CEB_Branding For Influence_Oct 14

CEB Recruiting Leadership Council

Branding for Influence

Keynote on Employment Branding

2014

A FRAMEWORK FOR MEMBER CONVERSATIONS

The mission of The Corporate Executive Board Company (CEB) and its affiliates is to unlock the potential of organizations and leaders by advancing the science and practice of management. When we bring leaders together, it is crucial that our discussions neither restrict competition nor improperly share inside information. All other conversations are welcomed and encouraged.

CONFIDENTIALITY AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

These materials have been prepared by CEB for the exclusive and individual use of our member companies. These materials contain valuable confidential and proprietary information belonging to CEB, and they may not be shared with any third party (including independent contractors and consultants) without the prior approval of CEB. CEB retains any and all intellectual property rights in these materials and requires retention of the copyright mark on all pages reproduced.

LEGAL CAVEAT

CEB is not able to guarantee the accuracy of the information or analysis contained in these materials. Furthermore, CEB is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or any other professional services. CEB specifically disclaims liability for any damages, claims, or losses that may arise from a) any errors or omissions in these materials, whether caused by CEB or its sources, or b) reliance upon any recommendation made by CEB.

iii

© 2014 CEB. All rights reserved. RR9635214SYN

Moving from Appeal to Influence p. 1

Focus Branding on Critical Talent p. 12

Create Messages That Consult p. 17

Build a Network of Brand Influencers p. 25

CONTENTS

iv


AGENDA

DERF 11-2827

Catalog #

Title

DERF 14-1410

Catalog # RR8465814SYN

Title

Objectives

In this session, you will learn how to:

■ Articulate the transition organizations need to make today from branding for appeal to branding for influence

■ Shift from targeting a wider array of talent segments to customizing more deeply to your most important talent segments.

■ Use messages that challenge applicants’ thinking, rather than highlight the organization’s selling points.

■ Focus less on managing a channel strategy and more on managing internal and external influencers.

Timing

Moving from Appeal to Influence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 minutes

Focus Branding on Critical Talent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 minutes

Create Messages that Consult. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 minutes

Build a Network of Brand Influencers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 minutes

Q&A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 minutes

Contact

If you’ would like more informaiton on how you can Brand for Influencewithin your organisation, please contact: Mitchell Wong T: 61-2-9321-7588 E: [email protected] ,

Credit

This program, 202527, has been approved for one (General) recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR and GPHR recertification through the HR Certification Institute.

Please be sure to note the program ID number on your recertification application form. For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HR Certification Institute Website at www.hrci.org.

Credit is only available for members joining us live.

mailto:virtualevents%40executiveboard.com?subject=

mailto:CEB.Support%40executiveboard.com?subject=

http://www.hrci.org

v


2014 Employment Branding SurveyPartial List of Participants

WELCOME TO WHAT THE BEST COMPANIES DO

CEB Recruiting Leadership CouncilEmployment Branding Topic Support Center

1


Moving from Appeal to Influence

2


Poor quality applicants lead to…

…poor quality of shortlist…low quality of hire…more new hire turnover…reduced new hire productivity…lower business unit profitability

HIGHER APPLICANT VOLUME, POOR QUALITY APPLICANTSIn the past three years, applicant volume has risen by 33%, while applicant quality remains low.

Trend in Application VolumeMedian Number of Applicants per Open Position

Average Quality of Applicant PoolPercentage of Applicants for a Given Position Who Are Considered High-Quality (Likely to Become High-Performing Employees) by the Recruiter

2011 2014

30

40

n = 572 (2011); 977 (2014).Source: CEB 2011 Candidate Rules of Engagement Survey;

CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.

Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.

28% High-Quality Applicants

The Corporate Brand Effect

Organizations with well-known corporate brands have 43% higher application volume than those with lesser-known brands, but applicant quality is virtually identical.

Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.

3


NEW TALENT NEEDS DRIVE BRANDING URGENCYOrganizations are under increasing pressure to attract new types of talent, and employment brands are struggling to keep up.

■ As organizations globalize at an unprecedented rate, they enter labor markets where they are unknown or perceived differently than in core markets.

■ As more organizations diversify their products and services, Recruiting must hire people with skills their brands were never meant to attract.

■ Even when talent needs are not changing, Recruiting must still evolve its employment brand to attract new generations or people who can help drive a culture change.

New Mindsets

Percentage of Organizations Undergoing a Cultural Shift “ Our business has been underperforming

for years, and the brand is a big driver of our shift to a culture of innovation.”

Head of Recruiting, Technology

36%

n = 90.Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey; CEB analysis.

New Generations

Percentage of Organizations Forecasting an Increase in Hiring Volume from Universities “ Most of our workforce will retire soon,

but millennials don’t know who we are.”

