What can India Inc do to attract Talent ?

 I was invited by Linkedin Editorial team to share my thoughts on Talent Attraction . 

Here are my quick thoughts 

India Inc can focus on the following to attract Talent - 

1. Focus on Employee Experience which influences Customer Experience 

2. Invest in People Managers - Managers who act as Coach are able to deliver high team performance 

3. Leverage Employee Testimonials - Encourage current employees to share their experiences working for the company on platforms like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and social media. Authentic testimonials can significantly influence potential candidates. Thats when Employee Advocacy comes to life. 

4. Setup Employee Referral Program - Great Employees refer Great candidates and bring Top talent to the organization 

5. Prioritize Diversity and Inclusion: Highlight your company's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in your employer branding efforts. Showcase diverse voices and experiences within the organization.

6. Partner with Educational Institutions: Collaborate with universities, colleges, and vocational schools to establish internship programs, sponsor student projects, or guest lectures. This can help attract young talent. 

7. Invest in Employees through skilling, reskilling, upskilling 

8. Talent Mobility Programs 

9. Focus on Employee Wellbeing

My hot take on Moonlighting

Let me share my hot take on #moonlighting .IBM Chief has criticised it strongly. Would like to ask out of 100000 Employees , how many employees have the necessary Expertise to do Dual Jobs ?And what I do in my free time is none of employer business, if no conflict of interest. My hot take on Moonlighting. What % of population in India is doing moonlighting is the question ? 85% of MBA / Engineers don't have skills to be employed. 80% employees are burned out / overworked / stressed / mental health issues. So that leaves a really miniscule population (2-3% ) whose skillsets may be desirable by multiple employers. Many Companies are washing off their hands from taking ownership of Career Development . What options do extremely Capable and Competent Employees have ? If underutilized by current employer ? But to engage in Marketplace to earn side income. I know at least 10 Gen Z in India / Globally who don't want to work for a typical employer and chose to be part of Creator Economy . I don't have all the answers or solutions . But this #moonlighting is not a problem . We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. It's a new trend to be embraced just like Infosys did. Over a period of time. It may lead to good attrition. Employees leaving one employer out of his own voilition and applying for opportunities where she finds fullfillment, meaning, purpose. Thinking from Employer Perspective - Employers have to protect Client data and Mitigate Risks. Data Security and Privacy is of utmost importance. Employers can't have loopholes or weak links to allow data leakage. Personal Example The more employers try to control , more itch will happen. Flexibility. Let employees declare in what capacity they want to moonlight and share full disclosure . For example . In IBM Leadership role, I informed my boss and VP HR that I love Public Speaking and get invited by Reputed Business Schools to deliver Guest lectures on HR. ( On weekends ) Sat mostly. As I was in Corporate Job , i did not ask for any Speaking fees from Business Schools . They showered momentos and certificates and honor. My employer was cool with it. As I had gained Trust. I signed double Non Disclosure Agreement when I was in Talent Acquisition Role so Data Privacy was of utmost importance to me and my Employer Trusted me to do right thing as i was in a Leadership role. It was a win win as in B Schools i was doing Branding for IBM. By sharing IBM HR examples with students. And i was reminded during discussion in HRGurukul Community that this is not moonlighting as i was not getting paid to do Guest Lectures at B School.

India HR Leaders to follow and Learn from on Twitter

 Twitter is a great learning tool for Business and HR Leaders. I have curated a list of Leaders you can follow and learn from . List in Alphabetical order 

@abhijitbhaduri

@achalkhanna1

@achyutmenon

@anisharavind

@anuranjita

@aquibusrai

@armaan_seth

@D_Brat

@gautamghosh

@harlinasodhi

@indianyash

@joyandlife

@kenashree

@_kavi

@kshankar21

@leenanairhr

@leenasahijwani

@madhavilal1

@mahasworld

@nathansv

@nishchae

@PankajBansalPB

@rajanns

@rajansinha

@rucsb

@sarangbrahme

@shraddhanjali_r

@shweta_hr

@sukhjitpasricha

@ThiruHR

Its a Candidate Driven Market and Talent has won !

