So how does an organisation manage its customer experience to ensure its people, processes and culture are reinforcing customer expectations? A key foundation of customer experience management is internal branding.

Internal branding in essence is ‘living’ and ‘delivering on’ your organisation’s brand promises. It is an organisation-wide initiative that enables all employees to understand how they can personally impact on a customer’s experience and contribute to building the company’s reputation and brand.

Many organisations fall into the trap of developing an advertising strategy with the intention of communicating how wonderful and customer-centric the organisation is. While the advertising direction may be in-line with the organisation’s brand, where it falls down is where what is being promoted is not being delivered.

The result of this is that both customers and employees are disconnected with the organisation, as UK oil company Total experienced. The company ran an ad campaign featuring the perfect employee called Steve who spends his time running around helping customers with heavy loads, childcare and car maintenance with the tagline ‘You’ll find people like Steve at all of our service stations’. The company did not reinforce this customer expectation with training and additional support to help employees, leaving both the employee and the customer frustrated and disappointed.

Internal branding today is all about connecting employees with an organisation’s brand and ensuring the internal brand experience is authentic. Just ask one of the 46,000 employees of The Dow Chemical Co. about the authenticity of their internal brand. They will most likely point you to the ‘I Am the Human Element’- an internal campaign which celebrates the contributions and successes of their employees, helping the organisation achieve its vision.

FedEx is another example of an organisation that has focused on building a strong internal brand and as a result is considered one of the world’s most admired companies and trusted employers. The company’s workforce not only know and believe in the values instilled by their ‘People-Service-Profit’ internal brand, but they can cite chapter and verse the actions they and others have taken to deliver the FedEx brand and what it means to them. This level of employee engagement delivers significant benefit to FedEx in terms of high performance and strong profits.

So perhaps it is time to consider the benefit to your organisation of building a strong internal brand. Recent transitional times with a turnover of employees, changing management styles or the merging of departments may have had more of an impact on your internal brand than you realise.

Reinvigorate your employees on what your organisation stands for and build passion for your brand promise. Not only will you reconnect with your employees and improve engagement but you will also reconnect with your customers and improve profitability.

In an article published by the Australian Leadership foundation Mark McCrindle explains that Generation Y’s have lived through “the age of the internet, cable television, globalisation, September 11 and environmentalism. Such shared experiences during ones youth unite and shape a generation. There is an ancient saying that bears much truth: People resemble their times more that they resemble their parents”

Whilst these events have shaped the views and psyche of Generation Y there are other changes that have taken place in the world which have led them Generation Y to think differently.  Factors including increased crime rates increased housing costs, body image issues and high rates of youth unemployment all contribute to a greater focus on short term thinking. McCrindle’s research shows that Generation Y’s life expectation is to complete their education (94%) with not too many plans after this.

Previous generations of Baby Boomers and Generation X had values including a strong work ethic, respect for the system and authority, loyalty, commitment, long term planning, conservatism and delayed gratification.

These values contrast dramatically with generation Y who have become disillusioned with their parents material success and the price that they have paid for this success. They have seen absent parents, divorced parents, and a significant incidence of stress related disease. In many ways generation Y have rejected the values of their parents as they have become disenchanted with the materialism that has driven so many of their elders. Generation Y “work to live” whereas their parents could be described as “living to work”.

So what does this mean in the context of an Employer Branding proposition? What is it that Generation Y workers are looking for in an Employer? McCrindle explains “When deciding to accept a job salary ranks sixth in order of importance after training, management style, work flexibility, staff activities and non-financial rewards. A job merely provides an income to do what they want to do. They are in search of fun, for quality friendships, a fulfilling purpose and for spiritual meaning.”

