To stay competitive amidst the tenacious talent shortage that has gripped HR departments over the last several years, companies have been forced to double down in their efforts to retain existing talent and onboard new A-players.
While this sense of urgency may give companies success in the short term, the fire-drill mentality is not sustainable as a longer-term hiring and engagement culture. A grander focus on employer branding, on the other hand, has proven to both improve a company's hiring market position as well as establish a base on which they can build a long-term strategy.
In a survey of more than 2,000 U.S. corporate recruiters, LinkedIn found that companies with strong employer brands tend to spend less on each hire and retain employees better than their poorly-branded counterparts.
Specifically, the organizations whose employer brands were rated as "Good" or "Strong" spent less than half the cost of each hire than those rated "Poor" or "Moderate." Such significant savings can prove critical as companies stretch their budgets to accommodate the longer time-to-hire of such a sparse talent pool.
Having a stronger employer brand also helped companies hold on to their current employees more effectively. The study showed that companies with stronger brands experienced 28 percent lower turnover rates than those who put out a less compelling brand. Together, the data implies that the organizations that have to hire more often also spend more to fill each position, further compounding the expense of having a weak employer brand.
The LinkedIn survey also says that having a well-developed image of what it is like to work at your company can go a long way to attracting the 80 percent of the workforce only passively considering new opportunities. It notes that employer brands typically emphasize culture, challenge and impact, factors that tend to motivate passive candidates more than active candidates.
Hiring with a retained executive search firm can ensure that your recruiters understand what makes working at your company unique. Armed with a well-defined and understood employer brand, it can connect with top talent that might otherwise look elsewhere. YES Partners has already filled countless roles successfully. Learn more about them here!
Finding people is easy, but finding the RIGHT people is not. YES Partners helps companies FIND the right people – for all company functions, across many industries and globally.
