There are a lot of workplace trends we are constantly hearing about. Quiet quitting, the great resignation, unlimited holiday, toxic culture, 4 day week, hybrid working – the list goes on.
It can be hard to tell which ones are important for your organisation and which ones are just LinkedIn fodder for CEOs trying to cause a stir.
However one workplace term you might have heard of – that definitely isn’t a trend – can help you sift through all of these initiatives and ideas. It can also help you understand what is actually going to make a difference to your employees, what matters in your market and how you can add value to your organisation.
And that is an employee value proposition.
What is an employee value proposition?
Great question.
An employee value proposition (EVP) is the framework and approach to building and communicating a benefits package. It is crucial to realise that an EVP is not just a list of benefits on a job description site or something you offer in exchange for your employees coming to work everyday.
It is more important than that.
EVPs will help align business goals and purpose with skills gaps, as well as the conditions of the market. A good employee value proposition should be persuasive for talent but also demonstrate the culture and business personality.
Some examples of what can be included in your company’s employee value proposition:
- Progression and a specific development path included with a role you’re offering
- Thought leaders and innovators that are already part of your team offering coaching or mentoring opportunities
- Strong diversity and inclusion culture
- Insurances, memberships, coupons and discounts that come as part of the remuneration package
- Rewards opportunities for outstanding work
- Flexible working hours and times
What is the benefit of a strong EVP for your company?
A strong EVP will meet the needs and expectations of the workforce, but with some personality and creativity thrown in. The benefits can boil down to three main areas:
Financial benefit:
Working out what’s important to the talent in your market and within your company is the first step of developing an employee value proposition. Firstly, this means you can cut expensive benefits that are not adding any value to your teams but are costing the organisation a lot of money to have in place. For example, underused gym memberships or expensive training programs.
The next stage will be understanding and offering items that do have an impact on your employees. These could be cheaper options that actually cost very little to implement, for example, internal coaching frameworks.
FInally, the money saved on recruitment and retention. Building an impressive EVP can bolster your reputation in the market and with the talent pool, making you a destination organisation.
Team benefit:
Off the back of a smart and strategic EVP, companies’ should see a marked improvement in employee satisfaction. Not only should the framework offer a sense of purpose, but it should also provide direction within roles, communicate the values, beliefs and opportunities of the organisation, as well as financial and individual rewards that engage and motivate team members.
Furthermore, engaged employees that feel recognised and valued are more motivated and more productive as well as contribute to a positive, leading workplace culture. A positive EVP and quality employee relations will build brand advocacy internally, which will help yield buy-in from clients, customers and future employees.
Goals & innovation:
Tying in with the other two core benefits, the long term impact of an EVP is that a business is more likely to meet their goals of growth, innovation, productivity and profitability.
Firstly, this is achieved through the approach of an EVP vs a benefits package. Your goals should align with the package you offer employees. For example, if you are focused on innovating a specific product or service, training and development opportunities will be factored into the offering.
The overall benefit here is simple: happier employees that stay longer at any company, that are given opportunities to grow and learn and are rewarded for their efforts, deliver more for a company.
How do you implement an employee value proposition?
You do not need to know how to implement this yourself. Any business can work with employee value proposition consultants or external HR consultants to get this right.