongoing buy-in is critical. – At the beginning of their EVP projects, panelists identified those key stakeholders who would help approve the newly developed EVP and support its rollout and implementation. This would often include senior leaders, human resources and talent acquisition team members, among others. Panelists sought input early on about the EVP and messaging, and continually provided updates on progress and important milestones. When it came time to launch the EVP, these audiences were already champions who were willing to support the implementation.
Investing in the creation of an authentic, compelling and differentiating EVP can help organizations attract and retain top talent in today’s competitive landscape. If you would like to talk more about how Dix & Eaton can help your organization make your EVP an MVP, send me an email and let’s connect.
The Dix & Eaton team would like to thank our great panelists for sharing their time and expertise:
- Lindsay Domingo, Vice President, Talent and Communications, Swagelok Company
- Sandra Reid, Vice President, Corporate Communications and Strategic Planning, The Davey Tree Expert Company
- George Sample, Principal Consultant, Blue Streak Consultants
- Cynthia Burns, Vice President, Head of Talent, CDW
