HRFuture.net published research recently that gives amazing insight into Gen-Y in South Africa. It showed that 84% of young adults believe the quality of the workplace is either an important or very important factor in attracting, recruiting and retaining them; 97% place importance on the environmental practice of employers; 94% want a home away from home at the office; 62% want flexitime; and 45% want a modern working environment, technologically speaking, as well as in décor. Team work is also valuable for Generation Y although, ironically, most choose to avoid face-to-face interaction.
"Leaders in companies today need to tap into these subtle frequencies or currents, and be passionate and flexible in their approach to harnessing them. They need to create a brand that employees identify with, feel a strong loyalty for, and are willing to give up their precious time for," says Crous.
To empower employers to tune into the needs of this new talent pool, Crous has teamed up with the UCT Graduate School of Business to design a three-day programme that she believes will give those who attend a competitive advantage.
"The New School of Employer Branding will inspire employers to find the 'real deal' between the organisation and the people that work for them," says Crous.
The New School of Employer Branding: Conversations that shift perspectives is being offered by the CRF Institute in partnership with Executive Education at the UCT GSB.
The first part of the programme takes the form of a one-day conference; a whirlwind day of story-telling to inspire and motivate delegates. Topics covered will include a futuristic look at the workforce challenges to come, scenario planning, and HR and marketing strategies; leadership perspectives on mobilising people and their involvement in meeting these strategies; a sports science perspective on creating winning teams; a branding perspective on key lessons for successful employer branding; case studies of top employers; Generation Y and X recruitment, and WEB 2.0 and its impact on workforce planning.
"Delegates will join a conversation between a range of experts on topics like branding, psychology, futurism, economics and social media that will transform the way people think about employer branding and give them the tools they need to build a stronger brand within their organisations," says Crous.
The second part of the programme is an executive education course that looks at branding fundamentals for non-marketers and the practical steps to designing and executing an employer brand strategy for individuals responsible for recruitment and engagement, and custodians of corporate branding.
"This event will assist organisations in not only developing the skills required to build a lasting, flexible yet effective employer brand strategy, learning more about and applying the disciplines of employer brand management practiced by many of the world's leading companies; but also provide the inspiration to get busy in this new and exciting area of business," says Crous.
The course will include insights into the fundamentals of branding; the business case for employer branding; employer brand management, strategy and communication; strengthening the employer brand experience; the ROI of employer branding; and individuals' roles as brand ambassadors.
"For organisations, talent is everything. The better the talent the bigger the competitive advantage, the more they attract partners in business, the more innovative the ideas they generate, and the more successfully they develop newcomers.
"Companies should understand that they can't be all things to all people; that they will invest in people who will leave. But proper employer branding can help to attract and retain talent no matter how brutal the war for talent gets," says Crous.
The New School of Employer Branding runs from 26 to 28 September at The Venue, Melrose Arch, Gauteng. Prospective delegates can choose to register for the conference only, or for the entire programme. For more information please contact Alison Siebritz at the Graduate School of Business on 021 406 1490, or visit www.gsb.uct.ac.za/employerbranding.
