Think about your last round of New Year’s resolutions. Are they still in effect today? The average resolution lasts just 3.74 months—a pretty low success rate, especially since theoretically people should be more likely to achieve goals that they set for themselves.
Now imagine we’re talking about organizational goals. Low buy-in and success rates, like we see with resolutions, won’t cut it when outcomes of employee retention and business performance are at stake. So what can you do to ensure employees believe in and engage with organizational goals?
Traditionally, organizations have focused on setting more clear business goals to better engage employees. But involving employees sooner and linking goals to business objectives doesn’t inherently inspire teams. That’s where strong employer branding and communications save the day.
An employer brand aligns, inspires and attracts employees
Employer branding, or the way you continuously promote your company as a great place to work, is considered by some to be just a talent acquisition strategy. But it’s also a valuable way to engage employees during each stage of the employee journey.
When you proactively communicate your employer brand messages to employees, you boost alignment across the organization, build confidence in the brand vision and support company culture.
Related: How we helped a healthcare system unite 20,000 employees under one brand
It’s this alignment to your vision and clarity surrounding expected behaviors that are key to creating that enthusiasm and excitement that ultimately connects your people to—and accomplishes—your organizational goals.
Tips for using employer branding to motivate employees
If you’re interested in using your employer branding strategy to drive your organizational goals and strengthen company culture, here are a few tips that will maximize your efforts.
1. Anchor the messaging to a shared purpose, not just metric performance
While most organizational goals tend to be quantitative in nature, nothing evokes emotion more effectively than storytelling. Help your people to see why the goals matter to the organization and the stakeholders you serve with your products and services. This builds a deeper level of understanding and shared sense of commitment.
2. Create consistency in what you say and where you say it
Employee inboxes are as cluttered as our own, so use your employer brand strategy communication channels for your most critical messages. This helps employees cut through the clutter. Don’t just rely on email, either. Company meetings, intranets, screensavers, print materials, recognition platforms, podcasts—there’s a virtually limitless list of outreach methods you can explore to add variety and impact to your internal communications.
Related: Great employer brand examples to inspire
3. Provide ongoing updates and personalized guidance for future success
Whether your organization has annual goals, quarterly goals or even daily goals, be sure to communicate meaningful progress updates to your people. Sometimes those closest to monitoring goals assume that everybody has the same degree of familiarity with performance. Be sure you identify the appropriate frequency to provide updates, along with actionable guidance your people can lean into for the future. Middle management can be especially helpful with this step because they are well-positioned to personalize that guidance based on their team’s area of responsibility, increasing relevancy.
Get more employer branding tips from the podcast
If you’re new to employer branding (or just looking for some additional inspiration), check out this on-demand podcast recording, hosted by Cooleaf, ITA Group’s employee engagement platform. Hear from HR leaders as they share practical examples of what works—and what doesn’t—to inspire, inform and elevate your employer branding efforts.
Download our guide to learn how to align your employee experience programs and build a connected culture.