Head of Recruiting, Insurance

2011 2014

49%66%

n=45 (2011); 47 (2014).Source: CEB analysis; CEB 2011 Recruiting Forecast Survey; CEB 2014 Recruiting Forecast Survey.

New Skills

Projected Percentage Growth in US Employment, 2008–2018

“ The talent we need for our biggest growth area isn’t attracted to our corporate brand.”

Employment Branding Director, Consumer Products

All Occupations

STEMa Occupations 19%

10%

Source: Robert D. Atkinson and Merrilea Mayo, “Refueling the U.S. Innovation Economy,” The Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, December 2010.

a STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

New Locations

Percentage of Recruiters Attracting Candidates in New or Different Labor Markets

Compared to Three Years Ago

“ Since our business is still emerging in India, it is hard to find candidates who are proud to work here.”

Employment Brand Manager, Retail67%

n = 1,044.Source: CEB analysis; CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.

New Types of Talent Needed Employment Branding Challenge

4


YOUR CURRENT GOAL: A MORE APPEALING BRAND

Elements of Today’s Typical Employment Branding Approach

Most organizations focus employment branding efforts on becoming better known as a great place to work.

■ Many organizations have applied marketing principles to their employment brands to be as appealing as possible.

■ The typical organization creates a core brand with universally appealing messages that sell the most compelling aspects of the organization, and communicates those messages through the most popular channels.

■ Taken together, these elements lead to a “branding for appeal” strategy.

Core Brand Focus Messages That Sell Channel-Driven Outreach

Core Brand

Customized Brands

“See our career opportunities.”

“Be challenged every day.”

“Our culture is very collaborative.”

Choosing the appropriate overall brand theme is rated the #1 most important

branding activity by recruiting and employment branding leaders.

The average organization expects to increase usage of 6 different brand channels this year alone.

64% of organizations focus their brand messages on positive aspects of

the organization’s EVP.a

Branding for AppealPromoting the organization as a great place to work

Employment Brand: The perceptions that the labor market has about an organization as an employer

Employment Branding: The efforts undertaken by employers to manage labor market perceptions of the organization

n = 74 (Core Brand Focus); 1,044 Recruiters (Messages That Sell); 31 (Channel-Driven Outreach). Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey; CEB 2014 Recruiting Forecast Survey.a Sixty-four percent includes respondents who strongly disagreed, disagreed, or somewhat disagreed that their employment branding messages emphasized the negative aspects

of working at their organizations.

5


2014 EMPLOYMENT BRANDING SURVEY

Organization Survey

Objective: to assess the impact of branding activities on quality of applicant pool

■ 80+ recruiting and branding executives and thought leaders ■ 2,000 recruiting staff ■ 100+ organizations globally

Labor Market Survey

Objective: to assess the impact of branding activities on high-quality and low-quality potential applicants’ likelihood to apply.

■ 4,700 passive and active labor market participants ■ 15 countries globally

Participating OrganizationsPartial List

6


BRANDING FOR APPEAL ADDS TO INFORMATION OVERLOAD

How Applicants Learn About Employers Today Relative Influence of Information on Applicants’ Decision to Applya

In today’s information-rich labor market, appealing employment branding adds to the amount of unhelpful information applicants receive.

■ Potential applicants have access to an unprecedented amount of information to inform application decisions.

■ When applicants look to organizational communications to decide where to apply, appealing branding tells them that many organizations are great places to work.

Rise in Amount of (Low Quality) Information from Other Sources

n = 708 (Top); 5,410 (Honesty).Source: CEB Q3 2013 Global Labor Market Survey; R. Dunbar, “The Social Brain Hypothesis,” ; Stephen Wolfram, “Data Science of the Facebook World,” 24 April 2013, http://blog.

stephenwolfram.com/2013/04/data-science-of-the-facebook-world/; LinkedIn, http://www.linkedin.com; Glassdoor, http://www.glassdoor.com; CEB Q4 2013 Global Labor Market Survey.

a Organizational communications includes the organization’s careers website, social media presence, and job postings. Information from other sources includes friends and family, current and former employees, news stories, etc.

Impact When Organizational Communications Brand for Appeal

Core Brand Focus

Universally appealing branding themes go unnoticed when experienced en masse.

Messages That Sell

Similar selling points across employers make them indistinguishable from each other.

Channel-Driven Outreach

Broader presence multiplies the same unhelpful information for applicants to consider.

