The State of Employer Branding

A global report on the hottest topic in talent acquisition

Contents

Introduction & Big Picture Findings Executive Summary

03 05

Global Results
Conclusion Appendix I: Results by Country Appendix II: Results by Industry Appendix III: Results by Company Size

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21 23 30 31

Introduction
Employer branding is the new black. Articles, white papers, and conference panels are popping up everywhere while discussions and debates take place daily in the hallways, conference rooms, and executive suites of companies around the world. Strong competition for knowledge workers in particular and the proliferation of social media have augmented the importance of employer reputations in acquiring talent, particularly for the 80 percent of the labor market who are passive candidates1. Whether or not a company is considered a great place to work can make all the difference in attracting and retaining this top talent.
The hype isnt just fueled by large corporations or household name brands: employer branding is a hot topic among companies with 100 employees or 100,000, from Canada to India and everywhere in between, and regardless of industry. So whats really going on, and what are companies doing about it? We took a closer look at employer branding as part of our third annual Global Recruiting Trends Survey. Our large and diverse sample of over 3,000 talent acquisition leaders means our results are packed with powerful data points and interesting insights for just about everyone.

The Big Picture

Employer branding is seen as important everywhere; 83 percent of global recruiting leaders agree its a critical driver of their ability to hire top talent.

Over half (51 percent) of companies have increased their employer brand investment in 2012 and a further 40 percent have maintained their spend.
Talent Acquisition is often at the helm, leading or coleading employer branding 61 percent of the time. While career sites are viewed as a most effective employer branding vehicle, viral channels including word of mouth and online professional networks play a significant role in building a companys talent brand. Despite the importance of employer brand, almost half do not have a proactive strategy, and only one-third say they regularly measure employer brand in a quantifiable way.
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Executive Summary
TA leaders know employer branding is important and are investing more but strategy, listening and metrics are often missing
1. AWARENESS
TA leaders say employer branding is key to hiring success and an important long-term trend.

2. INVESTMENT & ORGANIZATION

Companies are starting to invest more in employer branding, with TA leaders often directly responsible.

3. DELIVERY
Effective employer brand delivery occurs as much through viral channels as via company-controlled ones..

4. STRATEGY & MEASUREMENT

Many companies are not adopting a strategic approach and even fewer are measuring for success.

83% agree that an

employer brand significantly impacts their ability to hire top talent, and 69% consider it a top priority for their organization. The #1 action that TA leaders are afraid competitors will do is invest in employer brand, and lack of employer brand awareness is considered one of the top three obstacles in recruiting. Globally, upgrading employer branding is considered the second most essential and longterm trend in the industry.

A whopping 91% of
companies are investing more or the same in 2012 compared to 2011, primarily due to a greater awareness about employer brandings impact. While the increase is a step in the right direction, it hasnt been enough to date: only 39% of TA leaders report that they have the resources needed for success. 61% of TA leaders have a primary or shared employer brand responsibility with Marketing or Corporate Communications, with coownership (39%) the most common structure.

78% of TA leaders view

their company website as their most effective channel for employer brand. Of the remaining highly effective channels, only one traditional job boards is fully controlled by the company. Instead, employer brand is coming to life in channels that companies influence without controlling: word of mouth, social professional networks and general social media. These channels have the benefit of touching passive candidates in ways that company-controlled channels usually do not.

Only 54% of respondents

have a proactive employer brand strategy. 53% claim to have a good understanding of how their employer brand varies by different talent populations. Most companies are not listening to the appropriate stakeholder mix: only 37% regularly survey new hires and even fewer (32%) regularly survey candidates. Measurement is the key area of weakness. Only 38% measure their brand relative to the competition, and just 35% prioritize their spend to shore up key weaknesses.

