The rise of social media is one of the most important phenomenon of the 21st century. Touching not just our private lives but also our public, professional lives, it has redefined the way we communicate, sell, buy, engage, discover and learn. Marketing professionals have been finding innovative ways to harness this opportunity. Whether it is creating strong viral campaigns using user generated content (Young, 2016) or utilising the reach of Influencers to disseminate information, the writing on the (Facebook?) wall is clear social media is here to stay.
Traditional advertising agencies have evolved their digital marketing arms which earlier focused solely on SEO techniques and banner ads into mini agencies focused on creating consumable (and share worthy) content targeted towards crowd culture (Ogilvy, 2012). The use of social media to establish a strong brand among consumers is the obvious choice for most organisations. But therein also lies an opportunity for HR professionals. The concept of developing the existing brand of the organisation as an attractive employer is fast catching up. It has been described as ‘when principles of marketing, in particular the “science of branding”, are applied to HR activities in relation to current and potential employees’. ‘Whereas product branding considers how a product is represented to customers and corporate branding considers how an organisation is represented to a variety of external audiences, employer branding considers current and potential employees as branding targets’ (Edwards, 2009).
A 2016 survey by Society for Human Resource Management of 410 HR professionals revealed that about 84% of the organisations were already using social media to recruit for various grades. This shows a remarkable shift from 56% in 2011, with LinkedIn followed by Facebook and Twitter occupying the first three positions of the websites used for recruitment. An in-depth reading of the report reveals that social media is becoming integral to recruitment (SHRM, 2016). Another study (Katiyar and Saini, 2015) found that the social media activities of an organisation are positively and significantly related to the intention to apply for a job. It further concluded ‘that organizations can adopt social media strategies as a prominent tool to create employer brand equity and attract the best talent.’
But can social media use be limited to being a weapon in the arsenal of the McKinsey & Co coined The War for Talent? Further, can social media also be used to enhance engagement leading to positive effects on turnover rates followed by overall gains in productivity and profit within the organisation thus leading to a stronger brand? Engagement levels are important indicators of the employer-employee relationship and a healthy relationship has direct benefits. As research shows that ‘Engaged employees are emotionally attached to their organization and highly involved in their job with a great enthusiasm for the success of their employer, going an extra mile beyond the employment contractual agreement (Markos and Sridevi, 2010). As per a paper by Development Dimensions International, Inc, high engagement levels can serve as a competitive advantage and affect business positively (Wellins, et. al 2005).
Highly engaged employees can therefore also contribute to building a strong employer brand. Consider for example, Facebook one of the most widely used social media platform to stay connected to people you know, encourages users to update their employer information in their profiles. The line between one’s professional and public life is slowly blurring. In addition to this, as millennials (highest users of Social Media) enter the workforce, these factors present a unique opportunity for employers (and HR professionals) to utilise social media to strengthen the relationship between employer branding and employee engagement.
A few ideas to achieve this:
Recognition over Social Media Channels: Research has demonstrated that there exists a positive relationship between performance recognition and employee engagement (Kaufman, T. et. al, 2014). Here, social media can provide a wider platform for recognising top performers. Social media accounts of the organisation can serve as a good place to showcase employee achievements. Mountaineers, Sports professionals, Musicians, Stand-up Comedians, Travellers, Writers, Photographers, Volunteers at NGOs – employees that pursue their passions and hobbies while still building a career at the organisation can serve as an inspiration for the entire workforce. The support provided by the organisation also reduces the dilemma of choosing between profession and passion, without sacrificing on either. This also creates a powerful narrative for potential employees who may not want to give up on a stable job but also be able to continue pursuing their individual interests.
Brand Evangelism as form of OCB: Brand evangelists are those individuals who believe in brands so much that they spread awareness about it and convince others to consume it. While the concept of evangelists is not new to marketing, it holds much potential for the field of employer branding. To be able to speak positively about their employer, employees must be highly engaged. Josh Bersin of Deloitte has argued that employee engagement is fundamental to the employer brand (Bersin, 2014). However, brand evangelism cannot be coerced through any means. Therefore, it can be classified as a form of Organisational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) as these behaviors include ‘those gestures (often taken for granted) that lubricate the social machinery of the organization but that do not directly inhere in the usual notion of task performance.’ (Bateman, et. al, 1983). Further, they also have established a positive relationship between employee satisfaction and citizenship behavior. Another study states that there exists a positive relationship between engagement levels and OCB. Social media use of such employees could reflect these behaviors such as ‘checking-in’ (Singel, 2010) to the workplace, sharing of contests, promotion of various offers of the organisation and experiences from the workplace. All of these help create a positive brand image. Instituting a transparent social media policy that delineates the kind of information that can be shared and that cannot will help avoid any leakage of confidential information.
Listen: Social media platforms besides providing a forum to share experiences, can also serve as a place to vent. Various websites, such as Glassdoor.com provide employees a chance to review their employers on various parameters. Being receptive and responding to negative reviews that primarily reflect the concern and grievances of the employees sends out an important message. These website reviews also provide important data points to future employees when they make their decision to join the organisation. Promotion of an open culture within the organisation itself which allows employees to voice their grievances and provides for various fora to address them can help too.
Life at the Organisation: There is often more to working at an organisation than work itself. Providing a glimpse of life at the organisation helps strengthen the employer brand. This in turn can be achieved by keeping employees engaged and social media can provide a tool to showcase what it is really to work at the organisation. This can be achieved through short videos uploaded on non-traditional video sharing platforms such as Instagram and Twitter. Sharing insights from the events at the workplace through blogs, live streaming and live updates can also help create a sense of transparency in the quality of the content being shared.
Using Social Media for Employee Welfare: Social Media tools nowadays offer a wide gamut of instruments to address customer concerns. From instant real time chat support (Facebook Pages) to forums that let customers interact, the possibilities are endless. These tools can be harnessed for the internal customers employees. By using the learnings gained from handling social media to maintaining customer satisfaction, HR professionals can transform how they communicate, interact with employees and solve their concerns.
Conclusion: The rise of social media therefore can be used to improve both employee engagement and employer branding together as well as independently. The possibilities are limitless and some creative thinking grounded in everyday reality can produce amazing results.
Auhtor Information:
Rushikesh Kulkarni “He is a first year student of MA in Human Resources Management and Labour Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. He is the founder of Breakfree Journeys, a travel outfit based in Mumbai specialising in heritage walking tours, outdoor adventures and road trips across India. His published writing can be found at rushikeshkulkarni.contently.com and he tweets @rushikeshgk.”