Communicating effectively with the people from Generation Y is another challenge in itself; the younger generation can detect hidden agendas and insincerity at a thousand paces. They don’t respond to slick presentations, driven by facebook and other social media they expect communication to be real, spontaneous and real time rather than slick and well-rehearsed. Additionally, they are looking for quality interaction as McCrindle says “They don’t care how much you know until they know that you care”

With almost 28% of the total population being classified as Generation Y understanding their needs and changing the workplace accordingly will be critical to the success of Organisations in the future. One of the greatest challenges for Organisations is recognising that this generation probably has a very different set of values than their incumbent executive team. In reality many organisations need to be redesigned to appeal to the next generation of workers.

Positive Hiring Intentions – most employers are planning on hiring more people

Widening gap between candidate and employer salary intentions – most candidates expect more than employers are prepared to pay

Skills shortages – 54% of employers in Australia are experiencing difficulty in filling critical positions. This number is significantly higher in WA and QLD. Australia is ranked fourth out of 39 countries for skills shortages in critical roles.

These factors combined have moved the pendulum of power well and truly back into the favour of employees. Reality is that well qualified candidates in the trades, sales and marketing, engineering, mechanical, accounting and technical trades have an abundance of choices.

Candidates in these professions can afford to be choosey about which roles they accept. For recruiting Organisations having a good reputation or brand in the marketplace becomes mission critical. To minimise turnover rates Organisations need to be able to deliver on the psychological contract that exists between them and their employees. Work places that don’t satisfy employees basic and higher level needs will find it increasingly difficult to attract and retain staff.

Not only do organisations need to meet candidates increasing salary expectations, they need to provide an environment where people enjoy, achieve and are actively engaged in their work. Leadership, strong organisational values, a great culture and team based incentives become increasingly important in this kind of environment.

Smart Organisations are being proactive in positioning their Organisation to deal with this storm. They are developing their Employment Value Proposition (EVP) and they are investing in building the culture of their organisation to maximise their ability to attract and retain their people. Increasingly successful organisations also measure the level of engagement of their workforce. They continually look for ways to deliver on the promises that they have made to their existing employees and look for ways to become more attractive to potential new hires.

The bad news for employers is that this situation is not a temporary. In spite of the Global Financial Crisis the ageing population and the mining boom mean that this storm is likely to continue to worsen for years to come. Organisations need to reinvent themselves and review how they engage their existing and potential workforces to successfully navigate the storm.

Activity based offices are designed to give people the freedom of how to work, where to work and when to work. There are no assigned desks and in most cases no private offices for executives. Team members are also encouraged to work remotely.

 Sections of floor space are tailored to different activities with “hubs” for smaller groups and individuals. “Clubhouses” feature more collaborative areas to encourage “brainstorming” and more collaborative activities. In Google’s case they have breakout rooms where staff can play table tennis, pool or even enter sleeping pods to rest and think creatively.

Although the concept is relatively new in Australia, ABW was developed in Europe over 20 years ago and it is now common place in most parts of Europe.

The Financial and IT industries sectors in Australia have embraced the European born concept and have reported a number of benefits including an increase of 15% increase in productivity, a reduction in staff turnover, significant increases in employee engagement and satisfaction since the move to Activity Based Working. A move towards ABW impacts positively on the Organisations brand and also on the Employer Brand as organisations are able to differentiate themselves based upon the office environment and the way that they interact with each other.

Another benefit of Activity Based Working is a reduction of up to 30% of office space required to house a typical organisation. Statistically, 55% of desks in an average office are empty at one point in time.

One of the greatest challenges of ABW is for older leaders in organisations to adapt and embrace the cultural change that this kind of office environment creates. Status is no longer derived by the size of your office, team members have increased freedom to work remotely so Managers can no longer rely on the “bums on seats” management approach and must adapt to the new role as a coach.

This approach to Office design is impacting the way people are working now. The younger generation has a clear preference to work in this way. Older leaders will need to adapt and adjust their leadership style.

The office design directly impacts how people interact, ABW is likely to become increasingly common-place as employers try to attract and retain the most talented people.