Methodology
Surveyed 3,028 recruiting professionals globally with a LinkedIn profile
All respondents: work in a corporate HR/recruiting setting represent an even mix of small, midsize and large enterprises have at least some budget authority focus solely or primarily on recruitment

Respondents by country:

UNITED STATES 755 CANADA 299 BRAZIL 226 SPAIN 100 UK 334 ITALY 99 GERMANY 97 NETHERLANDS 226 NORDICS 113 INDIA 255 AUSTRALIA 280

High awareness of employer brands impact

Talent acquisition (TA) leaders are highly aware that employer branding is critical to hiring success

83%
Agree that employer brand has significant impact on ability to hire great talent

Large organizations lead the way in prioritizing employer brand, but smaller companies are catching on
Prioritization of employer brand (by company size) Top 3 long-term trends in recruiting professionals (by company size)

< 500 Employees

67% 70% 67% 78%

< 1,000 Employees 1. Utilizing social and professional networks 2. Upgrading employer branding 3. Finding better ways to source passive candidates

501-1,000 Employees 1,000-10,000 Employees

> 10,000 Employees

> 1,000 Employees

69%
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Agree that employer brand is a top priority for their organization

1. Utilizing social and professional networks 2. Finding better ways to source passive candidates 3. Upgrading employer branding

Employer branding is a top priority for companies worldwide

TA leaders who agree employer brand is a top priority (by country)

69%
GLOBAL AVERAGE

UNITED KINGDOM

UNITED STATES

NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

77%

75%

75%

74%

73%

71%

70%

69%

68%

64%

61%

47%

Significantly more INDIAN organizations prioritize employer brand

Significantly fewer GERMAN organizations prioritize employer brand

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GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

ITALY

In fact, employer branding rises to the top, regardless of the question

Top choices to attracting the best talent
1 Competition 2 Compensation 3

Biggest concern is that competitors will

1 Invest in their employer brand 2 3

Top long-lasting trends

1 2 3 4 5

Utilizing social and professional networks Upgrading employer branding Finding better ways to source passive candidates Boosting referral programs Training recruiters and hiring managers Recruiting globally

Build and nurture strong talent pools or pipelines Learn to use social networking and social media more effectively

Lack of awareness or interest in our employer brand

4 Location 5 Recruiting team too small

4 Improve their candidate experience 5 Improve their referral program

Recruiting team doesn't have the right tools/systems Lack of awareness that we're hiring Inability to effectively use data to improve our approach Quality of talent currently at our company

Further invest in their existing recruiting tools

7 Invest in new recruiting tools

Optimizing your career site Measuring quality of hire more consistently Reducing spend on staffing firms Using CRM technology to manage talent leads

Hire recruiters to strengthen their team Negotiate better pricing with vendors Improve ways to track quality of hire

9 10

9 10

10 Company performance

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Investing more, with Talent Acquisition often leading

Employer brand investment is rising in 2012, primarily due to a greater awareness of its impact

91%
51%
Spending More

Companies that are spending more or the same on employer brand in 2012 compared to 2011

40%
Spending Same

9%
Spending Less

Why spend more on employer brand?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Increased belief in the impact of employer brand 49% Need to raise general awareness 48% Difficulty recruiting quality candidates 47% Increased competition 37% Difficulty recruiting candidates in specific sectors 32%

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TA leaders are organizing for success by partnering with Marketing and Communications

Who owns employer brand?

39%
TA shares ownership

22%
TA has primary ownership

15%
TA has no ownership

14%
TA is a contributor

10%
Company doesnt think about EB

Most common departments that own employer brand outside of Talent Acquisition 1. 2. Marketing Corporate Communications

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Viral channels thought to be highly effective for employer brand delivery

While websites are seen as most effective, viral channels play important role in promoting employer brand
Five channels seen as most effective to promote employer brand

78%
Company website

56%
Word of mouth

46%
Social professional networks

38%
Social media
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34%
Traditional job boards

Almost half already find social professional networks highly effective for employer branding
Organizations that find social professional networks highly effective for promoting employer brand (by country)

46%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

58%

57%

53%

48%

47%

47%

45%

44%

43%

40%

37%

35%

More organizations in FRANCE and CANADA consider social professional networks to be highly effective

