Using a Strong Employee Value Proposition to Win Great Talent

Employee value proposition (EVP) shouldn’t be overlooked when trying to attract new hires. Using it in conjunction with employer branding can put you ahead of your competitors and make your business a desirable place to work.

How a strong EVP can benefit businesses

According to a study by Willis Towers Watson, nearly three times as many organizations are having difficulty attracting employees in 2021 than a year previously. Further to this, four times as many businesses reported challenges with retaining staff compared to 2020.

The immediate outlook appears unlikely to change, as the same survey found 70% of employers are expecting difficulties with attraction through 2022, while the proportion believing retention will remain an issue was 61%.

An increased demand for labor, which is in limited supply, is providing the backdrop to the issues and leading top talent to expect higher wages. But it’s not just financial incentives that can ensure a business is able to attract and retain staff, as a strong EVP can be just as enticing or even more so.

Employing a strategic EVP to help HR and recruiters to attract staff

Demonstrating EVP to prospective staff is vital as it shows them the value they’ll gain from working at your organization. The HR department and any recruiters you bring on board must be able to communicate that your EVP matches its promise with reality and has elements that make it stand out from your competitors.

Principles to keep in mind when designing your EVP include:

• Analyzing the labor market for trends to fully understand what will attract employees to your business
• Looking at competitors for talent to understand what they’re offering and ensure your EVP is better
• Segmenting your EVP messaging to attract critical talent in different areas and with varied priorities
• Keeping your EVP aligned with your employment brand for a cohesive and easily understood message

Research from Gartner suggests effectively delivering on your EVP can decrease staff turnover by 69% a year, so it can be multifunctional in both the hiring and retaining of employees.

What to include in your EVP

While it’s important that your EVP is bespoke, be sure to include all the important elements, including:

• Employment practices: From equal opportunities to your complaints procedure, make sure to outline the ways in which all employees are treated fairly
• Career opportunities: The training and evaluation that will be available to new recruits
• Working environment: Company culture is very important in recruiting talent, so outline how employee feedback is processed and the types of social events your organization holds
• Benefits: Everything from holiday allowance to childcare support should be outlined and include details about loyalty bonuses
• Day-to-day worklife: Outlining a typical day will help manage expectations and allow a potential employee to visualize themselves in the organization
• Added value - Rewards systems and perks of the job represent an opportunity to stand out from your competitors

If you need inspiration for designing a strong EVP, look no further than HubSpot, which stands out from the crowd due to its unique stance on a number of working benefits. These include offering employees non-traditional working hours and unlimited vacation time to reflect its ethos of treating staff as “whole people” and not just workers.

Another business that’s understood the importance of implementing a clear EVP is Dell Technologies, which has earned itself a spot on the list of the US’ best employers, according to Glassdoor. It emphasizes the company culture of rewarding staff for hard work and a job well done. Such recognition may sound straightforward, but it’s rare in big businesses and is crucial to attracting and keeping motivated employees.