Talent Branding is a long term game .  Talent Branding is a specialised & complex role that cuts across 4 verticals - HR, Recruitment, Internal Communications, Marketing. Having delivered in this role both at IBM and WNS . I did a quick audit for Startups , while the Founders have got Funding and attention across Startup community , Product Startups needs to have visibility amongst the Right Talent Pool ( Engineering, Product, Business Development) which currently seems to be a gap area that needs to be filled in.  Talent Branding Score and Index seems to be low  , need to build it up to stand out from competition in the market . Careers Website doesnt exist. Where does the entire traffic get directed ? On Linkedin Career page visibility for People/ Culture is almost zilch. Culture needs to be highlighted through Digital ( owned media, paid media, earned media) . Need to find out if ATS ( Applicant Tracking System is in place, what kind of analytics, process, systems exist wrt HR/ HRTech to make People / Recruitment related business decisions and investments. What is the offer to acceptance ratio currently at Entry level, Lateral level and Leadership roles ? How soon Founders aspire to win award - Great Place to Work  ? Gone are the days when you post a job and expect talent to apply. Its candidate driven market and Talent needs to be wooed.    Employees are the Best Brand Ambassadors and Adovcates. That needs to be leveraged to optimum to attract future talent. 

Please write an email with your queries to  ruchibhatia23@gmail.com 

 

Mental Well Being in the times of Pandemic

 Pic Courtsey - https://www.unicef.org/serbia/en/how-protect-your-mental-health-during-coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic

 

 Corona has disrupted lives of many. It is often known in HR circles that Corona is the real disruptor that caused Digital Transformation in most companies. Even those companies that had no work from home policy had to prepare themselves to enable employees to work from home overnight during lockdown. Some businesses thrived , some tumbled and some closed shops forever. I was in discussion with a SME Business owner, he made revenue of 5 crores in 3 months time period. Talk about being at the right place at right time and ability to make things happen. He is the Trusted go to person for many businesses, being in IT Infrastructure, he catered to business needs and solved complex problems innovatively.

I did a random survey on twitter to find out how Corona impacted work and lives of people . 50% said that it increased their workload.25% said their partners shared the workload. For singles, it meant doing all the chores and extending work hours. People dwelling in cities learnt to become independent and not be dependent on househelp .

Mental Health became a priority for organisations Organisations expected Employees to bring best version of themselves at work.
Managers had to learn how to be more empathetic to their teams to provide good employee experience .


“If I talk about my company then the support extended by them was excellent. We went to work from home model even one week before the govt declared the lockdown. We are still working from home. No salary cuts. They send regular mails to us mentioning that they have our back. “ @Parul_RajeevM on twitter

“Mine is comparatively small company set up (US based IT company) while my husband works at a senior position in an IT giant (Indian) but his  company has cut the variable component from salary of all the employees in his band “


Professionals had to deal with job losses, salary cuts. While others were lucky to retain their jobs. According to one estimate , 2.5 crore Job loss are estimated due to Covid in India alone. That number doesn’t count labor in informal economy . The hospitality and travel sector were worst affected. Every day I receive resumes by professionals who are looking for jobs . This added on anxiety to already stressed out lives. Mental health professionals were in much demand. People did not know how to deal with loneliness brought upon by epidemic.
Mental Health conversations were brought to the fore. Some of the celebrities committed suicide due to lack of work and lack of social support.  


Coming back to Mental Health , kids had to go through a lot as they couldn’t go out to play.

See this brilliant ad by Cadbury's how parental pressure affects kid's Mental Health 

Kids and Teachers had to learn new skills to study and teach online respectively. All of a sudden, people were required to spend uncountable number of hours online for learning, shopping, entertainment, staying in touch with colleagues, friends, family, parents.  

 

People had no option for Digital Detox but to remain online for living lives . Technology connect us all but also isolates us in indirect manner.  This caused a heavy toll on mental well being of people.

“The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may be stressful for people. Fear and anxiety about a new disease and what could happen can be overwhelming and cause strong emotions in adults and children. Public health actions, such as social distancing, can make people feel isolated and lonely and can increase stress and anxiety. “ - CDC.GOV

Fear isn’t over yet. Fear and worry about your own health and the health of your loved ones, your financial situation still concerns most people. But there is Hope. Thank God there are vaccines which are available in market now. We just have to make informed decision on which vaccine one must take. Vaccine politics is going on, consuming too much negative news also adds on to anxiety. 

Regarding Mental Health conversations, always a good thing to stay connected with community which offers solidarity and understand your mental health challenges in a non judgemental manner and through safe space. 