130% Growth in number of contacts available to the average applicant since 2006

35x Growth of LinkedIn users since 2006

22x Growth in Glassdoor membership since 2011

45% Employees who admit to being less than honest when telling friends and family what it is like to work at their organization

20% Organizational

Communications80% Information from Other Sources

7


MORE INFORMATION MORE INFORMED

Applicant Uncertainty About Where to Apply

More Skepticism

Applicants struggle to make the right decisions based on the information available to them about and from potential employers.

■ Applicants are more skeptical about the appealing things employers say about themselves and consequently less confident in where they should apply.

■ Applicants in high-demand segments are even more skeptical of employers, yet they are more likely to know which employers to consider, suggesting they are being heavily targeted.

“Compared to three years ago, I am more skeptical of what employers say about themselves.”

“If I wanted to leave my current employer, I know which other employers I would consider applying to.”

Less Confidence

61% Agree or

Strongly Agree

31% Agree or

Strongly Agree

n = 4,663.Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.a STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

n = 5,412.Source: CEB Q4 2013 Global Labor Market Survey.b STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

■ Applicants in Emerging Markets: 66%

■ STEMa Talent: 61%

■ Millennials: 65%

■ Applicants in Emerging Markets: 43%

■ STEMb Talent: 31%

■ Millennials: 35%

8


PERSUADE THE BEST, DEFLECT THE REST

Strategic Employment Branding Shift Required Today

Branding for influence gives applicants the trusted guidance they need in today’s information-rich labor market.

Branding for Appeal

Promoting the organization as a

great place to work

Branding for Influence

Guiding potential applicants to

make better decisions about whether to apply

Key Trade-Offs of a Branding for Influence StrategyInfluential Brands Help Applicants Make Better Decisions By…

Awareness of the Employer

Attention to the Employer

Perception of the Employer

Consideration of the Employer

Application Submission

…focusing their attention, rather than increasing awareness, in an environment in which it is easy to identify potential employers.

…driving consideration of fit instead of improving perceptions, because employers want the highest quality candidates to apply while dissuading poor-quality candidates.

Source: CEB analysis.

9


THREE STEPS TO BRANDING FOR INFLUENCE

Branding for InfluenceGuiding potential

applicants to make better decisions about

whether to apply

1Customized

Brands Focus

2Messages

That Consult

3Messenger-Driven

Outreach

Customized Brands

“Check out this company

that I didn’t know hires for…”

“Your work helps achieve our mission

by…”

“Given your interests, I think the right job for

you will be…”


Branding for AppealPromoting the

organization as a great place to work

Core Brand Focus

Messages That Sell

Channel-Driven Outreach

Customized Brands

“See our career opportunities.”

“Be challenged every day.”

“Our culture is very collaborative.”

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© 2014 CEB. All rights reserved. RR9635214SYN© 2014 CEB. All rights reserved. RR9192714SYN

10

40

70

LARGE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF INFLUENTIAL BRANDING

Quality of Applicant Pool, by Organizationa

In Ascending Order

Shifting from appealing branding to influential branding brings you almost four-times more improvement in applicant quality than you receive by moving from unmanaged to appealing branding.

■ An average of 43% of applicants are high-quality at organizations that brand for influence, compared to just 28% at organizations that brand for appeal and 24% at organizations that do not manage their brands.

n = 1,044 Recruiters.Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.a The percentage of applicants for a given position who are considered high-quality (likely to become high-performing employees) by the recruiter.

43%

70%

10%

24%

28%

Qua

lity

of

Ap

plic

ant

Po

ol

On average, branding for appeal increases applicant quality only slightly, from 24% to 28%.

Branding for influence drives a much bigger increase in applicant quality, to 43% on average.

Average Organization with

an Influential Brand

How to Read This Chart

The blue line represents each of the 100+ organizations we surveyed, ordered from left to right based on its average quality of applicant pool. The three labels along the bottom represent the average organization that does not manage its brand, the one that brands for appeal, and the one that brands for influence, respectively.

Average Organization with

an Unmanaged Brand Average Organization with

an Appealing Brand

1. Branding for Appeal 2. Branding for Influence

2

1

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BUSINESS IMPLICATIONS OF BRANDING FOR INFLUENCEThe downstream and monetary returns from branding for influence are significant.

■ By moving from branding for appeal to branding for influence, the percentage of your applicants who are high-quality can increase by 54% (from 28% of applicants being high-quality to 43% being high-quality).

■ This increase in applicant quality translates to 22% higher quality of shortlist and 9% higher quality of hire, holding everything else constant.

■ Higher quality hires are higher performing and less likely to leave, leading to returns in terms of business unit profitability and turnover cost savings, which reach the millions at a typical organization.

Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey; CEB 2013 Selection Effectiveness Diagnostic; CEB 2012 Global Recruiting Effectiveness Survey; CEB analysis.a The percentage of applicants for a given position who are considered high-quality (likely to become high performing employees) by the recruiter.b Organizations with influential brands spend an average of USD $1,509,211 annually, whereas organizations with appealing brands spend an average of USD $1,467,725.c Quality of shortlist is measured based on hiring managers’ responses to the following question: Thinking of the most recent position that you filled, on a scale

from 1 to 10 (10 being best), how would you rate the quality of the candidates you interviewed?d Quality of hire is defined as the new hire’s current and likely future effectiveness at completing his or her individual tasks, contributing to others’ performance, and using others’

contributions to improve his or her own performance. See the Appendix for more detail on CEB’s quality of hire definition.

By Shifting from Branding for Appeal to Branding for Influence, the Typical Organization Can See…

Greater quality of applicant

poola from a 3% average increase in

branding costsb

22%

Higher quality

of shortlistc

54%

Higher quality of hired

More high-performing new hires

Lower new hire turnover

Increased business unit profitability

Turnover cost savings

9%

2.5x

23% US$1.4 million

US$2.7 million

Note: See the Appendix for details regarding all calculations.

12


Create Messages That Consult

Focus Branding on Critical Talent

Build a Network of Brand Influencers

ROADMAP FOR THE PRESENTATION

13


DEEPER CUSTOMIZATION NEEDED TO INFLUENCE

Applicant Perception of Brand Influencea by Degree of Brand Customization

Deeper customization of branding to each talent segment is needed to influence better applicant decisions.

■ Surface-level branding customization is insufficient to help applicants make better decisions about where to apply.

■ Potential applicants need to experience deeply customized employment branding that is clearly related to their background, skills, and values.

n = 3,772.Source: CEB analysis; CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.a Applicant perception of brand influence is a measure of the extent to which applicants agreed that the information they learned prior to applying to an organization helped them

decide whether or not they would succeed there.

Ap

plic

ant

Per

cep

tio

n o

f B

rand

Infl

uenc

e

Degree of Brand Customization

100

50

0Surface-Level Customization Deep Customization

Less customized employment branding recycles standard branding initiatives across the organization.

Sample Initiatives: ■ Dialing up messages from the core brand that align with

each segment’s EVP preferences

■ Pushing out segment-specific content to central career channels

■ Including profiles of employees from different talent segments on the central careers website

More deeply customized employment branding engages each talent segment with relevant details about the employment experience.

Sample Initiatives: ■ Crafting new messages and content that reflects each

segment’s work experience

■ Creating targeted microsites and social media profiles that align with segment-specific channel usage

■ Training different employees from within each talent segment to champion the employment brand

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CUSTOMIZE MORE DEEPLY TO THE CRITICAL FEWInstead of spreading resources thinly over many talent segments, focus brand customization on sub-brands for critical talent segments.

■ Most organizations focus their brand portfolio on identifying core brand themes, then lightly segmenting for different levels, roles, geographies, and/or business units.

■ To influence potential applicants, reorient your brand portfolio to focus on sub-brands for critical talent segments.

■ Organizations that customize their brands for critical talent segments see higher quality applicants in those segments, without affecting applicant quality for other segments.

Critical Talent Defined: Critical talent are segments identified as key to business performance outcomes and hard to fill. Critical talent can be talent within a specific region, level, business unit, etc.

Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey; CEB analysis.

Surface-level brand customization fails to resonate with target segments to influence them in today’s information-rich labor market.

Deep brand customization resonates with target segments to influence them in today’s information-rich labor market.

Brand Portfolio When Branding for Appeal Brand Portfolio When Branding for Influence

Core Brand

Sub-Brands

by Level

Sub-Brands by Role

Sub-Brands by BU

Sub-Brands by Geography

Core Brand

Sub-Brand for Critical Talent

Segment 1

Sub-Brand for Critical Talent

Segment 2

Deprioritize the core brand in favor of fewer, deeply customized sub-brands, creating little cost differential while maintaining baseline consistency.

15


MEETING TALENT NEEDS BY MANAGING A PORTFOLIO OF CRITICAL TALENT BRANDS

Thomson Reuters’ Portfolio of Critical Talent Employment Brands

Instead of focusing all efforts on its core global employment brand, Thomson Reuters recognizes the need to target brand messages more intentionally at critical talent segments.

■ Thomson Reuters creates a ‘brand blueprint’ based on core EVP messages rather than creative attributes like logos and taglines.

■ Using the brand blueprint as a guide, Thomson Reuters creates sub-brands for target segments, rather than just ‘dialing up’ global brand attributes.

■ Thomson Reuters determines which communication channels should carry which message by assessing the audience of the channel and the current hiring needs of the organization.

Brand Blueprint

■ Work that matters

■ Careers without boundaries

■ Flexibility to perform

Source: Thomson Reuters; CEB analysis.

