Building your employer brand is a critical part of engaging candidates and attracting top talent to your organization. How do you craft your employer brand to appeal to today’s young job seekers? By speaking to what they value in the workplace.
At RippleMatch’s Fall User Conference, we shared data on what Gen Z talent is looking for in an employer and how you can build your brand to meet those interests. Here are the top takeaways from that discussion.
Showcase your commitment to career growth
Professional development is a top priority for all Gen Z candidates, and has remained so throughout the pandemic. When working on building your employer brand, it’s important to demonstrate how you help employees grow throughout their careers.
Help students grow before they’re hired
Show, don’t just tell. Invest in candidates’ career growth and professional development by setting up workshops and mentorship via early ID programs. By helping students develop in their career before they even begin applying for jobs, you’ll show how important career growth is to your organization.
Highlight career progression
It’s also important to demonstrate how current employees have progressed at your company. Show off employee progression stories through panels, blog posts, social media highlights, or informational interviews. Help candidates learn what the potential career paths look like at your company and understand that they’ll have many chances to progress internally.
Internships should be meaningful
Internships are a powerful tool for entry-level hiring. Think carefully about how to make your internship program impactful. Make sure interns get the chance to network directly with current employees, helping them to see what opportunities are available to them.
Lean into financial security and job stability
Job stability and financial security are significant concerns for any candidate, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, candidates who are traditionally underrepresented in the workplace, including women and people of color, value job security and compensation at higher rates than their peers.
Educate candidates on your industry
If you happen to be a part of an industry with great job security, don’t shy away from it. Let candidates know about this advantage. This is especially important to leverage if your industry is less well known or may not seem very exciting to young job seekers. Educating students on the stability of your company and industry can be a great way to attract candidates who otherwise might not have been familiar with you.
Highlight your standout benefits
Do you have 401k matching? Amazing health insurance? Unique tuition reimbursement or educational stipends? Don’t keep your benefits hidden until later in the process. These are great recruitment tools, and you should highlight them on your job site, social media accounts, and throughout the recruitment process.
Help candidates navigate financials
Host a ‘negotiation’ or ‘offer workshop’ for prospective candidates who may not know how to navigate these tricky situations. Or offer a chat post-offer to help Gen Z candidates navigate first-time financials. Supporting candidates through the financial aspect of their job search can help you stand out.
Highlight an inclusive and supportive culture
Traditionally underrepresented candidates also place more value on things like work-life balance, company culture, and how companies prioritized employee well-being during COVID-19 than their peers, but these are all top considerations of most students.
Showcase company life online
Have you updated all of your employer branding materials to showcase company life during COVID? Be sure to show off employee well-being and community building events.
Host events that showcase your culture
Don’t just send candidates a one-pager on your culture—tell them live! Host an interactive event with candidates in different stages of your pipeline to help them learn about company life.
Build community for interns
Build community for interns, whether your program is in-person or remote. Help them see a future working at your company by involving them in company events and connecting them with current employees.
Show that your D&I initiatives walk the walk
Gen Z as a whole places importance on companies ‘walking the walk’ with diversity and inclusion initiatives. Underrepresented candidates, especially women of color, place the most importance on D&I.
Highlight diverse leaders
Invest in professional development that showcases your diverse leadership team. Host a lunch and learn or Executive Speaker Series that’s open to all college students.
Connect candidates with ERGs
Whether you host a networking event, a panel, or coffee chats, build your brand authentically by connecting candidates with affinity networks or employee resource groups.
Invest in programs inside and outside the company
Focus on recruiting and retaining diverse talent by creating programs that are focused on professional development for both college students and internal employees.
Branding Channels Through Candidate Stages
The channels that you use to build your brand will likely vary depending on the stage of the candidate you’re trying to reach. Here are some suggestions for each stage of the candidate journey.
High-level employer brand
To build your employer brand in general and reach candidates at all stages of their journey, focus on your website, social media channels, and owned pages:
Employer brand for prospective candidates
To highlight your brand for students you’re targeting who are not yet candidates, focus on events and conferences:
Employer brand for candidates
Once a candidate has applied, it’s important to continue selling them on your brand. Ensure your interview process is painting you in the right light and use this time to help them connect more deeply with your company.
Employer brand for interns & candidates with offers extended
Once you’ve hired a candidate as an intern or extended an offer for full-time employment, your job doesn’t stop. It’s important to continue showcasing your brand to ensure interns accept full-time offers after their programs end, and to avoid reneges from candidates who have already accepted.
Developing a strong employer brand that speaks to what candidates want in the workplace will go a long way to helping you stand out to top talent. Make sure to highlight what makes your company special, focusing on the areas that are of the biggest concern to Gen Z talent. And don’t forget that your job doesn’t stop once a candidate has applied! Make sure you’re focusing on communicating your brand value at every stage of the candidate journey—even after they accept an offer—to really stand out.