I discovered one such space on Clubhouse hosted by Sonam Mahajan . She has warmth , grace and empathy. Her club on Clubhouse  envisions to enhance individual and collective wellbeing by improving mental health. 

 HR Leaders are attempting to normalise MentalHealth conversations at workplace after learning lessons from Pandemic. 

In total, poor #mentalhealth was estimated to cost the world #economy approximately $2·5 trillion per year in poor health and reduced productivity in 2010, a cost projected to rise to $6 trillion by 2030 - Source WEF

We have had enough of 2020 . Thank God it’s over.
Darkest night has brightest dawn .
Human Resilience to bounce back from setbacks is amazing. I am hopeful, 2021 will bring upon new hopes, dreams  and people will come up with new ways to live more balanced healthier lives. 

 

https://twitter.com/VijayNallawala/status/1346349110765309952?s=2

 

 

7 ways HR looks different in 2020 

By Lars . 

Follow him on Twitter 

Daring Greatly

Theodore Roosevelt quote and words of wisdom  provide me inspiration every time I meet with a failure . 

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

How do you handle defeats ? How do you handle failures in Life ? Do you talk about your failures ? 

Or do you show only the shiny and rosy picture of you to the world ? 

We learn more from failures than from successes . Yet Leaders who talk about their failures in Social Spaces are rare. Does your organisation has a culture of discussing failures and learning from them ? Or Do Leaders brush failures under the carpet . 

You cant create a learning organization unless people are encouraged to ask questions and discuss such issues openly. Leader's approach to handling failures is Quiet telling about the culture of an organization . 

A company culture which demands innovation but does not support and accept failure is clearly one which is destined to fail.

"The wisdom of learning from failure is incontrovertible. Yet organizations that do it well are extraordinarily rare" - HBR Article 

HR Value to Organisations and India Economy

I consider myself privileged to be a key member of the SHRM Network and one of the Top 10 HR Influencer recognised by SHRM .

 My observation after attending HR Conferences - 

At the risk of sounding tad bit skeptical -  Where is the voice of  key stakeholders in HR Conferences -  #GigWorkers, #Women Leaders who face gender discrimination, #LGBT,  #Employees who are your Brand Ambassadors, GenZ, Millennials, Techies, Learners,  #People with different abilities et al ? 

For whom we in HR design policies , programs , practices ? For whom we in HR buy HR technology ?  Employee Experience, People are our Best Assets sound empty words, unless  diverse voices of key stakeholders are also included . HR Conferences serve as great Echo Chambers in a way,  providing great,  hi touch , human experience for All -  Sponsors, Vendors, Startups, Delegates, Speakers  ! 

My big idea to SHRM is to invite and focus on SMEs for SHRM Annual Conference in October 2019 . SMEs are the ones who need HR Advisory and Consulting and Insights from HR , HRTech Conferences most for Productivity gains .  In an Economic paper , interesting insight came up that One Quarter of GDP is Persuasion.  

One can establish value of SHRM Contribution and Impact on SMEs , if we ensure survey data is collected from SME sector prior to SHRM Event and Post the intervention.  

Such an intervention with SME Focus would be embraced and welcomed by Modi Government. MSME is regarded to be Growth Engine of Indian Economy. 

HR tech adoption results in time, cost, productivity gains for organisations: Report

In very simple economic terms, Capital and Technology investments Lead to Productivity gains, which lead to Jobs growth , which further enables MSMEs to export more, demand and consumption of goods and services rises enabling firms and Economy to grow for further leading to a virtuous economic cycle .   

( Source - A Guest Lecture by Subramanian Kri , Chief Economic Advisor, India ) 

How a Superior HR Tech drives Experience, Productivity and Performance

Economic Survey 2019: The curious case of Indian firms starting small & staying small

The Economic Survey says even Mexico does far better on this dimension than India.

Comparing employment and productivity with firm age in three countries: U.S., Mexico and India (Hseih and Klenow, 2014)the Survey found that the average employment level for 40-year old enterprises in the U.S. was more than seven times that of the employment when the enterprise is newly set up. 

A similar tale unfolds with productivity as well when we compare these three countries for the effect of aging of firms on productivity. The average productivity level for 40-year old enterprises in the U.S. was more than four times that of the productivity of an enterprise that is newly set up. In contrast, the average productivity level for 40-year old firms in India was only 60 per cent greater than the productivity of an enterprise that is newly set up. Thus, once they survive for forty year .. 