There is abundant anecdotal evidence that the FIFO lifestyle compromises the well- being of the employees and their families in terms of stress, relationship break-down, alcohol and drug use, depression and suicidality. Lowered job satisfaction and increased stress appear to be associated with extended periods of absence from partners, friends and family members – particularly children. In addition, stress placed upon partners and children is likely to spill over onto the FIFO worker him or herself. University of Western Australia research (Clifford, 2009) shows that although there is limited evidence to support long term psychological detriments associated with FIFO work, it does appear to be associated with short term stress increments, along with decreased job satisfaction. 

According to Beach & Cliff (2003), long term FIFO workers begin to suffer from “FIFO Fatigue”, which is defined as an emotional and physical tiredness resulting from constant absences from home and the stresses associated with repeatedly entering and exiting their family environment. It seems likely that these impacts may translate to increased turnover of FIFO employees.

A study conducted by the University of Queensland investigated employee turnover across nine FIFO mine sites. Mine Managers who were interviewed for the study considered that high turnover among FIFO employees was largely normal and outside management control, and therefore were not investing in attempts to manage the turnover. The findings of the study indicated that there was substantial variance in turnover across FIFO sites, suggesting that contextual factors play a significant role in determining the extent of turnover.

Some of the variables thought to mitigate FIFO turnover include roster structure, management commitment to training and development, management efficacy, and a positive work place culture. The sum of this research points to there being scope for employers to manipulate attraction and retention through their commitment to a “FIFO friendly” Employee Values Proposition (EVP). An EVP is a statement of why an employee should commit to a particular organisation; it represents the benefits of working for an organisation that make the experience of working there superior to that of other competing employers. Development of an EVP that takes into account the unique challenges of a sustained FIFO lifestyle is likely to promote attraction and retention of FIFO talent. 

While FIFO workers acknowledge that the FIFO lifestyle is a considered decision, and that they are financially compensated for the impact of FIFO upon themselves and their families, it does not follow that retention strategies should neglect to account for the challenges posed by FIFO work.

An EVP is conceptually a psychological contract bonding employer and employee.  The Corporate Leadership Council (CLC) defines an EVP based on the return that employees expect to receive through employment with a firm.  Sounding a little one-sided? Offerings made to employees are not always linked with the expected performance levels from employees.  Furthermore gaps arise between the perceptions (wants) of the employer and perceptions (wants) of the employee, resulting in breaches of this psychological contract and therefore in reduced employee loyalty, increased turnover and reduced employee engagement.  Here are three rules that may help you in creating, using and managing your EVP.

Rule #1: Glossy Brochures Won’t Work: Defining what your EVP is, and reproducing this into a formal organisational document is nothing more than corporate administration.  It looks nice, can be impressive upon reading but it is no guarantee that talent are attracted to your firm, that your current employees are engaged nor that they have an active intention to remain with your firm.  Southwest Airlines attract talent to their workforce not through prescribed formal documents, but through demonstrated codes of conduct.  Your EVP is useless unless it is activated and aligned with how your employees behave, managerial leadership, performance measurement, and internal discussion.

Rule #2: Attract the right people that are aligned with your organisational values: Your EVP is a value proposition that allows your potential and current employees to shape their expectations and assessment of your firm. Like pollen to a bee, if you propose a culture based on the value of safety, you will attract candidates that agree and align with this value in your organisation.  Southwest Airlines values superior customer service and this is very clear in their offering to potential employees.  Much like good marketers know what their target customers value in a product or service, Southwest Airlines ensure that they are also aligning their EVP (their offering) with the values of their current and targeted employees. 