Fewer organizations in GERMANY and the NORDICS consider social professional networks to be highly effective

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* Low base size (< 80 respondents)

GERMANY*

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

ITALY*

SPAIN

INDIA

Disconnect between awareness and action

Despite recognizing its power, many companies dont take a strategic approach to employer brand

83% 54%

Recognize employer brand impact Have a proactive employer brand strategy Understand employer brand strength across different populations Feel they have the resources to succeed Measure employer brand strength relative to competitors for talent Regularly survey new hires to understand employer brand perceptions Prioritize spend on audiences where employer brand relatively weak Regularly survey candidates to understand perceptions

53%
39% 38% 37% 35%

32%

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Not many say they regularly measure their employer brand in a quantifiable way

only one out of three

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Conclusion
We know that talent acquisition leaders around the world understand the importance of employer branding. They're increasing investmenteven at a time when doing more with less is the normbecause they see it as a critical foundation for attracting the best hires. However, two-thirds of talent acquisition leaders today admit that they don't consistently and quantifiably measure the health of their employer brands, and almost half say they lack a proactive strategy. Management can't succeed without measurement and focus. In the end, the key opportunity isn't simply to improve awareness of your company as a great place to work, it's to upgrade your strategy: by listening to key audiences and observing how they interact with your employer brand; by assessing how you fare versus your competitors for talent; and by investing differentially in engaging candidate populations where you have the most to gain. This is particularly true in an era in which social platforms have changed the game for where and how identities both corporate and personal form and evolve. There was a time when your employer brand consisted of the messaging that your company delivered out into the marketplace and periodically refreshed. Today your messaging is being consumed, supplemented and amplified or questioned aloud in real time based on talents actual experience with your brand across multiple touch points, including social platforms where prospective talent engages with you on a daily basis. And what often rises to the top now, louder and clearer than your own messaging, is your talent brand your employer brand as seen through the social lens, incorporating what prospective talent thinks, feels and says about your company as a place to work. The good news is that, thanks to the reams of Big Data that are generated through billions of interactions on social platforms like LinkedIn, its easier than previously to assess how youre really doing . And the companies that effectively assess their talent brands will be able to prioritize spend, shore up areas of weakness, build out competitive advantage, and ultimately engage target talent to greatest effect.
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Today your messaging is being consumed, supplemented and amplified or questioned aloud in real time based on talents actual experience with your brand across multiple touch points.

Appendix

Appendix I: Findings by Country

AMERICAS
45% of Brazilian TA leaders
measure their brands (vs. 33% globally,), which is likely why they claim to understand employer brand strength across populations more often (67% vs. 53% globally).

EMEA
France leads the way in gauging stakeholders:
surveying new hires (46%) and candidates (45%) are well above the global averages (37% and 32%, respectively).

ASIA PACIFIC
India is the sole country that
ranks consistently well above average on employer brand prioritization, strategic action, and measurement.

UK Employer brand prioritization is well above

average, as is investment, yet UK TA leaders are average or worse in measuring for success.

Australia is investing in
employer branding more aggressively than any other region (61% citing spend increase versus 51% globally), yet on all measurement metrics, Australia is either average or below average compared to other countries.

Canada ranks second in citing

effectiveness of professional social networks for employer branding (57% vs. 46% overall), otherwise they are in the middle of the pack in investment and organization.

Germany has the fewest percentage of TA leaders

who consider employer branding a top priority (47% vs. 69% globally); TA leads most often (66% co-own or own employer brand vs. 61% globally).

Spanish TA leaders set a high bar for other

countries in calling the employer brand shots, with 72% of TA leaders owning or co-owning employer brand, far above the 61% global average.

US TA leaders report above

average employer brand investment, yet they are significantly below average on measurement (21% survey candidates vs. 32% overall; 31% survey new hires vs. 37% overall).

In Italy, acknowledgment of employer brand

significance is on par with other countries, yet its investment and measurement tend to be well behind most other countries.