Read the ETB Report on MSME in detail here https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/sme-sector/economic-survey-2019-the-curious-case-of-indian-firms-starting-small-staying-small/articleshow/70069672.cms 

I believe , MSME sector is where HR Startups, HRTech Startups, HR Consultants and HR Advisory can add most value and maximum Impact.

Nourishing dwarfs to become giants for MSME growth: Economic Survey 2019

I will be at SHRM Annual 2019 Conference , Look forward to meeting HR Friends, Best minds in the Industry and getting exposed to new ideas and insights at the Event. 

I will be there at TechHRIn on 1st Aug, attending India's Largest HRTech Event. Will you be there ?

To make business happen, you have to be at the right place, at the right time. People Matters HR Conference, TechHR gives you that opportunity and platform. It is where meaningful conversations take place among professionals and business stalwarts. It is where innovation guides the way and thought leaders and new age service providers converge to create an ecosystem of brilliance in the domain of work technology. In other words, TechHR is where business happens. Some of the key sessions I am looking forward to learn from :

Join me for the #Friday #Keynote on insights for preparing the right AI-driven #BusinessStrategies in #HCM @PeopleMatters #TechHRIN https://t.co/7S8AIAs3g7 Aug 1-2 #FutureOfWork #NextGenHCM pic.twitter.com/wHe6qMGrRE

— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) July 25, 2019

Excited to welcome #PiyushPandey, Chief Creative Officer Worldwide and Executive Chairman India at @Ogilvy at People Matters #TechHRIN '19. Get an inside peek into the mind and genius of the man who defines #creativity in India. Are you ready? https://t.co/GbEUx6foPi pic.twitter.com/xQ9WGAHQUP

— Ester Martinez (@Ester_Matters) July 25, 2019

Plenty to learn from @LeenaNairHR, #CHRO @Unilever, on #futureofwork & how #HR can lead in this #digitalage at Asia's largest HR and #WorkTech conference #TechHRIN. Come along with your team!https://t.co/GbEUx6foPi pic.twitter.com/fJ9ZeqH85w

— Ester Martinez (@Ester_Matters) July 22, 2019

Be a part of a panel discussion at #TechHRIN with @PeopleMatters where Anish Sarkar, CEO, Sodexo Benefits & Rewards Services, India will throw light on the shifts that digital is enabling and the new opportunities that lay ahead.#NewAgeEmployeeBenefits #EmployeeExperience pic.twitter.com/vDGzrD3lNC

— SodexoBenefits India (@SodexoIndiaClub) July 24, 2019

Register here for the conference https://india.techhrconference.com/#about See Agenda and full line up of eminent speakers https://india.techhrconference.com/agenda Say Hello , if you happen to be there at TechHR. I am @rucsb on twitter and will live tweet the event. https://twitter.com/rucsb

Employer Branding is a strategic role in Organisations

Employer Branding is a complex and hybrid role that cuts across HR, Marketing and Recruitment. That is why there are very few Employer Branding Consultants in India. 

Planning, developing and implementing Employer Branding strategy is not an easy task. This article has  defined 5 steps to follow when implementing Employer Branding strategy. 

You want to develop a Great Employer Brand for your company ? 
It begins with Employee Experience. If you do not provide good employee experience, you will have trouble retaining the talent that your recruitment team spend great efforts to hire from the Market. As Tony Heish CEO , Zappos says - Your culture is your Brand. 

However, At operational level, from Branding and Marketing perspective, there are several key tasks that Employer Branding role consist of but not limited to - 


1. Careers Website Redesign. Make sure your career website is easy to navigate, provide crucial information on the jobs and roles that you hire for your company, outlines career development model at your company,  inspiring career success stories of few employees in key roles, benefits and rewards for employees and awards that your company has won. Candidate experience starts with your website and application process to apply for jobs should not take more than few clicks.

2. Photo shoot of  employees to highlight Engaged  Employees as Brand Ambassadors 

3.   Facebook, Twitter , Linkedin - Own the Digital Assets , Populate Tw, Li, FB pages with interesting and relevant content for Job seekers. 

4.  Collaboration with Marketing is crucial since you would work closely with Marketing team to ensure Recruitment Marketing content is in alignment with Company's Branding Guidelines.