Rule #3: Culture is not what develops yoghurt!: The wants of employees and employers may seem valleys apart, but your organisational culture will bridge that divide.  Ensure that your desired organisational culture is understood and supports the strategic imperatives of your firm.  These will also clarify the expectations of both the employer and for employees.  For example, outline expected employee behaviours (needed to reach strategic objectives) that are rewarded and reinforced.  Southwest Airlines has a strong and well defined culture based on uniqueness and fun-loving spirit.  This allows it to articulate what it expects and also offers its employees.  These employer expectations are also aligned with its organisational objectives of efficient operations and strong customer service.

Derive value from your EVP with a more balanced approach.  Review your EVP as a two sided exchange where an offering is made by both employers and employees, with the expectation of returns for both parties.  It is well established that an EVP is an offering to employees with evidenced returns in terms of employee engagement and employee loyalty.  There is a body of evidence that also indicates returns for the employer (Heger 2007) such as increased productivity and reduced recruitment costs.  However to manage this balance, do not forget to make your offering (your EVP) clear, thus prescribing your employer expectations.   If you clearly communicate what you offer and therefore expect of employees, your EVP can help drive employees and incentivise your organisational values and strategies.

This reaction by an employee at the ‘coal-face’ of the organisation, and as far removed from astronauts and technicians as you can imagine, indicates an ideal alignment and engagement with NASA and its organisational vision. This employee effectively communicated that he knows, was driven by, orientated towards and also engaged with the organisational vision. He also knew and accepted his role in helping the organisation meet its vision and strategic aims. It is also imaginable that the janitor felt that he was part of something, indeed one of the most memorable achievements in human history. Are your employees part of something?

Porter (1974) defines organisational commitment as the degree to which individuals identify with, accept and believe in the organisational goals. Furthermore it entails individuals accepting goals and values of the organisation, and showing willingness to work hard and continue association with the organisation. In essence, it is having people that are proud and dedicated to your organisational greatness (Cohen 2003). Outcomes from organisational commitment can include increased retention, reduced employee turnover, reduced absenteeism and tardiness (Mathieu and Zajac 1990).

Many companies are far from placing men on the moon, however companies can draw value from formalising its organisational vision and having a strong employer brand. Strengthen your employer brand and give your employees something to align to and give them a reason to work hard for you. Employees unfortunately don’t come to work every day simply to increase your bottom line. If employees feel that they are part of an organisation that is “going somewhere” it seems logical that their motivation and engagement with the firm will be stronger.

A well defined vision must also be strategically communicated to your internal and possibly also your external stakeholders. This is not merely printing posters, creating mottos and posting them around the office as this does not engage or interact with the audience which you should be targeting. ‘Strategically’ suggests that you know who your key stakeholders are and that you effectively deliver that vision to them in a meaningful and engaging way. Reinforcing to trade suppliers that you are aiming to be number-one in workplace safety is far less effective than if you project it to potential employees. Traditionally a role adopted by communications managers, sharing the organisational vision is the responsibility of all departmental managers, supervisors and “coal-face” personnel. The NASA example is testimony to this.

Organisational commitment and employer branding are the trump cards to play as part of your retention strategy. Having an organisational vision is a pillar towards building not only your company brand but also your employer brand. Ensure that your vision is formalised and strategically communicated across your organisation. This is not a task purely assigned to communications managers, however across your management team to ensure that they have the appropriate tools, approach and competencies. The interaction between your employees and their supervisor/manager is a leading driver of employee engagement.

The influx of Gen Y into our workforces demands that retention strategies must evolve to meet new expectations and needs. Recent research suggests that employees may be attracted by higher salaries; however retention rates can be dramatically improved through strong employer branding and consistently delivering on your Employer Value Proposition (Moroko 2008).

An Employer Value Proposition (EVP) is the first phase of Employer Branding, whereby your differences and desirability as an employer are actively promoted internally and externally (Moroko 2008).  Employer Branding and the promotion of an EVP can be advantageous when companies show consistency between their Employer Brand and the employee experience, company culture and company values.  An EVP is also an effective way to ensure that employees believe in your brand, thereby increasing motivation and loyalty to your organisation (Mitchell 2002). 

