Employer Branding & the new world@work
Brett Minchington MBA
www.brettminchington.com
EMPLOYER BRANDING & the new world@work ISBN 978-0-646-59607-5 Copyright Š 2013 by Brett Minchington www.brettminchington.com All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form, electronic, mechanical or other means, now known, or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Limit of liability / Disclaimer of warranty While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor author shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential or other damages.
Published by
First published, May 2013 by Collective Learning Australia PO Box 614, Torrensville SA Australia, 5031 Email admin@collectivelearningaustralia.com Web www.collectivelearningaustralia.com Phone + 61 8 8443 4115 Fax + 61 8 8443 4149
Cover design and typesetting Peter Davis
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
About the author Brett Minchington MBA International Employer Brand Strategist Corporate Advisor | Author | Educator Brett Minchington MBA, is the Chairman/CEO of Employer Brand International (EBI) and one of the world’s leading authorities on employer branding. EBI provides research, guidance and thought leadership in employer branding including consulting, publications, events/ training, research and think-tanks. EBI’s expert services are provided through an international network of expert employer brand Senior Associates. EBI’s global Advisory Board consists of leading corporate professionals and academics from around the world. Brett is the founder and owner of Employer Branding Online and facilitates the EBI Employer Branding Global Community group on Linkedin. Brett’s thought leadership in employer branding led him to author ‘Your Employer Brand attract-engage-retain,’ in 2006 which was the first book on the topic by an Australasian author and only the second in the world. The book has since been sold in 50+ countries. In 2007 Brett commenced the Employer Branding Global TourTM and has delivered workshops/masterclass/summits and keynote addresses to thousands of senior managers -many from Global 500 companies - in more than 50 cities in 27 countries including, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, NZ, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UAE, UK, Ukraine, USA and Uzbekistan. Brett is the Chair of the Australian, French, Italian, New Zealand, Scandinavian, South African, UAE and UK Employer Branding Summits. Brett has consulted in global and national employer branding projects for companies including Siemens, Aon Hewitt, PwC, Origin, SIBUR, Australian Wine Research Institute, Elsevier, and World Vision to assist them develop
About the author
their employer brand strategy and roadmap through strategic audits and advisory solutions. He also advises leading employer brand agencies in strategic employer brand consulting in Canada, UK and Russia. Brett’s opinion is sought globally by the media and HR, Marketing and Management publications and he is the world’s most published author in employer branding. His articles have featured in publications around the world including titles such as The Economist, Business Week, HR Future (South Africa), The Human Factor (India), Personnel Zaradzanie (Poland), The Opinion Leader (Finland), HRM Magazine (Singapore), HR Professional (Canada), HC Magazine (Australia), Personnel Today UK, International Association of Business Communicators, Times Ascent (India), Universum Quarterly, Human Resources Magazine (Australia), NZ Management (New Zealand), onrec.com, Executive Grapevine (UK) and ERE Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership (USA). Brett is an International columnist on employer branding for HR Future, South Africa’s leading human resources publication. As Research Director at Employer Brand International, Brett has Chaired Global Research studies and forums which contribute to the advancement of the science of employer branding. From 2009, Employer Brand International has published some of the world’s largest independent research studies on employer branding. Brett’s passion for employer branding is driven by a vision to make a positive and lasting impact to people’s employment experience whilst contributing to a safer, more equitable and friendlier global society. He lectures in Employer Branding in the MBA program at the University of Adelaide. Brett has an MBA from the University of South Australia and Bachelor of Business from Queensland University of Technology and lives in Adelaide, Australia.
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Dedication
To my beautiful family: Andrea, Bailey and Taylah Minchington, my mother Barbara, father Brian and sisters Darlene, Rochelle and Felicia. For your love, presence and support, I am truly grateful. You inspire me to reach new heights and to lead a wonderful life every single day.
