Simon Barrow, Chairman People in Business 12 Great Newport Street, Tel +44 20 7632 5910

1. Your Employer BrandBringing the best of brand management to people at workHoofddorp, Netherlands4th November 2010 Simon Barrow, Chairman People in Business 12 Great Newport Street, Tel +44 20 7632 5910 www.pib.co.uk

2. Introduction to People in Business • Originated ‘employer brand’ concept in early 90’s conducting the first research on the discipline with London Business School • First book on the subject in 2005 • 15 years hands-on experience in employer brand development and implementation • Global network of employer brand consultants, research and resourcing specialists • Recent employer brand clients include: Coca-Cola, EON, HSBC, HP, IBM, John Lewis, Nokia-Siemens, P&G, RBS and Sky

3. Brand relationships • Powerful consumer brands provide a focal point for: Aspiration (When I’ve really made it I’ll drive a Mercedes) Identity (The devil and I both wear Prada) Engagement (My Nike’s make me feel like running) Advocacy (Let’s meet at Starbucks) Trust / Loyalty (When the new i-pod comes out I’ll be the first in line)

4. The employer brand relationship • Powerful employer brands play a similar role: Aspiration (It’s a company I’d love to have on my CV) Identity (I’m proud to tell people where I work) Engagement (I’m committed to going the extra mile) Advocacy (I tell people it’s the coolest place to work on the planet) Trust / Loyalty (It would take a lot to get me to leave)

5. Integrated brand management Marketing Customer Value Proposition Why should consumers consider you? Why should they come back for more? Consumer experience What shines through everything the organisation does and says? Corporate Brand DNA Leadership Employee experience Why should people join you? Why should they stay? Why should they commit? Employee Value Proposition HR

6. Establishing clarity Vision A digital vision for everyone Shared Objective To be at the heart of 21st century living World Beating Customer Service Services Vision Passionate about the business Close to Customer Friendly/ Helpful Credible & Confident Cultural Characteristics Values its People Connected Successful & Profitable Leading Edge & Agile World Beating Customer Service Problem Analysis & Decision Making Team Player Passion for Excellence Core Competencies Developing our People Enthusiasm and Passion Empathy Accountability Empowerment Respect Organisational Values Honesty Co-operation Excellence Brand Values Innovative Creative Entertaining Challenging

7. The fully loaded proposition Empathy Passionate about the business World Beating Customer Service A digital vision for everyone Problem Analysis & Decision Making To be at the heart of 21st century living Accountability Close to Customer Values its People Team Player Passion for Excellence World Beating Customer Service Credible and Confident Connected Friendly/ Helpful Enthusiasm and Passion Respect Empowerment Successful & Profitable Co-operation Leading Edge & Agile Excellence Challenging Developing our People Creative Innovative Entertaining Honesty

8. Business case More active job seekers: contain fewer top quality candidates Less active job seekers contain greater proportion of top quality candidates Source: Corporate Leadership Council - Attracting and Retaining Critical Talent Segments study A strong employer brand reputation attracts more top quality candidates

9. Principles for EB success • The content of the working experience is the heart of an EB not ‘branding’. It is about reality not ‘spin’ and the key audience must be your existing employees • It reflects the needs of the organisation’s overall strategy and delivers business benefits. 3. HR can initiate but it needs other functions and line mgt • EB is a long term commitment not an initiative (P&G created brand management in 1931 !) • The EB needs the principles of good brand management i.e. coherence, coordination, research, planning, innovation and measurement • The readiness to be courageous and stand out from the crowd.

10. Why the EB needs such care Customers Employees Life style is a factor Work is about life itself They’re external They’re family They don’t know everything They do! Mistakes can be managed Mistakes can be mortal Broadscale communications One to one preferred

11. Recommended employer brand model Corporate Brand Vision / Mission Personality Values The core brand DNA of the organisation reflected in everything it says and does Employee Value Proposition Employer Brand The one quality you most want to be famous for as an employer Headline Proposition The distinctive qualities that further define the employment experience Defining attributes The tangible proof points that make the proposition credible Reasons to believe The everyday basics you need to deliver on to ensure the proposition is credible Qualifiers

12. For example… Corporate Brand Vision / Mission Personality Values Mission “to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential” Distinctive Values: Taking on big challenges. Constructive self-criticism. Natural communicators with a passion for technology. Target profile An environment where talented people can realize their full potential. Headline Proposition Individually tailored, strength-based development. Defining Attributes Industry leading investment and innovation in L&D. Reasons to Believe Respectful, open and supportive management style. Qualifiers

13. Wordle of values from FTSE 100 websites

14. Tailoring the ‘umbrella’ proposition • Target propositions need to be aligned but also adapted to reflect: • Regional / divisional strengths • The specific needs and aspirations of different target groups • Adaptation can be achieved through relative emphasis, distinctive local ‘reasons to believe’ and supplementary attributes (consistent with the overall brand)

15. For example…. Headline EVP Proposition: ‘A new challenge every day’. Regional Tailoring US Career Site Western European Career Site Functional Tailoring

16. Distinctive look and feel • Recruitment advertising and career websites often very generic

17. Distinctive look and feel • If you have a distinctive customer brand identity – use /and adapt it!

18. Distinctive look and feel • If you have a distinctive customer brand identity – use /and adapt it!

19. The employee experience “If you want to be a comedian, don’t tell people you’re funny, …..make them laugh”

20. Process ‘Touchpoints’ Reward & Recognition Recruitment Everyday Behaviours Brand of Leadership Style of Management Employer Brand Experience Measurement Orientation Core Values Core Competencies Underpinned By Performance & Development Communication Working Environment Shaping an ‘on-brand’ employee experience

21. Employer brand action planning Recruitment Process • Basic strengths and weaknesses (is it a consistently positive experience?) • Alignment with the brand proposition (does each stage support the promise?) • Signature brand experiences (what is distinctively on-brand?) • This thinking can be applied to every touch-point Job description Advertising Media Career Sites Interviewing Assessment Selection* Correspondence Pre-joining instructions

22. Distinctive practices Every team member has a say on recruitment decisions Annual party for all Virgin employees and their families Regular input from front line employees in senior level decision making (Real Directors) Six to seven weeks training for all new representatives

23. Overcome EB Management challenges! • Seldom positioned to influence the whole employment experience • Recruitment communications the main priority yet ’branding’ is not brand management • EB research does not always lead to necessary change to the working experience • Lack of connection with business strategy • Insufficient metrics on HR • Low profile with senior management (and HR can be a nervous platform for EB) • The culture does not demand courage and distinctiveness

24. Remember the principles for EB success • The content of the working experience is the heart of an EB not ‘branding’. It is about reality not ‘spin’ and the key audience must be your existing employees • It reflects the needs of the organisation’s overall strategy and delivers business benefits. 3. HR can initiate but it needs other functions and line mgt • EB is a long term commitment not an initiative (P&G created brand management in 1931 !|) • The EB needs the principles of good brand management i.e. coherence, coordination, research, planning, innovation and measurement • The readiness to be courageous and stand out from the crowd.

25. We wish you every success in building Employer Brands which will last a 100 years plus! Simon Barrow simon@pib.co.uk www.people-in-business.com