Employer value proposition (EVP) is an articulation of why your brand is unique and how it provides value.

It’s a simple statement that answers a simple question (with a seldom simple answer): What makes your company a special place to work?

Step 1: Complete an Employer Brand Audit

You need an honest and intimate understanding of who you are and what people think of you.

By talking to prospective candidates, current employees, and alumni, you can get a clear picture of your strengths and weaknesses, why people like working for you, and what makes you special.

Step 2: List Your Benefits

This can be a general list. You’ll refine them in the next step. But first, you want to make sure you haven’t left any highlights out.

Don’t try to build an EVP based on what you want to be; new employees will quickly find out they’ve been sold a false bill of goods.

Step 3: Identify Your 3 Main Pillars

One helpful way to figure out what benefits to lead with is to separate them into two lists:

1. What attracts people to your company

2. What makes them stay

Step 4: Workshop Your Rough Draft

Start by writing 3 sentences to describe each pillar. As you start to craft your full EVP, you can mix and match sentences to start to crystalize a single EVP.

Step 5: Refine

Aim to end up with three separate versions of your EVP. Make sure they’re:

1. communicate clear benefits and not overwhelm people with flowery language

2. ask yourself, “Could my competitor use the same EVP?”

3. use language to paint a picture

4. capture your brand voice, personality, and tone

Ways to communicate:

  1️⃣  Incorporate your EVP into your job ads

You can use testimonials, stories and quotes from your employees to showcase your EVP in a more authentic and engaging way.

  2️⃣  Showcase your EVP on your career site and social media

Share your company news, events, achievements and stories that demonstrate your EVP in action.

  3️⃣  Engage your candidates with your EVP throughout the hiring process

You can use your interviews and assessments to showcase your EVP and assess your candidates' fit with your organization.

Give and Get Approach challenges traditional concepts of employer branding and employee value propositions (EVP). Instead of attracting potential employees with an appealing sales pitch, this approach emphasizes the importance of repelling unsuitable candidates to attract the right ones, ensuring a better cultural fit for the organization.

How to Do It:

1. Understand Your Organization's Realities

Start with an honest assessment of your organization's culture, challenges, and the realities of working there.

This includes understanding the demands, expectations, and potential drawbacks of roles within the company.

2. Define the Give and the Get

Articulate the 'Give': Clearly outline what the organization expects from its employees. Challenges they will face, the effort required, and the realities of the work environment.

Identify the 'Get': Equally, detail what employees gain in return, such as growth opportunities, cultural benefits, and tangible rewards. Go beyond basic compensation and include elements of personal and professional development, workplace culture, and community involvement.

3. Develop a Clear EVP

Combine the 'Give' and 'Get' into a compelling EVP that represents a fair exchange of value between the employee and the organization

The EVP should be genuinely reflective of the organization's culture and not just an attractive marketing message.

4. Implement Through Storytelling

Utilize stories from current employees that highlight their experiences with the 'Give' and 'Get'

This could be through social media, your website, and recruitment materials.

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