Empowering employees to advocate for the company’s brand is key to building credibility. A truly inclusive employer brand also extends to an accessible, unbiased recruitment process and ongoing accountability through measurable outcomes – ensuring that diversity is embedded in both culture and practice.
That’s something David Burke, global head of talent acquisition and employer branding at Workhuman strives to foster daily.
Workhuman has more than 1,000 employees globally, with about 500 in Dublin. Staff work in diverse ways, including full-time in-office, hybrid or fully remote, depending on the needs of their departments or teams.
“Our people are at the core of what we do, and our goal is to uplift them,” says Burke. “We are incredibly proud every time we are awarded a [Great Place to Work] certification, including some notable moments over the years with high placements in the category lists ... As an industry benchmark it speaks volumes for how truly great Workhuman really is.”
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On top of benefits such as healthcare, generous time off, wellness stipends, professional development, fully paid parental leave, competitive salaries and a commitment to flexibility and work-life balance, it fosters a “culture of appreciation”, he says.
“We don’t just provide recognition programs to some of the world’s biggest companies, we are superusers of our own products. Our Spark recognition program makes it easy for employees to thank each other for their hard work or celebrate personal milestones like a new baby, buying a house or even the many new pets that joined our humans' households through the pandemic years. We use our recognition program to celebrate the whole person, not just their work contributions,” he explains.
“This helps people truly be seen and boosts their sense of belonging and connections to those around them, enhancing our culture.”
These messages of appreciation come with reward points that can be spent in its global ecommerce store – it operates across 193 countries in 40 languages – adding an anchor point to the moments of recognition, and giving employees additional monetary benefits.
“All of this helps create a workplace where people feel valued, happier, and more engaged, making Workhuman a place where people want to stay and grow,” says Burke.
The company is clear about its brand values. “Central to everything we do at Workhuman is our mission to ‘Make Work More Human’. We are focused on fostering human connections, promoting recognition and celebrating our humans for their contributions. When recognition is done right, people feel valued and connected which has a direct correlation to increased engagement and belonging. Our culture of recognition helps to create more meaningful bonds between our people and the organisation.”
Among its core values is innovation, which, he says, encourages creativity and determination, and helps to attract what he calls “forward-thinkers”.
Teamwork, another brand value, ensures employees feel connected and valued in a supportive environment, he says, while customer respect “gives purpose by creating meaningful moments that drive success”, he explains.
“Urgency inspires excitement and enthusiasm for new opportunities. Quality promotes timely, impactful decisions, while respect for all celebrates diverse perspectives. These are pillars which we lean into when we communicate who we are and how we work to current and future employees. All these help us foster a connected and engaged workforce, that has a sense of purpose with their work and feel valued by their contributions on the day-to-day.”
The proof is in the pudding. The company has a 93 per cent offer acceptance rate, and a low attrition rate of just 14 per cent, both figures are consistent year after year. “It shows that our culture messaging aligns well with the experiences of candidates and employees alike,” says Burke.
Getting it right is not about slick marketing videos. “Consistent, positive experiences are far more impactful in solidifying our employer brand than a polished but inauthentic video campaign, which can harm credibility if it doesn’t align with reality,” he points out.
“We prioritise authentic communication of our commitment, values, and employer brand. It’s crucial that everyone, whether an employee or a candidate, sees these values in action during every interaction. Each touchpoint, recruitment outreach, interviews, onboarding, or beyond, is an opportunity to showcase our culture.”
Inclusive culture
Strong employer branding has been a foundation stone for the success of AbbVie too. The global biopharmaceutical company employs approximately 2,900 people across six locations in Ireland.
Alongside five manufacturing facilities in Cork, Dublin, Sligo and Mayo, two offices in Dublin serve the needs of the company’s commercial, supply chain and operations activities. The company, which was established in 2013, employs more than 50,000 people worldwide.
“Culture remains a differentiator for AbbVie, and we continually engage with our employees to ensure the that high-trust, inclusive culture we have developed since our inception continues to evolve,” says Michael Gallagher, site head at AbbVie Manorhamilton Road, Co Sligo.
“We invest in our people through robust learning and development, meaningful benefits, and a commitment to creating a space where everyone thrives. As a result, we have been named one of Ireland’s best workplaces for the past 12 years ... And we’re not done, because continuous improvement is a way of life at AbbVie.”
A strong employer brand has helped drive success at multidisciplinary building consultancy ORS too.
The business, which is more than three decades old and has offices across the country, employs more than 100 people. It has seen particular growth in recent years, fuelled by a string of acquisitions.
In terms of recruiting and retaining talent, one of the biggest feathers in its employer branding cap is its support for hybrid working. “We’re very big on hybrid working. Indeed, our managing director, John Brennan did an MBA in 2017 and his dissertation was on hybrid working, so had an interest in it even before the pandemic,” explains Rachel Murray, director of people and brand at ORS.
“Today hybrid working is an important part of how we attract and retain talent,” she says. “It also allowed us to start hiring people that weren’t close by our headquarters in Mullingar.” That widening of the talent pool has paid dividends.
Bringing people from different locations and disparate teams together for various regional events, such as breakfast mornings, helps ensure a collegiate and inclusive ethos, while a desk booking system ensures people can work in a location that suits them best, all of which helps make it an attractive employer, a fact reflected across its high Great Place to Work survey scores.
“Being hybrid helps us retain talent,” explains Murray. “People really respect having the freedom to choose. It’s about finding the right work life balance, which is very different for each individual depending on their circumstances.”
ORS’s commitment to hybrid working won’t waver. “People don’t want to be in an office five days a week,” she says. “And we also offer things like flexible working, so you can start earlier or later in the morning. It’s about building trust and respecting people’s time.”
Strong recruitment policy
Thanks to close analysis of key performance indicators, senior management can see it works. A strong recruitment policy, which includes interviews for technical skills, experience and cultural fit, are also vital “It’s really important that the people we get understand the business and are a good fit. Because not everyone is a good fit for hybrid working. It has to align with your life,” she says.
Once in, good communication ensures everybody in the business understands the trajectory it is on, and feels fully vested in its success, she adds.
And she knows these policies are all working because the calibre of CVs coming in has risen enormously. What’s more, many candidates come via employee referrals, which proves staff feel fully vested in the company and its continuing success.
It’s a winning formula all round. “It sounds cheesy,” she says, “but the truth is if you have happy people, you have happy clients.”
Check out more on boosting your employer brand with Great Place to Work at greatplacetowork.ie