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
Acknowledgements I wish to sincerely thank the following people for their persistence, positive attitude, friendship and contributions to bringing this book to fruition. The wonderful team at Employer Brand International: Senior Associates Ryan Estis, Managing Director (Ryan Estis & Associates), David Parks, Vice President of Business Development (Bluepoint Leadership Development), Eugenio Amendola, Managing Director (Anthea Consulting), Véronique Frogé, Partner, Head of Employer Branding Practice (i&e Management), Per Olof Hall, Managing Director (PlanetPeople), Birgitte Seldorf, Managing Consultant (Summit Consulting A/S), Radosław Knap, Managing Partner (KNAPRO Consulting), Ron Tomlian, Managing Director (Marketing Counsel), Steven Goodman, Senior Lecturer (Marketing), Program Director Higher Degrees by Research (The University of Adelaide Business School) and Sonja Johnson, Chief Executive Officer at Regional Development Australia Far North Queensland & Torres Strait. Global Advisory Board Fabio Dioguardi, Global Employer Branding & Talent Acquisition Director, (Ferrero International S.A.), Els van de Water, Western Europe Services HR Business Partner (Microsoft), Heather Polivka, Senior Director of Global Employment Branding & Marketing, (UnitedHealth Group), Michael Holm, Employer Brand Manager (Lego), René Herremans, Employer Branding Manager (Ahold), Birgitte Brix Andersen, Senior Consultant, People & Development (DONG Energy), Kerry Noone, Employer Brand Manager (Amtrak), Dr Karen Nelson-Field. PhD, Researcher, EhrenbergBass Institute for Marketing Science (University of South Australia), Marta Najbert, Marketing & PR Manager (Pandora Jewelry Central Eastern Europe Operations), Stephen Fogarty, Senior Manager-Strategic Programs (adidas Group), Sara Axling, People & Employer Brand Strategy Manager (Volvo Car Group), Linda Halse, General Manager Human Resources (Australian Wine Research Institute), Prenai Pillay, Manager: Talent Sourcing and Employer
Acknowledgements
Brand (Old Mutual), Linda Downs, HR Director (Mundipharma PTE Ltd), Giuliana Massimino, Country Communications Manager (Sandvik) and Kellie Tomney, Director (Employer Brand Works). Thank you to the leaders who inspire me to achieve greater heights in employer branding and the following global leaders who have written and contributed to case studies for this book: Sara Axling, People & Employer Brand Strategy Manager, Volvo Car Group; Lidiya Nadych-Petrenko, Employee Engagement and Branding Manager, JTI; RenĂŠ Herremans, Senior Manager of Employer Branding, Ahold Europe; Tanja FrĂśhlich, Head of Recruitment for the IKEA Group; Arie Ball, Vice President, Sourcing and Talent Acquisition, Sodexo; Birgitte Brix Andersen, Senior Consultant, People & Development at DONG Energy. Thank you to the hundreds of event sponsors and partners and their staff who have supported my Employer Brand Global Tour to more 50 cities in 27 countries. You know who you are and I cherish the impact you have had on my life. And finally to my family and friends who have supported and inspired me to write this book. I am forever grateful: Andrea, Bailey and Taylah Minchington, Barbara, Brian, Darlene, Rochelle and Felicia Minchington, Herb, Jane, Sean, James and Marnie Ewinger, Ian, Carole, Preston, Lyndal and Leanne Stewart, Sandra and Ian Bracken, Eugenio Amendola (the very first reader of my first book and now my long term business partner in Italy) and my designer Peter Davis for his years of patience!
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
TABLE OF CONTENTS About the author
4
Dedication
7
Acknowledgements
8
Preface
12
Employer branding global communities
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SECTION 1: HOW DID WE GET HERE? 1. The global employment landscape – the key trends driving growth in employer branding
SECTION 2: WHERE ARE WE GOING & HOW DO WE GET THERE?
17 17
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2. Technology is changing the nature of work
43
3. The socialisation of work
59
4. Inside the world of employer branding
93
5. A strategic approach to employer branding
125
6. A pathway to employer brand excellence
149
7. The rise of employer brand leadership
187
8. E mployer branding in emerging markets – A spotlight on Russia
209
SECTION 3: WHERE TO NEXT? 9. K ey focus areas to develop a winning employer band
223 223
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Table of Contents
BEST PRACTICE CASE STUDIES
239
Volvo Car Group
241
JTI
255
Ahold Europe
265
IKEA
281
Sodexo
291
Reference list
303
Index
307
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
Preface In 2004 as I was writing my first book on employer branding titled ‘Your Employer Brand attract-engage-retain’ I knew there was much more to the story than I was telling. In 2010 I published ‘Employer brand leadership – A global perspective,’ which allowed me to share more of my own story as I travelled around the world consulting, conducting conferences, masterclass events and researching the world of employer branding. Now in 2013 I am pleased to publish the final book in the employer branding trilogy, ‘Employer Branding & the new world@work.’ My thinking in employer branding continues to evolve and is influenced by the thought leaders, practitioners, academics and vendors I have been fortunate to collaborate with over the years on my journey. Their wisdom and knowledge has helped to shape my perspective which I will share with you in this book. My lifestyle in employer branding has exposed me to the diversity of cultures in more than 50 cities in 27 countries including, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, NZ, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UAE, UK, Ukraine, USA and Uzbekistan. Not only have I discovered there are many differences in employer branding in these countries, I have found there are many common elements which has led to a growing interest in employer branding throughout the world. I have also been fortunate to contribute to many articles and thesis on employer branding which have been published in more than 30 countries in a range of publications including ‘The Economist’, ‘Business Week’ and ERE’s ‘Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership’. Over the past 10 years I have continued to track market trends and their impact on companies. Through our research and thought leadership at Employer Brand International I have strived to propose innovative ways employer branding can assist to meet the challenges these trends provide.