1. Create Brand Blueprint2. Define Sub-Brands

for Critical Segments

Content

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

Sales

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

Campus

■ Diversity

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

Diversity

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

Emerging Markets

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

■ xxxxxxxx

Technology

■ Working on innovative products

■ Perfecting technical expertise and skills

■ Using tools and technology to find the right work-life balance

3. Segment Communication Messages

Job Fair

16


NOT JUST “DIALING UP”

Thomson Reuters’ Segment-Specific Brand Creation Activities

Thomson Reuters creates sub-brands for target segments, rather than just “dialing up” global brand attributes.

■ Thomson Reuters creates segment-specific sub-brands for talent segments that drive critical business outcomes, and reviews HR strategy and workforce plans to determine them.

■ There are six sub-brands in Thomson Reuters’ employment brand portfolio: content, sales, technology, campus, emerging markets, and diversity.

Define Detail Disseminate Double Check

What Thomson Reuters does

Define the brand statements from the target audience’s perspective.

Augment the sub-brand with additional detail where necessary.

Ensure sub-brand is communicated using relevant channels.

Confirm there is a clear relationship between sub-brand and brand blueprint.

Why it works Using original brand blueprint as a starting point avoids unnecessary rework.

Adding segment-specific detail maximizes relevance for target audience.

Aligning communication channels reinforces audience perceptions of the brand.

Validating the link between global brand and sub-brand maintains overall consistency.

Example for Technology Candidates

Work that matters: Working on innovative products

Careers without boundaries: Perfecting technical expertise and skills

Flexibility to perform: Using tools and technology to find the right work-life balance

Technology blog includes in-depth stories and profiles of technology projects.

Create technology careers app

Boost mobile-friendliness of global careers site

BRAND

BRAND

Drawbacks of Dialing up Global Attributes

When organizations dial up brand attributes, they generally just insert a segment-specific word to modify the attribute (e.g. “Work that matters to technology employees”) or just emphasize the original attribute in segment-specific communications.

The message is generally not specific-enough to resonate with the intended audience.

Most organizations simply ‘dial up’ one or two attributes from their global brand rather than providing the definition and detail that niche, in-demand candidates want and need.


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18


COMPETITIVE, EMOTIONAL, AND FIT-BASED MESSAGING DRIVES INFLUENCE

Maximum Impact of Types of Employment Brand Messages on Quality of Applicant Poola

The most influential brand messages are competitively positioned, emotionally resonant, and drive reflection about fit, but few organizations use these types of messages.

■ Messages that are competitively positioned and emotionally resonant increase quality of applicant pool by 19%, and messages that drive reflection about fit increase quality of applicant pool by 17%.

■ However, these are the least prevalent types of employment brand messages that organizations use.

■ Brand messages focusing on authenticity to the employment experience and alignment with applicant preferences have limited impact on quality of applicant pool, but are the most prevalent.

Aligned with Applicant

Preferences

Authentic to Employment Experience

Driving Reflection About Fit

Emotionally Resonant

Competitively Positioned

n = 1,092 recruiters (Maximum Impact); 70 (Percentage of Organizations).Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.a Organizations using messages that are competitively positioned, emotionally resonant, and drive self-reflection have employment brands that are 28% more influential than

organizations that are not.

Percentage of Organizations Using Each Type of Message

15% 26% 26% 35% 39%

0%

10%

20% 19% 19%17%

8%

0%

19


COMPETITIVELY POSITIONED EMOTIONALLY RESONANT REFLECTION ABOUT FIT

INFLUENTIAL POSITIONING IS SOMETIMES EXPLICIT

Huddle’s Direct Competitor Brand Comparison

In an extremely tight labor market for creative technical talent, Huddle used the acquisition of a major rival by Microsoft to brand around the advantages of working at a smaller organization. Huddle makes explicit reference to the

fact that its competitor has been acquired by a large organization, and the informal, playful tone helps differentiate it from the multinational.

Source: http://www.huddle.com/blog/the-importance-of-people-in-companies/; CEB analysis

…………

CEO Blog: “The Importance of People in Companies”, 19 July

The danger with moving from a small company to a large enterprise is that the fostering of ideas and nurturing of creativity often gets stifled in the workings of a larger organisation and employees become just another number on the roll call.

…………

About Us Home Blogs ContactHuddle complements its advertising boards with messages that further describe the benefits of working at a smaller rather than larger company.

http://www.huddle.com/blog/the-importance-of-people-in-companies/

20



POSITIONING ISN’T ALWAYS ABOUT DIFFERENCES

Thomson Reuters’ Comparative Association Message in India

In a competitive talent market where it is relatively unknown, Thomson Reuters India makes explicit reference to companies it compares to, to help potential applicants understand its strengths.

