OLGA WETTLER.
CEE Employer Branding and Recruitment Manager
@AmRest
BIO.
A Psychology graduate, with AmRest since 5 years. Joined as Recruitment Intern, currently is a part of the Global HR Team taking care of the Starbucks brand.
On a daily basis, Olga is responsible for creating and executing employer branding strategy and processes related to recruitment on eight European markets operated by AmRest.
She lives in Wroclaw, Poland. Loves cooking and traveling - Greece is her beloved place on earth.
KEYNOTE.
Does employer branding have to be expensive?
In this keynote you will find out:
The Role of employer branding – creating company’s image or documenting reality?
How does Starbucks answer candidates’ needs through EB communication?
How to engage employees in creating people driven content?
Which channels work best for attracting young generations?
Does Employer Branding have to be expensive?
QandA session.
In the current reality, where should the organizations put their employer branding focus on?
I would say that we should always be authentic and make sure your EB communication fits to the reality and the current situation. If the situation in the company is that we are cutting structures and firing people, I wouldn’t communicate how great it is to work with you.
In this case it is better to keep quiet rather than emphasizing something which is no longer true. Second important aspect is that we should think what could possibly attract our candidates in this new reality. Are they still interested in fancy benefits like game consoles at the office or they would rather value stable salary and health safety for them and their families?
Try to rethink your EB strategy and make sure the things you were communicating in the past really matter in the situation we are all in right now. If not, then there is great time for a change.
How to support your employees and help them adapt to the new reality?
What we all need in these uncertain times is communication. Bad news surround us from all sides, friends are often loosing their jobs and LinkedIn is filled with people looking for new opportunities as COVID-19 forced them to change their previous plans.
It is absolutely normal your employees will be asking if your company will go through any changes and if there are any cuts planned. They are also often afraid to work, as they are scared of being infected.
Make sure you secure effective communication flow in your organization so that there will be no misunderstandings or gossips. If you can’t tell them that you will do, at least try telling what definitely will not happen. Communicate what actions were undertaken for their safety and make sure they know that you care about their health.
How COVID-19 crisis might change/affect evolution of employer branding as we know it?
Crisis has forced many organizations to change their plans and refresh budgets as a consequence of a lock-down. The recruitment processes, as well as other investments, were frozen as businesses focus on rebuilding losses. This all can lead to a simple conclusion we no longer need any employer branding actions as the job market will change and it will be much easier to find employers once the freeze will be over.
On the other hand crisis is a good opportunity to make your business stand out and present what actions were undertaken in order to deal with the situation. As many of your competitors are experiencing problems, it is now a good time to show your business is doing great, by presenting how you managed the crisis.
Employee’s market forced companies to implementing more and more sophisticated benefit systems in order to attract candidates. Now the situation in changing and perhaps long forgotten benefits, such as health care and fixed remuneration, always on time will return to favor.
One is sure for me – we cannot give up on employer branding, as COVID-19 showed the times are very uncertain and we can very soon wake up in a reality we can’t even imagine yet.