Preface
The world has become more social the past five years and much of my time is spent with people online, probably moreso than offline these days! In late 2012 I completed my first consulting engagement with a large Russian client from my office in Australia. What makes this story more interesting is that most of the material I was reviewing during the strategic audit process was in Russian! We have the technology and tools to able to work like this today! When my interest in employer branding was first sparked more than ten years ago this would not have been possible. Never in planning did I envisage Russia would become a key market where I would collaborate with local partners to establish a consulting, research and events business in employer branding. My collaborations and travel to Russia has helped change my perspective about the role others (e.g. the media) have in shaping our thinking and perceptions. To really understand people and society we have to go and seek our own experiences to support what we learn from the experiences of others. I have titled this book, ‘Employer Branding & the new world@work,’ as I believe it captures where employer branding is adding most value today. It is contributing to overcoming the challenges bought upon by changes in the political, economic, social and technological environments. Today we are surrounded by new business landscapes which provide new opportunities which should be embraced with interest, not shunned upon. Chapter 1 presents detailed insights into the global employment landscape and the key trends driving growth in employer branding. Chapter 2 explores how technology is changing the nature of world and showcases examples of how the growth in gadgets and the internet is disrupting business models and bringing the world’s citizens just that little closer. Chapter 3 explores the big shift in the workplace in the past generation, the socialisation of talent. We are moving to an employment landscape where talent are driving the agenda. We do not have a talent crisis, we have a matching crisis and we are getting closer everyday to matching talent with jobs that benefit individuals, companies and society. Chapter 4 dives deep into the world of employer branding supported by research from Employer Brand International and insights into the current status of employer branding around the world and future trends.
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Chapter 5 provides guidance for leaders to develop a strategic approach to employer branding through market tested and proven methodologies and strategies for building an employer brand that creates competitive advantage. Chapter 6 presents a practical guide to support leaders through their employer brand strategy and how to reach tier one excellence. Chapter 7 details the rise of employer brand leadership and why many of the world’s leading brands have now added dedicated employer branding functions to their organisational structure. Chapter 8 presents research insights from Employer Brand International and personal ‘on the ground’ learnings of employer branding in emerging markets, with a spotlight on Russia – a market that I find is the fastest growing employer branding market in the world. I conclude the book in section 3 with chapter 9 and present twelve key focus areas to develop a winning employer band strategy. I trust this book will provide you with relevant, meaningful and thought provoking insights to satisfy your interest in employer branding, challenge your thinking and inspire you to contribute your own experiences and learnings to the field of employer branding. I have met many of the readers of my books during my travels around the world and I hope one day we connect online or in person to share our thinking in employer branding! .............and remember - ALWAYS enjoy the journey. Family, friends, health and happiness must come first! These are outcomes of employer branding I continue to aspire to everyday! Brett Minchington MBA, B.Bus (Marketing) E brett@employerbrandinternational.com P 61 8 8443 4115 F 61 8 8443 4149 www.brettminchington.com www.employerbrandinternational.com www.employerbrandingonline.com Twitter www.twitter.com/brettminch Linkedin www.linkedin.com/in/minchington Facebook www.facebook.com/brett.minchington
Employer branding global communities
To stay abreast of latest news, articles, developments and discussions in employer branding, I invite you to join the following global communities
on
www.facebook.com/pages/Employer-Branding-Online/ 115743318452966
www.employerbrandinternational.com
www.linkedin.com/groupRegistration?gid=1338647
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
Chapter 1 The global employment landscape
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
In 2009 when I was researching for my previous book, ‘Employer Brand Leadership-A Global Perspective,’ the global financial crisis, which had its roots in the collapse of the American subprime mortgage market, had begun to impact on economies across the world. Back then the forecasts for a return to normality looked positive and many economists were predicting the economic downturn experienced in many countries would plateau and economic progress would return to accelerate jobs and GDP growth. In 2013 as I am writing this book from a hotel in Singapore, it has been five years since the global financial crisis began and economic forecasts are still gloomy. We now live in a world of economic uncertainty and an ever changing business landscape. Talent acquisition and retention has become increasingly complex. The need for systems integration, understanding and embracing culture diversity, social and technological changes, jobless economic recoveries in many countries, the threat of declining fertility rates and ageing populations in many developed economies and an inequality in global education standards has created multiple challenges for companies which show no signs of easing soon! Today, the strains on the labour market are becoming increasingly apparent. In advanced economies, demand for high-skill labour is now growing faster than supply, while demand for low-skill labour remains weak. Labour’s overall share of income, or the share of national income that goes to worker compensation, has fallen, and income inequality is growing as lower-skill workers, including 75 million young people experience unemployment, underemployment, and stagnating wages.1 The McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) finds these trends gathering force and spreading to China and other developing economies, as the global labour force approaches 3.5 billion in 2030. Based on current trends in population, education, and labour demand, the report projects that by 2020 the global economy could face the following hurdles:
