Five steps in building the employer brand

The campus recruitment is a very important source of hiring talent that can be groomed to reflect the values of the organisation. It is important to invest enough time and resources to do this effectively. Here are a few things the employers can do:

* Brand building is a long term option: Craft a strategy to engage with the students of the institutions you wish to hire from. A brand cannot and will not be everything to everyone. So make a choice about the kind of institutions and the kind of students the organisation wishes to attract. What will be the forums to connect with the student community so that the employer and employee get a chance to evaluate a fit with the culture of the organisation?

* Have a physical presence strategy: Identify the colleges where the company will invest developing a deep relationship with the faculty and the student community. The engagement model will depend a lot on the brand the employer wishes to create on campus. Sponsoring a rock show on campus or sponsoring a case study competition will have different implications for the employer brand. Evaluate the options according to the brand strategy.

* Craft a social media policy: The big three of social media are LinkedIn, twitter and Facebook. Each one has a different strength that can be exploited to connect and create a brand perception. The presence of senior leaders on these three platforms is a great way to craft the employer brand. Remember, the social media route to brand building requires consistency and genuine engagement. I have seen employers create a Twitter account just before they start their campus hiring process and flood it with updates about the company that no one cares about. Be prepared to create content that others will find useful. It is different from hiring a full page to place an advertisement. Neither is social media like a billboard. It is really all about having a conversation between the employer and employee based on authenticity.

* Go visual: Today's millennials are a visual lot. YouTube is an underutilised medium in campus recruiting. Videos of the average employee describing their workplace environment can go a long way in attracting who would fit that culture. Don't just put videos that praise everything about the company. They sound like paid ads and don't generate trust. Talks by leaders in public forums can be a great way of building the employer brand.

* Leverage internships: The companies that treat the internships seriously can really use this to hire the right talent. The interns get a chance to evaluate the kind of culture the employer has and meet a cross section of employees. The employer too has a chance to evaluate the person over a few weeks. That is a great opportunity for both the employer and employee to make an informed choice.

In a bad market, it is even more important to build a strong employer brand. The employer will be flooded with choice. This may lead to a false sense of complacency in the hiring team that they are a much sought after employer of choice. A well crafted employer brand conveyed consistently makes it easy to find the potential employees who will succeed and enjoy working in that environment. This goes far more than just showing up at the campus, screening a few resumes and making an offer. Campus recruitment is about hiring right. Not hiring the best.

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The author is Abhijit Bhaduri, chief learning officer, Wipro Group. Re-printed with permission.
Link: http://www.abhijit bhaduri.com/index.php/2013/10/the-brand-matters/