5. Content Marketing - Curation of Branded Content and Publishing on Social Media channels.
6. Content Creation  - There could be several themes such as Employees Stories , Day in the Life stories, Leader Inerviews, Leader blogs , Career stories , Women Leader, Diversity & inclusion stories

7. Branding campaigns - LifeatX , ProudofX, WomenatatX

8. Twitterchats with Company Leaders ( CEO , CHRO, Business Leaders, Recruitment Leaders)
9. Storytelling content , event pics, newsletter pics, employee engagement pics  

10 . Creation of EVP - Employer Value Proposition starts with Researching Employee Experience. EVP consists of 5 main blocks . And EVP for each organization is unique and differentiates the employer from the competition. 

11.  You would need Hootsuite License for Social Media Management and Social Analytics reports 

12. Glassdoor campaign to highlight  reviews by engaged empployees 

13 . Get  Recruiters buy in  for Social Media hiring and assign targets 


14. Linkedin training for recruiters on Social Sourcing and LinkedIn Recruitment 

15. Collaborate with Diversity and HR team for developing Women  community to  Build Women Talent Pipeline 

16. Set up Company  Careers Blog and share inspiring stories from Employees Engaged at workplace . 

17. Develop Branding Microsite on Job Boards - Naukri, Monster, IIMJobs. 

18. Working with Procurement teams to empanel vendors for Photoshoot, Video production for Recruitment purposes. 

19. Develop Candidate Persona and incorporate in Recruitment Marketing messaging to appeal and influence your target audience. You can now map journey of candidate right from the first touch point when he views the piece of recruitment content to the point where he decides to apply for your job and ultimately to final stage of hiring i.e. Selection and Onboarding. 

20 Define the channels and candidate touch points with a focus on Candidate experience 

If you need help of a Employer Branding consultant to reduce Cost of Hiring and Attract best talent from Market, please feel free to drop an email ruchibhatia23@gmail.com or call Ruchi Bhatia 9911112396. 

Ruchi Bhatia is a SHRM recognised Top 10 HR Expert  . In her last role, she worked as Employer Branding Leader with IBM. 

Reinventing Work: How Coworking Spaces Are Changing Employee Performance for You

Reinventing Work: How Coworking Spaces Are Changing Employee Performance for You

In the past, many assumed that coworking spaces were exclusively for use by small startups, entrepreneurs, and freelancers. This may have been the case for some time, but it no longer holds true. WeWork, for example, has already attracted major customers like Microsoft, GE, and Dell, to name just a few.

There are several reasons why large companies have begun to embrace the benefits coworking spaces offer. As coworking space owners use enterprise performance management to find ways improve the shared space, the benefits increase further. Here are just a few reasons why more businesses than ever are transitioning their daily operations to coworking spaces:

Boosting Employee Performance & Satisfaction

According to a recent survey, employees who are given the opportunity to work in coworking spaces instead of a traditional office are typically more focused, better able to meet deadlines, and more creative. They also claim they feel healthier than they do in other office settings.

Thus, giving your employees the opportunity to work in these spaces is an easy way to boost overall satisfaction and performance. This makes it possible to leverage the full potential of your strongest players while also reducing the likelihood that they’ll take off for another opportunity elsewhere.

Improving Overall Creativity

Steve Jobs was one of the most iconic managers in history. He also had a tendency to obsess over minute details and factors that may seem unimportant to other managers. For instance, Jobs was very involved in making sure Apple’s office design gave people from different departments regular opportunities to bump into one another.

Jobs believed, like many other business experts, that the sharing of ideas is key to innovation. Employees in particular, and organizations in general, stagnate creatively when they are surrounded by the same ideas. People become far more inventive when they’re exposed to new ways of approaching a problem.

That’s a reason why even major companies are making greater use of coworking spaces. By sharing a space with other professionals, employees get the chance to learn from them. This open communication results in unique and creative solutions to problems.

Flexibility & Priorities

Coworking spaces benefit companies of any size in one obvious, yet easy-to-overlook way: letting everyone focus on business tasks. When you have your own office space, there’s a good chance various employees in the company have responsibilities that involve making sure the space is well-maintained and optimized for work.

That isn’t necessary when renting out space at a coworking office. All the essentials, like heating and lighting, are already taken care of.

These spaces also give you the flexibility to choose how many employees work there, how much space you’ll rent out, and how much you’re paying for it. Coworking spaces reduce distractions and offer companies more options than they might find, or even have thought of, in a traditional office building.