Companies such as Virgin Blue are finding long term solutions by developing their Employer Brand and attracting the right talent to their workforce.  Fred van der Tang, CEO of Randstad described Virgin Blue as having an attractive EVP with a reputation for strong workplace culture, varied job roles and a high degree of job satisfaction (HC Online 2011).  Such a positive and attractive EVP can help companies establish a competitive advantage as an employer of choice.  These principles of employee attraction are well known, and can be used in retaining talent and thereby sustaining your company growth, cost management and business performance in the future. 

In forming an EVP it is important to understand what are the expectations and needs of future and current employees.  Workforces are inherently a mixture of individuals from differing demographics and psychographics.  Hewlett (et al 2009) asserts that the number of Gen Y employees and also Gen Y executives in the workforce today has increased dramatically.  This influx of younger employees has resulted in an attitudinal change in workplaces (Hewlett et al 2009) and hence drives a need to evolve retention strategies and change EVPs from monetarily oriented to non-monetarily oriented.  Research suggests that salary is neither the prime motivator nor the key to staff retention and incentive schemes for individuals are suggested as intensive to establish and low in impact (Ready & Conger 2007).  Employers can provide other forms of remuneration such as equity based schemes and company-wide incentive schemes where company success is shared across departments. 

Non-monetary benefits can also be promoted as part of your EVP in order to attract and retain employees. Recent research amongst employees at UBS, Time Warner, Booz Ellen Hamilton and Ernst & Young suggests that retaining Gen Y employees can be achieved through mixed rewards systems (Ready & Conger 2007).  This can include work flexibility and enabling contributions to the community, which were reported as trumping salary incentives. Examples of flexibility include allowing graduates to do a gap-year vacation prior to commencing work.  This gap-year is partly funded on the proviso that new recruits engage in community development during this period. 

Mentoring is an effective strategy for both Gen Y recruits and the retention of aging Baby Boomers (Ready & Conger 2007).  Time Warner introduced a reverse mentoring program whereby younger staff mentored Baby Boomers on the use of social media and Baby Boomers offered mentorship to younger recruits on values, management, leadership and skills development.  Companies such as Bankwest are appointing talent managers to identify and mentor potential employees of the highest calibre (Beyer 2011). 

New employees often seek challenges early in joining the workforce (Hewlett et al 2009).  Offer progression to employees via work on cross functional projects and secondments.  Align your organisational values with corporate and individual KPIs.  Establish a bonus structure, whereby employees are rewarded across the organisation and based on achievement of company KPI’s. 

There is no quick-fix or overnight solution for these retention issues.  Evidence suggests that long term commitment to Employer Branding, supported by an EVP that is consistently delivered upon will assist in attraction and retention in a competitive job market.  Consider retention strategies that match the evolving workforce and their psychographic need through offering job flexibility, community involvement, mentoring, and mixed reward systems.  Don’t be distracted by the immediate need to focus on growth and expansion plans, take a step back and review your employer brand before paying attention to your growth plans. This will build you a framework for future growth and will deliver stronger returns. If your value to potential and current employees is unclear, you will continue to experience growing pains.  Further, if you cannot offer a complete package of both monetary and non-monetary benefits, you will struggle to win the talent war that is looming.

For sometime now, The Right Group has advocated that companies should get their brand in order internally before they communicate externally. This point of view has often been met with resistance, particularly as traditionally the development of brands has been focused on external advertising and promotion and has been driven by the marketing and communication departments.

However, our research indicates that many employees not only fail to identify with the company they work for, they become unsure of how to uphold the company’s brand promise. Our advice is to avoid “bait and switch” branding messages, whereby companies espouse promises to their customer, but fail to deliver on these. 

Banks appear to be experts in “bait and switch” branding.  Branding themes around understanding customers, putting customers first and acting on customer feedback leads to customer disappointment.  Not because customers do not want such outcomes, far from the case.  More to the point, banks have failed to align their businesses with their brand.   Customers are reeled in and tossed back out to sea!

