Branding isn’t just a way for companies to reach their target audience; it can also be a powerful tool for attracting essential talent to your team. An Employer Value Proposition, or “EVP”, is the term used to refer to the strategies and tools you use to attract new employees to your accountancy firm.
Studies show that employers who deliver effectively on their EVP can reduce turnover by 69%. What’s more, 83% of employers say their EVP impacts their ability to hire talent.
EVPs are becoming increasingly essential in a complex hiring market. Increasingly, more employees are abandoning brands that fail to offer the right experiences and opportunities.
Here’s how you can develop your employer brand to attract more of the right candidates this year.
1. Assess Your Current EVP
All companies have an “employer brand”, whether they’re aware of it or not. The chances are there are already reviews talking about your company on channels like “Glassdoor”, and there may be mentions of your brand littered throughout social media too.
Assessing your current brand and EVP will help you understand where you need to make changes for the current marketplace. Google your brand to see how people talk about you on common employment networks but don’t forget to talk to your existing employees. Surveys can help you to answer questions like:
- Why do employees currently like working for you?
- What motivates your employees to work harder?
- What kind of improvements would staff members like to see?
- What are the main issues employees face at work?
You can use the responses you get to determine what motivates your top performers and incorporate this into better job offers for potential employees. For instance, if you know your team members appreciate the excellent training you offer, you can highlight this in your job descriptions.
2. Define Different EVPs for Different Roles
Over the last couple of years, companies have begun to recognise the wide number of different types of employees in their talent pool. They’re also discovering that different financial professionals require different things from the companies they work with.
For instance, recent graduates joining your accountancy company will be focused on things like career growth, flexible working arrangements, and access to fun perks and benefits. On the other hand, senior-level candidates might be looking for things like career stability, better work-life balance, and flexibility to manage their job around personal commitments.
Focusing on different parts of your EVP for different roles and employment levels will help you appeal more specifically to the kind of professionals you’re trying to reach. Whenever writing a job description, ask yourself:
- What salary range and benefits will attract my ideal candidate?
- What kind of career growth opportunities will my candidate need?
- What kind of company culture is my candidate looking for?
3. Build Empathy into your EVP
While things like remuneration and benefits are always an important consideration when attracting professionals to your team, candidates are starting to be driven by other factors in the accounting landscape. According to analysts like Gartner, shifts in the modern workplace have prompted candidates to prioritise more “human” EVPs.
To ensure you’re adding a more “human” element to your Employer Value Proposition, look at ways you can:
- Deliver flexibility: Employees need more flexible working patterns and opportunities in the modern age. Ask yourself if your accounting professionals need to be in the office all the time or whether they can sometimes work from home?
- Promise wellbeing: Show your would-be employees you care about their wellness by encouraging positive mental and physical health. Promote the strategies you use to protect your employees’ health on your website and social media feeds.
- Show shared values: Demonstrate a commitment to making the world a better place by showing your candidates how you’re contributing to important things, like a greener planet or a safer working environment.
- Build deeper connections: Let potential employees know how they’re going to be able to build relationships with other members of the team, whether they’re working remotely or not, through regular group bonding activities.
4. Focus on Development
While the priorities of accountancy candidates are constantly changing, one thing which remains consistent is a desire for development and growth. Accounting professionals joining your team want to see they have a future with your brand. With that in mind, it’s important to bring development opportunities into your EVP.
Demonstrate a commitment to development for your team members by drawing attention to training days and learning opportunities on your website and in your job descriptions. You can even discuss what your employee would like to accomplish in their time with your brand during the interview.
Building an EVP around a commitment to helping your teams grow and thrive will show potential employees that you’re invested in their future. It’s also a great way to ensure your existing team members remain loyal to your brand.
5. Keep an Eye on the Competition
Finally, as the financial market continues to evolve and hiring processes change, it’s worth keeping a close eye on what other companies in your ecosystem are doing. Your employer brand is an important factor in what sets you apart from other organisations in the accounting field when top talent starts looking for new work opportunities.
Pay attention to how other companies appeal to their employees by offering better salaries, new benefits, or more flexible working strategies. Ask yourself how the corporate culture of other companies compares to your own and whether anything is missing from the employer value proposition you’ve been building.
Your professional accountancy recruitment partner will be able to offer some insights into the trending strategies other companies are using to attract talent.
What’s Next?
Your financial and accounting recruitment agency can offer behind-the-scenes insights into the major factors responsible for attracting the best talent in your industry. Rebus Financial Recruitment can help you get an edge on the competition and make your business stand out. Reach us via email or on 01282 930 930.
Thanks
Rachel Mitson
About Rebus Financial Recruitment
Rebus Financial Recruitment provides a specialist and focused recruitment service to its customers, which historically range from various organisations, including SMEs, to large PLCs.
We strive to offer both the client and candidate a seamless recruitment experience. Using our expertise, we get to the heart of employer and employee needs, and, in doing so, we match the two perfectly. To find out more, get in contact with one of our team today, or you can call us on 01282 930930.
