Employee Value Propositions

What is an Employee Value Proposition?

A company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP) answers the employee's and candidate's question, “What can you, the company, do for me?” The Employee Value Proposition encapsulates the company's offer strategy for attracting new candidates and retaining current employees.

In the past, jobseekers asked themselves, “What can I do for the company?”, “Why should they hire me?”. As skilled labor has increased there has been a societal shift in jobseekers becoming more vocal about what they want out of their careers and work-life balance. Jobseekers know that their skills and talents are valued and sought after; allowing them to more choosy so that they can focus on their personal and professional growth through their careers. To combat this, companies have had to cultivate their employer brand as they compete to win the war of attracting and retaining top talent.

The Employee Value Proposition is used to communicate internally and externally. Internally, your EVP is at the core of your company's culture, and what drives many of your employees. Externally, the EVP is transcribed into testimonies, articles and stories that can better express to candidates what the company has to offer them.

How to create an Employee Value Proposition

Creating an Employee Value Proposition is an extensive process consisting of goal setting, gathering feedback from all levels of employees, and a willingness to change for the better. The steps listed below are an overview of the process of creating an Employee Value Proposition:

1. Ask yourself:
   • Why do you want to create an EVP?
   • What are your main objectives?
2. Once you’ve defined your objectives, reformat them into measurable metrics.
   • Months or years down the line you may choose to evaluate the benefits of having spent time and money creating an Employee Value Proposition.
   • Examples of measurable metrics: Reduce recruitment costs & Better retention rates/decreasing turnover.
3. Define your ideal employee personas, you need not limit yourself to one.
   • Your Employee Value Proposition should appeal to those you consider ideal employees.
4. Gather feedback from existing employees
   • It’s important to understand their likes and dislikes about the current company culture.
5. Analyze feedback provided by employees, and ask yourself the following questions:
   • Did the feedback meet your expectations?
   • What areas need improvement?
   • Did it align with the wants & needs of your employee personas created in step 3?
6. Define the elements/pillars that will become the foundation of your Employee Value Proposition
   • Create 3 to 5 offer statements for what you will provide to your employees
7. Use the elements/pillars to write your Employee Value Proposition
   • Your Employee Value Proposition will condense your pillars into one statement.
8. Communicate your Employee Value Proposition both internally and externally