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April 12, 2008
Alignment: The Holy Grail of Employer Branding
I've written quite a bit over the last few years about what makes great employer brands great, what the challenges are, and, where possible, what the opportunities are. But surprisingly, looking back over my entries a couple of days ago, I've failed to mention something obvious, but important: alignment.
In fact, it wouldn't be a stretch to say alignment is the holy grail of employer brand strategy.
But what is it?
Simply put, it's having a single message.
See why that's so obvious? I mean, isn't the point of developing a brand to find that single message? Yes, and no. We typically work hard to find out where the desires of employees, prospects and leadership intersect and to message to it. And that's what many of my postings have discussed. But if you want a great employer brand, there's an additional step you have to take: ensuring that your employer brand and your consumer brand are the same brand--that is, that they share the same essential, core messages.
Okay, I can hear it now: then why bother? Why not just have the consumer brand lead the way?
There's a simple answer to that. It doesn't work. The fact that it doesn't work is exactly why employer brand development and strategy has become a hot topic. Employees and customers want the same thing--to be connected to great companies. But if I'm a customer, I want a different connection than if I'm an employee.
For example, say I'm a Starbucks customer. I'm not price sensitive, but I want great coffee delivered by someone who knows how to make it, and delivered with a good attitude. But if I'm a Starbucks employee, I want to know how to make great coffee and if I'm any good, I'm the kind of person who enjoys making people feel good, which is a key ingredient of great service. So, though the Starbucks brand relies on both sides of that coin, and though they're complementary elements of the same brand, they require different areas of emphasis in message development.
But isn't that obvious?
Sadly, no. Too often, organizations try to invent different personas for themselves as employers than they display to the marketplace. I don't want to call any particular employer out, so suffice it to say, it happens fairly often. So keep this mantra in mind as you begin your brand journey: one organization, one brand, one promise, one experience.
Posted by davidkippen at April 12, 2008 02:43 AM