Again, big businesses recognize this; consider following their example. No matter what kind of business you run, if you want your employees to be on task, satisfied, and more productive overall, letting them work from a coworking space may be the ideal solution.

HRD 101 for Startups

Hrd 101 for startups from Ruchi Bhatia

Best Podcasts for HR Professionals

For HR Leaders, who dont have time to browse through HR articles or attend SHRM events or HR Conferences, HR Podcasts is a great way to keep up with the HR Trends.

Here is a list of curated Podcasts from the world of HR






1. Nine To Thrive HR

2. Lunch Conversation with DriveThruHR

3.  HR Happy Hour

4. The Bill Kutik Radio Show 

5.  Human Resources (HR) &; Human Resource Management (HRM)

6.  HBR IdeaCast

7.  Fistful of Talent

8.  Hiring On All Cylinders

9.   Lets fix Work by Laurie 

12.  HR Happy Hour 

10.  Work Life Podcast by Adam Grant 

11. TalentCulture’s Live Radio Podcast

12.  Accelerate - Podcast with HR and Business Leaders who went the extra mile by Belong 

If you need help with Recruitment , HR , Employer Branding, Gender Diversity & Inclusion  Consulting and Training , Follow us on Twitter for useful resources @EmpBrandIndia .  
@womentakelead25  and get in touch with Ruchi Bhatia at 9911112396 , ruchibhatia23@gmail.com

Speaking on Gender #Diversity in Organizations at India #Women Convention . Contact @rucsb for Gender Diversity workshops for your organization pic.twitter.com/eXHHDiRVWu

— Womenomics (@womentakelead25) September 30, 2018

HR must focus on Hi - Touch in the age of Hi- Tech world

We live in world where technology is omni present. In this era of hi-tech world, Hi- Touch becomes most important. Those organizations, departments, teams, individuals stand out who provide Hi Touch experience to their employees. 

HR is undergoing through transformation .Almost every industry and every sector is disrupted by Digital Technologies. Cognitive Computing, Cloud, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data , Analytics are not just buzz words but real technologies which are shaping businesses. Almost every company has a department which is charged with the responsibility of Digital Transformation. That means newer technologies are making  way into the organizations across departments . HR is not left behind either . There are apps for well being, reward and recognition, performance management, feedback, learning, social referrals, recruitment . Almost every function of HR leverages technologies to provide Hi Touch experience to employees. Employee engagement is still an issue which costs companies across the globe several billion dollars. 

 Companies are mindful that this shift is not just about technological advancements but as much about organisational cultural change which means providing better employee experience. 

In a digital world with increasing transparency and the growing influence of Millennials, employees expect a productive, engaging, enjoyable work experience  

The focus from organization perspective is on better experience to Customers, Clients, Candidates who want to join the organization and to existing employees. In the times we live in, millennials have become majority of the workforce. They grew up with technology. Mobile and Social impact the experiences . Millennials receive news about the world through apps. We live in the age of 24 by 7 connectivity.  Work happens round the clock. In globally integrated enterprises, you often work with teams who are spread across geographies. There is pervasive use of Videoconferencing, Virtual collaboration tools across the organisation. 

So, in the age of Hi Tech world, it is time again to bring back humanity into HR. 

Human capital management technology works best when it enables people to act more human. The goal is not to replace people, but to allow people to spend more time on activities that drive engagement. They want to make a difference through their work, develop their capabilities, and connect with other people. 

Designing a hi tech yet hi touch employee experience is the challenge in front of HR Professionals 

Have you heard of Amber ? She is the new #HR chatbot and 30,000 employees across 37 companies have opened up to her . 

Those organisations and Leaders will succeed which will crack the code of Hi Touch employee experience and make employees feel valued at workplace. 

Discussion with JobViddy CEO on Employer Branding, Talent Acquisition, Candidate Experience

Employer Branding as a Strategic tool for Candidate Attraction.

Employer Branding has gained prominence in last few years.  Companies are realising that it is not enough to continue with old recruitment and hiring practices , if they were to hire best talent from the market . 

Each hire in a critical role is an investment for the organization.  Companies want to make sure that there are fewer hiring mistakes and they hire the right candidates which fit the culture of the organization and is a super star employee.  The buzzword for 2018 is Candidate Experience. Candidate experience is as important as Employee Experience. Many a times , passive candidates don’t apply to opportunities because of the time consuming application process. Linkedin offers an easy apply button and  companies Recruitment systems i.e. ATS ( Applicant Tracking Systems ) are integrated with LinkedIn. What it means for candidates is the ease of applying to companies with the click of a mouse, they can submit their cv in companies database. Linkedin easy apply is just one example of providing a seamless experience to potential candidates during hiring. 