Employer branding winner across the board: INDIA

Netherlands TA leaders are well below average in

terms of investing in employer brand and TA owning it, yet they are more likely to measure employer brand and use viral channels such as online professional networks effectively.

TA leaders in the Nordics lag on most dimensions,

except in measuring the health of employer brand (42% vs. 33% globally).
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Australia and the emerging markets lead the way in doubling down on employer brand
Organizations spending more on employer brand in 2012 vs. 2011 (by country)

51%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES

NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY*

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN*

61%

58%

57%

57%

56%

53%

53%

48%

45%

45%

43%

38%

Organizations in AUSTRALIA and INDIA increasing spend more often than the global average

Organizations in ITALY and the NETHERLANDS increasing spend less often than the global average

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* Low base size (< 80 respondents)

ITALY*

INDIA

There is significant geographic variation in Talent Acquisitions role in employer branding

Organizations where TA has total or shared control of employer brand (by country)

61%
GLOBAL AVERAGE

UNITED KINGDOM

UNITED STATES

72%

70%

66%

65%

61%

59%

58%

57%

56%

56%

56%

51%

TA leaders most empowered to drive employer brand in SPAIN and INDIA

TA leaders significantly less likely to own or co-own employer brand in the UK and the NETHERLANDS

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NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

ITALY

Emerging markets lead the pack with the most understanding of employer brand strength by population
Percentage understanding employer brand strength across different talent populations (by country)

53%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM

UNITED STATES

NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

67%

62%

57%

54%

54%

52%

52%

51%

50%

46%

44%

41%

INDIA and BRAZIL significantly more likely to understand their employer brand strength across different talent populations

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ITALY

There is wide geographic variation in measuring the health of employer brands

Quantifiable measurement of employer brand (by country)

33%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

50%

45%

42%

35%

33%

32%

32%

30%

29%

23%

22%

20%

INDIA and BRAZIL more likely to consistently measure employer brand

GERMANY, ITALY, and SPAIN less likely to consistently measure employer brand

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GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

ITALY

Most dont survey new hires to understand employer brand perceptions; wide geographic differences
Organizations that regularly survey new hires to understand brand position (by country)

37%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM UNITED STATES NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

52%

46%

45%

39%

36%

35%

34%

34%

33%

31%

30%

23%

More organizations survey new hires in INDIA and FRANCE

Fewer organizations survey new hires in the NORDICS and ITALY

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ITALY

Even fewer organizations survey candidates; again, wide geographic variance

Organizations that regularly survey candidates to understand brand position (by country)

32%
GLOBAL AVERAGE UNITED KINGDOM

45%

45%

39%

36%

34%

32%

31%

28%

26%

25%

25%

21%

More organizations survey new hires in FRANCE and INDIA

Fewer organizations survey candidates in AUSTRALIA and the UNITED STATES

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UNITED STATES

NETHERLANDS

AUSTRALIA

GERMANY

NORDICS

CANADA

FRANCE

BRAZIL

SPAIN

INDIA

ITALY

Appendix II: Findings by Industry

CONSUMER GOODS
Consumer Goods TA
leaders are ahead of the curve, with 72% having primary or shared ownership of employer brand compared to 61% overall. They are also more likely to feel they have the resources needed for success (48% vs. 39% overall).

MARKETING/PR/ CONSULTING
Marketing/PR/Consulting
are much more likely to have a proactive employer brand strategy (64% vs. 54% overall), and more likely to leverage online professional channels such as LinkedIn (64% of this group cite effectiveness, vs. 46% overall).

HIGH TECH
High-tech TA leaders
(59% vs. 46% overall) are also more likely to use newer communication channels such as online professional networks and social media, and they are above average when it comes to regularly surveying new hires (41% vs. 37% overall).

MANUFACTURING
Manufacturing TA leaders
are just as aware of employer brandings importance as other industries, yet they are much less likely to make it a top organization priority (59% vs. 69% overall).

EDUCATION NON-PROFIT
Non-profit TA leaders cite
the effectiveness of social media more than other industries (47% vs. 38% overall), but they are not yet capitalizing on other lowcost passive candidate channels such as online professional networks (34% vs. 46% overall).

