Is It Time to Refresh Your EVP?

The world of work has changed significantly since 2020. Many organizations have adjusted their business strategy and approach, which has resulted in a change to their people strategy. Companies have sometimes adjusted their people strategy and then changed their business to support it. Whether they have fully embraced flexible work environments like Alludo or launched comprehensive career development programs like many of those on Comparably's list of best companies for career growth, organizations are changing.

More importantly, employees' values have evolved. The "great reshuffling" taught us that employees are willing to move jobs for more balance, greater flexibility, and growth opportunities. Many workers are no longer willing to stay with organizations if their needs and values are not aligned.

Given this change, most organizations should refresh their employee value proposition (EVP). Your EVP is the set of promises an organization makes to its employees in exchange for their time, knowledge, and skills. Those promises can include pay and benefits, growth opportunities, recognition, culture, and belonging. If crafted effectively, your EVP communicates why someone would want to work for your organization and what they can expect to experience as an employee.

Even if your values, culture, and offerings have stayed the same since 2019, the wants and needs of your workforce have changed. The most effective EVPs use research to identify what an organization provides and what the desired workforce wants and needs. The EVP lies at the intersection of those two lists.

Every organization has an EVP, whether you consciously craft messaging around it or not. And every organization's EVP is going to be different. Even those in the same industry attempting to attract candidates with similar skills will have a different "sweet spot" of offerings that align with those they are trying to attract. The key is to identify those offerings and package the message to be most attractive to your audience.

To refresh your EVP, consider these three steps:

1. Conduct extensive internal research. This research should include an employee survey and focus groups that uncover the understanding of employees' perceptions. You need to go beyond the list of benefits and programs on your career site. For example, you may offer career development programs. However, the perception may be that their access is limited or they aren't developing the skills most important to employees. Or you may offer flexible work arrangements that still aren't meeting the needs of your employees. The key is understanding employees' perceptions to represent your offerings to your internal and external audiences authentically.
2. Conduct extensive external research. First, define your ideal talent pool based on skills, experience, location, etc. Build surveys that capture what the talent audience is looking for when making career decisions. Work with organizations that can build survey audiences that match your ideal pool (we use SurveyMonkey and Centiment here at HireClix) and put your survey in the market. Ideally, you follow up the survey with virtual or in-person focus groups to get a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of what is most important.
3. Analyze the data. Dig into the internal and external survey and focus group results. Marry the quantitative and qualitative data to conclude what your authentic offerings are and what your internal and external audiences desire. You may want to slice the data in a few ways (by skill set, location, generation, etc.) to understand if you have any specific unique value propositions for particular audiences.

Once you have completed the research and analysis, you are ready to develop/update your EVP statement. Your new EVP will more effectively communicate to current and prospective employees your unique offerings and opportunities. It will help you stand out from your competition and connect with the individuals who are most likely to align with your culture and values.

Need inspiration or ideas? Not sure how to build an effective EVP survey or conduct a focus group? Please drop me a note. I would love to chat.