Employer branding helps companies to promote itself to potential candidates in the market to win war for talent . 

Recruiters need to think and act like marketers to attract the best candidates. 

With the rise of different digital platforms , it is becoming increasingly difficult to choose how to advertise or market your jobs to potential candidates . Gone are the days , when candidates would apply to jobs without researching the company. Candidates research their potential employer on Glassdoor , read reviews, see ratings  as much as companies try to find information about candidates.  Candidates want to know what it feels to work for your organization. What is the culture, what are the career and advancement opportunities, what kind of  learning does your company provide, what are the rewards systems ,  what are the benefits and perks for working with your organization. In short, candidates assess their potential employers before applying for the jobs. Thats where lies the importance of employer branding. Companies rely on different source mix for diversity in hiring - example Career Sites , Employee Referrals, Job Boards, Social Media, sometimes external Recruitment agencies and Vendors. All these are potential options to reinforce your Brand messaging which has to be consistent as well as Authentic. Employees stories make a really good option for Corporate Storytelling which showcases culture of your organisation to external world.  Stories of the employees when narrated in first person are much more appealing to external candidates than formal Corporate Brand message. Employees are adopting social media platforms , hence the Corporate Brand gets humanised. Effective employer branding is the combination of market research, advisory services, communications and marketing to achieve both a credible and desirable brand position. The end purpose of employer branding is to achieve strategic business goals.

Some questions to ponder over when designing Employer Brand Strategy 

            1. Why would someone want to work for you? What is your Employer Value Proposition ? 

2. Have you trained your people managers and recruiters to deliver positive Brand experience ? 

3. How do employees and prospective candidates perceive your Brand ? 

4. How many of your employees are visible on social media ? 

5. What percentage of your employees would recommend your company as a great place to work?

6. Which companies are leading the way in employer brand strategy?

7. How do we measure the return on investment of employer branding?

8. How do market trends impact on how we attract, engage, and retain talent over the next few years ? 

           9. Who are the employees who are actively engaged with my organisation and act as Talent Ambassadors for my organisation ? 

          10. How do I activate employee advocacy program for my organisation ? 

According to a Survey , Social Media and Career websites are the most prominent channel to showcase your employer Brand to external talent 

In a recent 2015 survey, 73% of CEOs reported being concerned about the availability of key skills.

Times have changed. Social Media has forced organisations to become transparent . People are more likely to trust a company based on what employees say rather than the recruitment advertisement. This means that Talent Attraction relies far more heavily on Employee Engagement and Employee Advocacy. Engaged Employees serve as the Best Talent ambassadors for your organisation. 

Employer Branding has become a strategic priority for organisations of all sizes and across all sectors. we believe the following steps will help leaders attract and retain the talent they need:

1. Evaluate your current employer brand through internal and external research and survey. 
2. Have a realistic assessment of your organisation’s current strengths and translate unique traits into Employer Value Proposition. Define your EVP.
3. Be proactive in use of Social Media for Corporate Digital Storytelling. Generate positive employee stories to build a more authentic and engaging employer brand reputation. 
4. Ensure that there is collaboration between HR and Marketing function and the role they need to play in sustaining a consistent Brand experience. 
5. Engage with multiple stakeholders inside the organisation and build employee advocacy program. 
6. Leverage Alumni to showcase culture of your organisation. 

 7.  Engage the mind, heart and dreams of candidates

8. Develop and use metrics to assess and track success of the employer brand. Metrics may include quality of hire, brand awareness, employee satisfaction, employee referrals , offer to acceptance ratio, Best Employer Awards etc. 

Employer Brand is a Strategic tool to attract, recruit and retain talent. For consulting, training and advisory on Employer Branding , please contact Ruchi on Twitter @ruccsb 

If you need help of a Employer Branding consultant to reduce Cost of Hiring and Attract best talent from Market, please feel free to drop an email ruchibhatia23@gmail.com or call Ruchi Bhatia 9911112396. 

Ruchi Bhatia is a SHRM recognised Top 10 HR Expert  . In her last role, she worked as Employer Branding Leader with IBM.