MEDICAL/ HEALTHCARE
More than all other
industries, Medical and Healthcare TA leaders have increased investment in employer brand due to higher awareness of its impact. Yet, the industry is below average in surveying new hires (29% vs. 37% overall) and surveying candidates (24% vs. 32% overall).

FINANCE
Finance appears to be
one of the more strategic industries as more respondents (61% vs. 53% overall) report a good understanding of their employer brand across talent populations, likely due to better measurement: 46% of Finance TA leaders quantifiably measure their employer brands versus 33% overall.

Education TA leaders
consider investing in employer branding to be the #1 competitive threat, more than any other industry. At the same time, they tend to over-rely on company websites (84%) to communicate their brands, resulting in missed opportunities to engage with passive talent. Education TA leaders in particular have not yet fully realized the potential of professional and social networks.

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Appendix III: Findings by Company Size

1. AWARENESS 2. INVESTMENT & ORGANIZATION
TA leaders are larger
companies are more involved in employer brand, with 67% owning or co-owning it compared to 51% for the smallest companies and 61% overall.

3. DELIVERY

4. STRATEGY & MEASUREMENT

Larger companies are
much likelier to have an employer branding strategy (68% vs. 54% overall and 49% for small companies.)

Employer brand is more

top of mind as organizations grow in size; 78% of TA leaders at large companies consider employer branding a top priority (vs. 67% for the smallest companies and 69% overall).

54% of larger companies

consider channels such as LinkedIn effective (vs. 47% smaller) and 47% cite social media as effective (vs. 38% smaller).

Smaller companies still

tend to rely more heavily on word-of-mouth (62% small vs. 49% large), likely due to more limited resources.

Larger companies (51%)

regularly measure employer brand relative to competitors, significantly more than smaller companies do (34%).

Those from smaller TA leaders at smaller

companies recognize employer brands long-term importance; they rank it one of the most essential and long-term trends in the industry, even higher than TA leaders at larger companies. companies report investing more in 2012 due to the an increase in hiring, while those from larger companies are investing more due to a greater awareness of employer brandings impact.

Larger companies (45%)

prioritize employer brand spend on audiences where their brand is weaker, significantly more than smaller companies do (29%).

Large companies are ahead, but SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS are not far behind
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About This Survey

The third annual LinkedIn Global Recruiting Trends Survey was conducted online between May 2012 and July 2012. Recruiting professionals with a LinkedIn profile who opted in to participate in research studies were sent an email invitation to participate. In order to qualify, respondents had to focus solely or primarily on recruitment in a corporate HR/recruiting setting, and have at least some budget authority. Respondents represented an even mix of small, mid-size and large companies. 3,028 corporate respondents qualified and successfully completed the questionnaire. Global statistics are reported as un-weighted averages of corporate recruiter responses from the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Netherlands, Nordics (Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland), Spain, UK, & US. For more information about this survey, please email: research@linkedin.com

About LinkedIn
Founded in 2003, LinkedIn connects the worlds professionals to make them more productive and successful. With more than 175 million members worldwide, including executives from every Fortune 500 company, LinkedIn is the worlds largest professional network on the Internet. LinkedIn offers a full range of solutions to help organizations of all sizes find, engage and attract the best talent. 85 percent of the Fortune 100 use LinkedIn Talent Solutions.

Additional Resources
For employer branding best practices from industry leaders, go to: talent.linkedin.com/employer-brand For a new way to measure your talent brand, see talent.linkedin.com/talentbrandindex

1.

2011 research on job-seeking behavior. For more details see lnkd.in/jobseeker-research

To stay up to date on the latest research and insights from LinkedIn, follow @hireonlinkedin on Twitter and subscribe to our blog: talent.linkedin.com/blog

Copyright 2012 LinkedIn Corporation. LinkedIn, the LinkedIn logo, and InMail are registered trademarks of LinkedIn Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other brands and names are the property of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

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