■ Thomson Reuters associates itself with a mix of well-known brands and industry competitors.


Association with well-known brands and other media and publishing companies

Financial Overview We Are Bigger or More Profitable Than…

21


EMOTIONAL CONNECTION REQUIRES AN ACHIEVABLE PURPOSE

Johnson & Johnson’s employment brand clearly communicates an achievable purpose, thereby fostering a stronger emotional connection.

■ Johnson & Johnson conveys how to achieve its purpose through its credo, which comprises simple statements written in clear language.

■ Johnson & Johnson makes the achievability of its purpose believable by personalizing it for candidates, and demonstrating how employees achieve it in their day-to-day professional lives.

Employment Brand Challenges

Johnson & Johnson’s Solutions

Desired labor market perception: “The organization has a purpose and I can contribute to it.”

Show applicants how to achieve your purpose through clear communication.

Johnson & Johnson’s credo

Make your purpose personal by showing employees achieve it.

Johnson & Johnson’s personalized purpose

Desired reaction among high-quality applicants: “The organization has a purpose I care about, and I can contribute to it.”

Source: Johnson & Johnson; CEB analysis.

Johnson & Johnson’s New Employment Brand

“Be Vital” Attributes: ■ Applicant-centered

■ Experience-oriented

■ Increased focus on Credo values

How do we help potential applicants understand how they can achieve the organization’s purpose?

How do we enable potential applicants to believe they can achieve the organization’s purpose?


22



Career “Planning” Not for Us ■ Formalized development is rarely effective, and we

don’t try to do it ■ e.g., Mentor assignment, rotation around a firm, multi-

year career paths, etc.

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POLARIZING MESSAGES CAN MAKE FIT (VERY) CLEAR

Netflix’s Polarizing Culture Statements

Netflix publishes messages about organizational culture that will appeal to some candidates and dissuade others.

■ Polarizing messages are more effective than broadly positive or appealing messages in helping applicants consider their fit with the organization.

Sample Online Responses from Potential Candidates

“I’m a Health and Safety Advisor within Local Government (UK). Those first few slides have stirred something in me and I’ve never wanted to work somewhere as much as I do at Netflix!”

“Having read this, I wouldn’t want to work at Netflix though I’m a high-performer.”

Source: http://hbr.org/2014/01/how-netflix-reinvented-hr/ar/1; CEB analysis.

Our High Performance Culture

Not Right for Everyone

■ Many people love our culture, and stay a long time

– They thrive on excellence and candor and change

– They would be disappointed if given a severance

package, but lots of mutual warmth and respect

■ Some people, however, value job security and stability

over performance, and don’t like our culture

– They feel fearful at Netflix

– They are sometimes bitter if let go, and feel we are a

political place to work

■ We’re getting better at attracting only the former, and

helping the latter realize we are not right for them

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Unlike Many Companies,

We Practice:

■ Adequate performance gets a generous severance

package

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FIT CAN BE WITH, AND WITHIN, YOUR ORGANIZATION

Goldman Sachs’s Career Quiz

Goldman Sachs’ short pre-application diagnostic helps potential applicants consider where they will best fit within the organization.

■ Potential applicants respond to a series of short questions about what types of projects or activities they would like to work on.

■ The diagnostic uses the answers to inform potential applicants about which types of roles at Goldman Sachs would be best for them.

■ The diagnostic is an informational tool only and is not part of the formal assessment process.

Source: http://www.goldmansachs.com/careers/why-goldman-sachs/explore-goldman-sachs-careers-quiz/; CEB analysis.

Question 7 of 14

Tech Turnaround

Your management consulting firm has a new client—a technology company which has been losing money for several years. Pundits have written off the company, but your team believes it can help bring the business back to profitability. What part of this engagement would you most like to work on?

Performing an analysis of the company’s business and operations.

Researching its competitors to see how they operate more efficiently.

Writing the final report to the client

Your Best Matches

View Top 3 Matches

Executive Office

Compliance

Internal Audit

Legal

Services

Human Capital Management

Operations

Finance

Global Investment Research

Investment Banking

Investment Management

Merchant Banking

Securities


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25


MESSENGERS MORE INFLUENTIAL THAN CHANNELS

Importance of Brand Channels and MessengersRelative Impact on Quality of Applicant Pool, Irrespective of Message Contenta

Promoting your brand is a function of where the brand is communicated (i.e., channel) and the person promoting the brand (i.e., messenger).

■ Messengers have more than twice the impact on quality of applicant pool compared to channels.