•3 8 million to 40 million fewer workers with tertiary education (college or postgraduate degrees) than employers will need, or 13 percent of the demand for such workers,
The global employment landscape
•4 5 million too few workers with secondary education in developing economies, or 15 percent of the demand for such workers, •9 0 million to 95 million more low-skill workers (those without college training in advanced economies or without even secondary education in developing economies) than employers will need, or 11 percent oversupply of such workers.1
The dynamics of the global labour market will make these challenges even more difficult. The population in China, as well as in many advanced economies, is ageing, reducing the growth rate of the global labour supply; most of the additions to the global labour force will occur in India and the ‘young’ developing economies of Africa and South Asia. Ageing will likely add 360 million older people to the world’s pool of those not participating in the labour force, including 38 million college-educated workers, whose skills will already be in short supply.1 Today, we live in an increasingly borderless world. The broad penetration of high-speed internet has peeled away the barriers of time, distance and even language to create a global forum for the exchange of ideas and information. Instrumented, interconnected and intelligent systems seamlessly link organizations from every part of the world. Today, work can be easily performed across various cultures, geographies and time zones.2 ................Welcome to the new world@work! Around the world in 2013, unemployment is still high in many countries, yet skilled and talented people are in short supply. So what went wrong? How can the field of employer branding play a pivotal role in facilitating improved economic prospects in not only developed economies but in the emerging markets where growth prospects look more promising in the coming years? Before I answer this question it is important to take a look at the bigger picture trends which are causing uncertainty and concerns for companies and communities they operate in.
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
The bigger picture trend #1: Global employment forecast At the time I began writing this book in late 2012, global growth had decelerated and unemployment had started to increase again, leaving an accumulated total of some 197 million people without a job. PwC estimate that 40 million of these people live in advanced economies and tens of millions more in those nations are underemployed or have become discouraged and dropped out of the labour force. With many nations still facing weak demand and the risk of renewed recession, hiring has been restrained. By some estimates, up to two percentage points of the unemployment rate in the United States can be explained by weak demand.3 In 2012, growth decelerated by 1.4 percentage points in East Asia, largely due to a notable slowdown in China, where growth slowed to 7.8 percent – the slowest rate of growth since 1999. In South Asia, where growth in India slowed sharply to 4.9 percent, the lowest rate of growth in the country in a decade, the regional GDP growth rate decelerated by 1.6 percentage points. The regions of Latin America and the Caribbean and the Middle East also saw a substantial deceleration.4 In financial year 2012, the employment recovery has been slower in advanced economies (0.1 percent) than in developing economies - 2.2 percent (see figure 1). The recovery is marginal in advanced economies compared to the crisis period (2007–11) during which it declined by 1.7 percent. Developing economies, in contrast, experienced a slowdown in their employment growth by more than one percentage point (2.2 percent) compared to the crisis period (3.8 percent).5
The global employment landscape
Figure 1: E mployment rates in the third quarters of 2007 and 2011 (percentages)
In 2012 some 39 million people have dropped out of the labour market as job prospects proved unattainable, opening a 67 million global jobs gap since 2007. Despite a moderate pick-up in output growth expected for 2013-14, the unemployment rate is set to increase again and the number of unemployed worldwide is projected to rise by 5.1 million to more than 202 million in 2013 and by another 3 million in 2014 (see figure 2). A quarter of the increase of 4 million in global unemployment in 2012 has been in the advanced economies, while three quarters has been in other regions, with marked
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Employer Branding & the new world@work
effects in East Asia, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Those regions that have managed to prevent a further increase in unemployment often have experienced a worsening in job quality, as vulnerable employment and the number of workers living below or very near the poverty line increased.4 Figure 2: Global unemployment trends and projections, 2002-174
Source: International Labour Organisation
Global labour market clusters To understand where these gaps are likely to arise and have the greatest impact, McKinsey Global Institute looked at the 70 countries that account for 96 percent of global GDP and are home to 87 percent of the world’s population. By plotting their populations’ educational and age profiles, as well as per capita GDP, we can see how prepared their national labour forces are to meet future demand, how easily they can grow their labour forces, and how productive their labour is. This yields eight clusters of countries: four in developing economies, three in advanced economies, and one group comprising Russia and Central and Eastern European states (see figure 3).1