Managing Your Employer Brand During COVID-19
Updated: Dec 12, 2021
The coronavirus brought business and society to their knees.
But now, people and businesses are already moving forward into a new ‘normal.’ A lot of managers and employers are curious about what this new normal will look like. And one of the things we are most curious about here at Accendi Group is how businesses can manage their brand amid the coronavirus. This, of course, will be crucial to filling the over 20 million jobs lost to the pandemic with qualified and capable hands.
But employer branding is also more than employee recruitment and retention.
This is also about employee engagement which is still very important even at a time like this when an employee would hardly leave an organization of their own accord. So, while businesses are developing different health and safety protocols to ensure workplace safety amid the coronavirus, getting the grip on your employer branding is also still important in today’s chaotic business environment.
Here are some of our top recommendations:
Adopting a people-first approach
“Treat your employees right, so they don’t use your internet and search for a new job.” -Mark Zuckerberg
Your employee branding will be greatly influenced by word of mouth and referrals from former, current, and future employees.
This is why starting internally is always the best strategy when you’re looking to revamp or maintain effective employer branding. And according to HR Executive, about 69% of workers say this pandemic period has been the most stressful time of their entire professional career. So, you can expect your employees to feel the strain of this, too.
You can expect various changes in the way employees now live or work. So, it’s important to implement strategies and policies that would help promote not just their physical health but also their social and emotional well-being. Employees need to stay happy and motivated during tough times. To make this happen, HR leaders, as well as employers will need to:
Maintain open communication with employees.
Demonstrate a commitment to transparency to earn employees’ trust.
Accommodate changes and flexibility with business strategies and approach.
Consider the possibility of remote working for business continuity and employee stability, etc.
Adjusting your recruiting strategies to COVID-19
With millions out of work already, there’s no doubt that recruitment will be a prominent part of the response as businesses across the world starts reopening. But even talent acquisition won’t be the same again and we recently published a piece on how businesses can adapt recruiting strategies to COVID-19.
In that piece, we mentioned the importance and the need to review hiring strategies and processes, engaging and nurturing candidates, updating candidate communications, displaying transparency and empathy, as well as doing every other thing possible to help improve candidate experience.
Building a strong company culture
Every company needs a strong and lasting company culture that works for more than just days and weeks.
Such a culture must, however, help employees feel happy and motivated to perform their best. Aside from the performance advantage, a strong corporate culture will also be crucial to employee retention during and after the coronavirus. But the hires also have a role to play here as well, so employers must ensure they hire the right candidates who can help strengthen this culture with regards to the company’s goals and values.
Making decisions aligned with the company’s goals
At a time of crises like this, most employers and employees often have to make key decisions for both the short and long terms. It’s important to ensure that even at times like this; the decisions made are aligned with the company’s vision, mission, and values.
Employers can always leverage these opportunities to highlight brand identity and make decisions that prioritize employee needs. All of these will go a long way to influence employee trust in the company and its brand.
Bottom Line
Employee brand requires time, coherence, and consistency.
It’s not something you want to ignore at a time like this. Organizations that make this mistake may be forced to start building up from lower levels later on. Savvy business managers and employers understand the importance of staying strong at a time like this when the labor market is reshaping itself. Building more confidence and credibility in your employer branding will no doubt be vital during and after the current crisis.