0%

50%

100%

32%

68%

Examples:

■ Careers Website

■ LinkedIn

■ Facebook

■ Twitter

■ Career Fairs

■ Recruiting Collateral

Examples:

■ Recruiters

■ Senior Leaders

■ New Hires

■ Hiring Managers

■ Former Employees

■ Industry Experts

n = 1,044.Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness Survey.a Messengers have an 79% relative impact on influence compared to the 21% relative impact of channels on influence.

Channels Messengers

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RECRUITING A SMALL PART OF THE BRAND INFLUENCER ECOSYSTEM

Recruiting is an influential messenger, but it is part of a broader ecosystem of potential influencers who have a much greater impact on applicant quality.

■ Recruiting’s maximum impact as an influential messenger is 8% compared to the 33% impact of other messengers.

■ Recruiting must overcome challenges associated with empowering different groups of messengers to optimize quality of applicant pool.

Importance of Different Types of Messengers, Irrespective of Message ContentMaximum Impact on Quality of Applicant Poola

Brand Influencers

8%

33%

Recruiting Brand Influencers

The General Employee Population

Recruiting’s Challenge: How do we better equip the general employee population to influence potential applicants?

Brand Detractors Recruiting’s Challenge: How do we

mitigate the destructive influence of brand detractors (e.g., disgruntled former employees)?

Brand Ambassadors Recruiting’s Challenge: How do we

get the most influence out of our brand ambassadors (e.g., senior leaders, new hires, formal brand ambassadors)?

External Influencers Recruiting’s Challenge: How do we

get the most influence out of our brand ambassadors?

n = 1,044.Source: CEB 2014 Employment Branding Effectiveness

Survey.a Recruiting has a 19% maximum impact on influence,

whereas other messengers have a 41% maximum impact on influence.


Note: See the Appendix, Philips’ External Influencers, to see how Philips identifies and partners with external influencers in target functional areas to shape labor market perceptions of the organization.

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BRAND DETRACTORS BRAND AMBASSADORS

RESPONSE PROTOCOL FOR BRAND DETRACTORS

Decision Tree to Optimize Influence When Responding to Brand Detractors

Assess the Platform

Assess the Source

Assess the Content

Respond Accordingly

Do Not Respond

Register and learn from the comment, but at this point there is little value in responding.

Respond

Describe that the experience is untrue for your employment brand.

Example: Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. Our development programs are at the core of our organization’s motto, “Keep Learning”, and are central to everything we do. Our previous 4 Academies have achieved high scores with formal learning environments achieving 98% employee satisfaction.

Respond

Describe that the experience is inconsistent with your employment brand.

Example: Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. We are dedicated to ensuring our employees receive valued professional development opportunities in formal learning environments and to achieve this we always welcome feedback to improve the employee development plans currently in place.

Respond

Highlight why the experience described is true for your employment brand.

Example: Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. Our company culture encourages on-the-job and independent learning and therefore our development programs are deliberately framed around these learning techniques.

Is comment on a valid, reputable, and high-traffic site?

Is the source likely to be influential (e.g., long tenure at organization,

senior role)?

Is the comment consistent with other comments?

Is the comment about a broad (i.e., not isolated) employment

experience?

Is the comment plausible in your organization?

Does the comment accurately reflect your employment

experience?

N

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

Y

N

N

N

N

N


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TURN BRAND ADVOCATES INTO BRAND INFLUENCERS

How Suncor Enables Brand Influencers

Suncor provides a group of employees with action-oriented training and greater visibility to potential applicants so they can act as brand influencers, not just brand advocates.

■ To help employees make the transition from brand advocate to brand influencer, Suncor has created a training session focused on three influencer abilities: verify, consult, and navigate.

■ Once training is complete, Suncor provides influencers with greater visibility to applicants, thereby helping them reach high-quality potential applicants in all channels.

■ Training employees to be effective communicators enables them to bring the Suncor brand experience to life when interacting with applicants.

Who are Suncor’s Brand Influencers?

■ 150 brand influencers ■ Nominated by business units ■ Usually high-performers and highly engaged

■ Spread across critical talent segments

■ Mix of job levels

ROI for Brand InfluencersWith a day invested in training and other time commitments kept to a minimum, Suncor’s brand influencers:

■ Feel more engaged in the organization given the opportunity to help Suncor achieve its goals

■ Are recognized informally by their managers and leaders of their business units for participation

■ Expand their networks by interacting with potential applicants within their industry

Fit Verification Model

Provide actionable information about talent needs so influencers can verify preliminary fit, even for roles with which they are not familiar.

