Kelly’s Culture - Insights to Help Revamp your Employee Value Proposition
by Kelly Lewis, Vice President at TurnkeyZRG
For most senior executives, the pandemic showed the critical importance of human capital. CEOs and Presidents walked away with a clear understanding that "businesses don't create value; people do." Yet, as the perception of the pandemic begins to settle, CHROs and HR leaders alike are back to facing the challenges of yesteryear. With such blasphemous questions like "what are you going to do now that COVID is over?" the value and impact of HR are back to being minimized.
In 2015, a Harvard Business Review article leaned on the research by McKinsey to show that "CEOs worldwide consistently see human capital as a top challenge, and they rank HR as only the eighth or ninth most important function in a company." Similarly, Sage People released a new report which shows "87% of c-suite executives say the pandemic has accelerated changes in HR, such as the department having greater influence—but 52% of the c-suite feel these changes are only temporary." Despite C-suite executives' failure to see strategic gaps HR leaders are equipped to tackle, the evolving people agenda will continue to show the commercial mindedness of HR practitioners.
So, to pivot back to the question of what HR leaders will do now that COVID is over, the simple answer is A LOT—especially since the pandemic is not over. HR practitioners are battling the paradox of people with immune issues, who must keep covid in mind daily, with the societal COVID worries easing. However, this article will focus on a strategy designed to battle the Great Attrition – Your Employer Value Proposition.
Between retirements, entrepreneurial endeavors, or switching of jobs and industries, people are on the move. And unfortunately, McKinsey notes, "what we are seeing is a fundamental mismatch between companies' demand for talent and the number of workers willing to supply it." Employers have used traditional levers (i.e., compensation, titles, and internal mobility) to engage people; however, these methods prove insufficient. Moreover, our traditional levers are proven to fall short in the world of Sport compared to other alluring industries, such as Technology and Media.
Globally mobility between industries is high. According to Exhibit 2 (below), 65% of the talent that left their job in the past two years are not returning to the industries they left. This fact illuminates two significant discoveries: first, there is no guarantee that the position can be filled with workers with similar skills as the one that left the organization; and secondly, there is an opportunity to pull in new talent with a unique skill set and competencies to drive the business forward. However, with challenges and opportunities in front of companies, they must understand the perspective of potential employees. Skills and competencies are taking precedence over industry experience, meaning the most talented individuals have a plethora of options. This leaves Sports with a challenging question: how can we ensure our target prospective employees see the value we offer?
Understanding your employee value proposition (EVP) has always been critical. But what exactly is EVP? Your employee value proposition is the collective benefits used by an employer to market what your current employees love about you as an employer and differentiating factors from the competition. While on face value this seems elementary, planning, developing, and implementing a robust employer branding strategy is not easy. To have successful employer branding strategies that showcase your EVP loudly and proudly, one must:
Truly understand who your marketplace competitors are
Identify your company persona
Keen insight into the benefits of working in the organization
Competitors
Within the world of sports, it's easy to assume your competitors are fellow sports teams, tech, or media companies. In reality, each vertical within the business function of teams is not unique to our industry or operating model. Most, if not all, entities have a marketing, finance, and/or an HR division. Indeed, what we are required to do have nuance associated to the industry, but fundamentally and by way of example, marketing competencies, rather social, digital, or experiential, apply no matter the industry, leaving us vulnerable to more than just “like” industries seeking out talent. We know that these companies will more than likely offer significantly amplified salaries and possible title bumps, but do we have the same understanding for the companies in our area?
Persona
Gone are the days of assuming. Companies must acknowledge that history doesn't tell today’s stories; this also includes the identity, desires, and wants of your staff. You can land on your organization's persona in several ways, including new hire feedback, employee interviews, focus groups, and manager feedback. Things to consider are the workforce's demographic (age, location, education, and experience). The primary shared values, motivating factors, and external hobbies and interests. The most important thing to note is that it's equally important to ask the hard questions, like barriers to doing the job, things you would change/stop doing, and an authentic assessment of the work environment. All this data will allow you to understand what it means to be an employee here.
Why should I work here?
At all times, we must plan with the end in mind. When one asks themselves, "why should I work here?" regardless of if you are an entry-level employee or a member of the C-suite, there should be a clear metric of how the company cares for its employees. According to Gartner, the five fundamental elements that make up an EVP are: compensation, work-life balance, stability, location, and respect. Although there are more than five elements, there is something to be said about simply conveying that EVP is more than a paycheck. Here is a list of common EVPs to consider:
Manager Quality
Health Benefits
Compensation
Career Guidance
Social Responsibility
Sense Of Fun At Work
Retirement Benefits
Work-Life Balance
Pay For Performance
Company Stability
Team Quality
Remote-Friendly
Leadership Development
Internal Advancement
Robust Learning And Development
Now, it's not enough to state buzzwords to attract talent. These proclamations must come to fruition in the everyday lives of your employees. Let's take the concept of investing in your employees. Many organizations say these things, but few often outline how they bring this theory to life. Does your organization offer as much or more as a leader in this space, HubSpot?
Other examples include:
&Pizza: an American fast-casual pizza restaurant chain across the Northeast. It offers a unique "No Ceiling" policy to employees. They explain that policy: "A strict No Ceiling policy means there is no limit to how high you can go. We don't see &pizza as a job, but as a career. And we don't see a person as a mechanized robot with a set of limitations destined to fill a certain role; we see you as YOU. An individual. Who you are now, and who you want to be. So, start your journey today, and see just how far you can go."
This EVP is unique for its industry and stands out amongst its competitors because the restaurant industry often has career growth limitations and high turnover. If that wasn't good enough, check out some additional benefits they offer.
National Basketball Association has recognized that they are more than a sports entity. "From streaming live entertainment and games to emerging technology and law, to marketing, security, and more, the NBA has positions available for the most passionate and accomplished candidates. Every member of our team serves an important and valuable role. Whether you are on the court, behind the scenes or out in the community, you're helping others experience the NBA like never before." To further emphasize the uniqueness of working in basketball, they have taken to LinkedIn to showcase what it means to be "In the game."
Other honorable mentions of companies showcasing their EVP:
DraftKings, 9/6/22 – Extended Parental Leave
Nike, August 15-20th– Wellbeing Week
When HR is given the leeway to be strategic, magic will happen. Every data point, qualitative or quantitative, will help them develop a clear and descriptive Employee Value Proposition., ultimately landing on a statement that can easily be shared with employees, new hires, and candidates. An EVP statement allows companies to communicate the value and culture the company intends to provide. Research by Gartner shows that organizations that effectively deliver on their EVP can decrease their annual employee turnover by close to 70% and increase new hire commitment by nearly 30%. If HR is to act at the organization's heart, they must know what makes it beat and how that impacts the greater body at hand.
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ABOUT TURNKEYZRG
Founded in 1996, TurnkeyZRG is a highly specialized talent recruitment/executive search firm filling C-level, senior-level and mid-management level positions throughout sports, entertainment and media. Over the past 25 years, TurnkeyZRG has filled more than 1,400 positions throughout sports, entertainment and media. TurnkeyZRG helps teams, leagues, stadiums, arenas, theaters, college athletic departments, events, sponsors, agencies, media companies, private equity companies and other clients identify, recruit and hire the very best management talent. Turnkey now benefits from ZRG’s global footprint, full array of industry practice groups, data-driven, analytical search tools, and technology investment in changing the way executive search/talent recruiting is done. TurnkeyZRG becomes a tech-enabled disrupter of the prior executive search model. For more information about TurnkeyZRG, visit www.turnkeyzrg.com.