Lesson Outcome
By the end of this lesson you'll have an understanding of what employer branding is and how it relates in your firm directly to the quality and retention of your employees.
You'll complete an exercise in your workbook which will highlight the individual challenges you may be facing in your own firm and why you may be experiencing them.
Your employer brand is important as it is what differentiates you from your competitors when attracting and retaining those with the talents and skills you need to make your firm successful.
Employer branding is seen as more and more important as the labour market becomes increasingly challenging.
Build Your expertise
By the end of this lesson, you will have used a number of tools to understand how your stakeholders perceive what your firm is like to work for.
This picture is link to a website specifically focussed just on branding - you'll find some best practice examples and more case studies here to build your understanding.
Employee engagement has never been more important
A series of societal factors have come together create an environment where we are all questioning the role work plays in our lives and the balance of power in the relationship.
A combination of an aging workforce, Covid and Brexit have led to a reduction in the available workforce. (suggest we include some of the information or graphics from this link or others - 2022 UK Skills Shortage & Demand By Region - SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk).
The trends and their impacts have been described by industry experts and the media using terms which are starting the become common language:
The Great Resignation – is the name given to the trend of people choosing to quit or change their jobs, or considering doing so in the near future. A significant factor in triggering this has been the work and life changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Quiet Quitting – is where employees effectively work-to-rule, meaning employees work within defined work hours and engage solely in activities within those hours. Rather than leave the job the employee remains but removes all discretionary effort and only does exactly what the job requires.
And accountancy firms have felt this too...
Like most firms, you are probably crying out for your next high-quality team member.
Recruiting and retaining the best people is vital for your firm's future success. Without good people (and good processes), leading and managing your accountancy firm can feel oh-so-stressful, like pushing water uphill!
Whilst is it important to be aware of global and national trends, the accountancy sector and indeed your own firm operates in its own unique ecosystem.
Even within one firm the challenges faced in certain roles will differ and from location to location (if you're in a multi-office practice).
Therefore understanding the specific challenges, you face will ensure you are addressing the right issues rather than just following the crow
workbook exercise
Think about the challenges you have noticed in your business and capture the outcomes in your workbook.
Which challenges have you noticed in your firm?
Considering the list below as a starting point, think about which challenges have you noticed in your firm and capture your thoughts in your workbook
- 1Difficulty in recruiting
- 2Fewer applicants when you recruit for roles
- 3A reduction in skill levels of potential candidates
- 4Higher wage expectations
- 5Differing employee views and expectations of work
- 6An increasing focus on issues such as equality and sustainability
- 7Expectation of differing working patterns
During this lesson
You will have given in depth consideration to how your brand as an employer may be affecting many important factors for the people that are working for you.
Remember, put yourself in their shoes and you will start to get a sense of how changes in your firm could act to encourage or discourage your employee loyalty.
next steps...
When you are ready, move on to the next lesson using the button below.