A. Verify The Applicant Will Thrive in Suncor’s Culture

Talent NeedsSuncor’s Values

1. Safety above all else.

2. Respect.

3. Raise the bar.

4. Commitments that matter.

5. Do the right thing.

Action StepsSurface Behaviors that Indicate this Value Mentions interest in sustainability Participates in community service Seeking a long-term career

B. Verify Whether the Applicant Is in a Critical Talent Segment

Talent NeedsStrategy-Critical Talent Segments

6. Petroleum Geologist

7. Power Engineers in Alberta

8. Women in Leadership

Action StepsConsider Key Questions about Each Potential Applicant Is the individual interested in a role as a petroleum geologist? Does the individual have experience (work or education) working as a petroleum geologist?

Consultative Conversation Framework

Teach brand influencers a sales-inspired conversation framework so that they can deliver tailored information based on applicant need.

Three Steps to Consultation

Step 1: Diagnose Applicant Needs by Probing Intelligently

Step 2:Deliver Customized Messages by Addressing Preferences and Concerns

Step 3:Enact a Plan for Further Engagement by Providing Next Steps

Objective of Step Understand the potential applicant’s career interests and concerns by probing intelligently and empathetically.

Connect with the potential applicant by explaining how Suncor delivers on their career preferences and dispelling inaccurate concerns.

Help potential applicants create an action plan for future engagement with Suncor.

What’s At Risk if You Get the Step Wrong

Teeing up the wrongtopics for the rest of the conversation

Wasted applicant time,effort, and goodwill ifmessages don’t applyto them

Wasted applicant time,effort, and goodwill ifmessages don’t applyto them

Information Provided in Training to Prepare Influencers

Guidelines on how to ask probing questions instead of closed questions.

Inventory of messages about Suncor that match different applicant preferences.

Application information for good fit applicants and alternate opportunities list for poor fits.

Consultation Role Playing

Ask brand influencers to practice interacting with applicants in different situations to gain confidence navigating difficult conversation scenarios.

Online Applicant Engagement

Make influencers “always-on” through social media to leverage the power of employee influence in all channels.

Action-Oriented Training

Greater Visibility to Applicants

1. Verify 2. Consult 3. Navigate 4. Reach

Source: Suncor Energy; CEB analysis.

BRAND DETRACTORS BRAND AMBASSADORS

29


Three Steps to Consultation

Step 1: Diagnose Applicant Needs by Probing Intelligently

Step 2:Deliver Customized Messages by Addressing Preferences and Concerns

Step 3:Enact a Plan for Further Engagement by Providing Next Steps

Objective of Step Understand the potential applicant’s career interests and concerns by probing intelligently and empathetically.

Bring the Suncor brand to life by explaining how Suncor delivers on applicants’ career preferences and dispelling inaccurate concerns.

Help potential applicants create an action plan for future engagement with Suncor.

Information Provided in Training to Prepare Influencers

Guidelines on how to ask probing questions instead of closed questions.

Inventory of messages about Suncor that match different applicant preferences.

Application information for good fit applicants and alternate opportunities list for poor fits.

DEVELOP EMPLOYEES’ ABILITY TO TAILOR MESSAGES TO APPLICANT NEED

Suncor’s Consultative Conversation Framework

Suncor teaches influencers a sales-inspired conversation framework so that they can deliver tailored information based on applicant preferences.

■ Conducting a consultative conversation that influences potential applicants towards their best career options requires three main steps:

– diagnosing need,

– delivering customized messages, and

– enacting a plan for further engagement.

■ Suncor outlines the process in a framework and provides information to support influencers in their conversations.

Excerpt of Question Guidelines

■ Always start questions with wh- words.

■ Use hypotheticals (if…then) to learn about preferences.

■ Don’t be afraid to talk about yourself to gauge reactions.

Excerpt of Alternate Opportunities ListApplicants who need more experience before applying should consider:

■ Working for one of our contractors (contact details below)

■ Further education through a partner institution

Excerpt of Message InventoryIf the applicant seems interested in development opportunities, mention:

■ Our Educational Assistance Plan helps pay for the cost of courses.

■ Our career roadmaps show employees how to upgrade their skills on the job.

■ [INSERT YOUR OWN STORY]

Source: Suncor Energy; CEB analysis.

Teaching employees the consultative conversation framework represents a majority of the brand influencer training. BRAND DETRACTORS BRAND AMBASSADORS

CEB Recruiting Leadership Council

Branding for Recruiter Playbook

Ten Tactics for Influential The Branding for Influence Recruiter Playbook contains 10 tactics that recruiters—or anybody else involved in recruiting activities (e.g., sourcers, HR business partners, employment branding specialists)—should use to move from branding for appeal to branding for influence.

CEB_Branding For Influence_Oct 14

Leadership & Management

prior approval of ceb

ceb orits sources

todayfrom branding

minutesfocus branding

critical talent

talent needsare

employment branding2014

important talent segments