For many would-be job hires in the Philippines, getting the right job isn’t just a matter of finding a position that matches their skill sets. It’s also about finding the right company to work for. Company executives know it best—that great things happen when the right candidates and the right employers hit it off. That chemistry can result in heightened productivity for the company and greater overall job satisfaction for the employees. What’s behind that awesome spark that allows company leaders and their employees to do their best work with each other? Part of the answer lies in the company’s culture.
Strong company cultures uplift employees and make them feel like they are part of a functional community. If your company has a clear and well-thought-out company culture, this will entice top talent to come to your doorstep. You can introduce your company culture to the general public through your website, social media pages, or Philippine jobs board postings when hiring new candidates. This will allow you to align early with your ideal employees and start an onboarding process that will acclimatize them immediately. To help you articulate your company’s work culture, especially to job applicants and new hires, here are five useful tips.
Write a Brand Book
Do you currently have a brand book that documents the major aspects of your company culture? If you don’t, now is a good time to start working on one. If you already do, perhaps it’s a good time to revisit its content and see if it reflects your brand’s current direction.
A brand book is a document that establishes what your company has set out to do, what you believe in, and what you want people to remember about your brand. The brand book can serve as a point of reference for your senior employees, especially those responsible for hiring or onboarding candidates. From that document, recruiters can find particular buzzwords, images, or ideas to communicate your brand to those who are yet unfamiliar with it. The brand book doesn’t have to be very long or complicated—in fact, it can take the form of a short PDF or a brief PowerPoint presentation. But you should always have it ready so that you can remember the foundations of your brand—and so that you’re well-equipped to share your brand values with others.
Cite Goals You Want to Achieve as a Company
Another thing you can do to flesh out your company culture is to cite the goals you want to achieve as an organization. What dreams of yours will come true if you have access to the right human resources? Are they dreams to expand your company to other regions? Do you hope to pursue new business endeavors in other industries, or kick off a large-scale modernization effort from brick-and-mortar operations to ecommerce?
You can disclose a general idea of any of these goals in your job listings, during interviews, or during onboarding processes. It would be good to keep these goals at the front and center of all three. That way, from their application to their formal induction as new employees, newcomers can be aware of how they can help your company fulfill its dreams.
Describe the Company Values You Want Your Employees to Embody
As employers, you have the right to be choosy about what kinds of people you want to hire. After all, you need more than the right skills from your employees—you also need the right attitude. That’s why it helps to be clear about your benchmark for finding, and then eventually hiring, the ideal people to work for your company. If you haven’t done so yet, decide on the traits or beliefs that you want employees to embody when it’s time for them to assimilate into your company culture.
For example, say you are part of a digital marketing agency that caters to both local and foreign clients. Your company culture may thrive on values like creativity, openness to communicate, and willingness to work in multicultural environments. From the moment you post to a job listing to the moment you begin onboarding new employees, make sure to reference these characteristics often. Remind both your applicants and your new hires about the people they should be and the values they should practice if they want to succeed in your company.
Update Your Company Website and Social Media Pages to Reflect Your Current Culture
The easiest way to show a glimpse of your company culture in action is to update your website and social media pages. This is where the general public—among them, your potential new recruits—can learn about what your company does and what values it practices.
This can be a matter of having your company’s web developers or social media managers post relevant and up-to-date content. Some examples of web content that can showcase your company culture are blog articles about your community, videos commemorating your company’s achievements, or short company trivia posts. These will give newcomers an idea of how you demonstrate your company values—and hopefully get them excited about being part of your company’s culture.
Give Opportunities for Candidates and New Hires to Engage Your Culture
Lastly, make sure that it’s easy for candidates and new hires to learn about your company culture during their first experiences with your organization. Encourage them to share their first impressions of your brand, to ask questions about your company culture, and to imagine how they will fit into their new working environment.
After you’re done with the requisite interview questions, you can reserve time to entertain applicant’s queries about your work culture. Alternatively, you can encourage more detailed questions during the onboarding process. Just remember that you don’t have to do all the talking about your company culture—it’s good for newcomers to engage you about it, too.
What kind of company culture do you want to foster, and how do you want to keep it alive among older employees and new recruits alike? These are the questions that you should answer when introducing fresh blood into your company. If you have a clear idea of what you want your company culture to be like, you can ensure that it shines through in your employees. Here’s to finding a new crop of talents, and seeing them do great things for your company!