But it appears that the tide of business opinion is turning. Increasingly, senior management is recognising that there is little value in investing large sums in advertising and design, if the reality of employee behaviour undermines those well-honed external messages of product and service superiority. The imperative to align and manage a company’s brand internally before external communication is now being widely accepted and embraced.

The return on investment of an aligned workforce, coupled with the competitive advantage that can be gained through the recruitment and retention of the best people in the market through the development of a strong Employee Value Proposition (EVP), has led to a refocusing of effort and investment from the external to the internal.

Brand should and must be seen as a ‘whole of business’ concern and in particular, a human resources activity. It is about selecting the right people, developing their skills, building commitment and nurturing talent within the organisation.

Many of the companies we work with view their brands as central to the development of organisational value, and with assistance from The Right Group, are developing their brand alignment and ‘living the brand’ programs, which focus on integrating communications, human resources and other functions. When this is done effectively the brand becomes valuable for both employees and customers.

Let’s not forget the basics surrounding the need to engage employees regardless of the market environment and business challenges. Cutting back on internal communication and people development is short-sighted and a knee jerk reaction. Amidst market recovery, employees will look to ‘jump ship’ on the basis of what is on offer and how they were previously treated.

Employer Branding is a very powerful talent management tool, it’s not simply a list of catchy attraction statements up on your organisation’s careers page.  If done right, it’s an equally useful retention tool.

Is your organisation at risk of losing its key talent – those very same people who drove productivity and successfully navigated your company through some of its toughest times?   

No-one questions the need for organisations to make tough decisions in an adverse market. The real question is where should the cuts come from and how are these managed internally? If your actions have reduced employee engagement, which in turn affects productivity, commitment and loyalty, consider the following:

•  How will a loss of employee knowledge impact upon your company?
• What will be the impact of reduced employee retention on the quality of your existing client relationships and their loyalty?
• How will your remaining staff think and feel about your company?
• What will be your future challenges around recruitment, remembering that company reputation is an essential element of attraction and retention?

How you manage staff during recessionary phases, i.e. with open communication and integrity, will determine the damage to your Employer Brand. 

For example the situation with Pacific Brands could have been handled differently had the management been more open and honest. First it axed over 1800 jobs in February 2009 and now we see Kmart recently dropping orders from Pacific Brands due to an apparent struggle of the supplier to balance their contract outsourcing. In hindsight, Pacific Brands focused on the short-term savings, rather than looking to the long term effects. Credit Suisse analyst Grant Saligari cut his full-year earnings forecasts for Pacific by 10% in light of the tough trading conditions prevailing in the Australian retail sector.  This may well have been compounded by the negative publicity attributed to the brand and its reputation as a result of these actions.

Perhaps its time to think about reinvigorating your organisation’s Employer Brand. Here are some basics:

• Communicate with your people. Employee communication is often the first thing to be axed. This is debilitating behaviour because often employees are anxious and fearful of the possibility of losing their job. Two way communication and leader led actions are crucial to providing assurance and direction which refocuses your team back on to the task at hand.  Honest, clear and consistent messaging is important.  
• Engaging CEOs demand loyalty. Leaders should be highly visible in uncertain times. This will have a positive impact upon employee confidence.
• Using your Employer Brand to recruit up and over ‘normalised’ salaries.   In many markets, now is a very good time to invest in new talent. You should regard this time as an opportunity to secure top talent who may now be enticed to move; and
• Develop a very clear Employment Value Proposition (EVP). This is the list of unique, compelling reasons why employees should consider working for your organisation over that of your competitors.   

Your organisation’s Employer Brand needs to be adapted during recessionary phases. Employees have very long memories; many may well vote with their feet as power shifts back to them. This would mean a somewhat long, arduous and often costly process to rebuild your group of highly talented personnel.