Why employer branding deserves continuous attention
Caring for talent must be a strategic focus on the minds of every manager in the organization and part of the long-term vision. At Nextview Consulting, we have taken that advice to heart. 'Designing better business' and 'creating a positive impact that inspires' sounds good to the outside world, but also has to match the experiences of our people, customers and partners; our Director Growth & Talent Esther Bakker agrees. "This is not marketing. This is what we do. This is who we are."
At Nextview Consulting, we have been well regarded by clients, partners and colleagues for years. But, as Esther tells it, at the same time our company was far too modest when it came to talking about ‘doing good’. Working with a clear purpose, dedicating yourself to good causes, the focus on making a positive impact: for us at Nextview, it felt obvious. "That is who we are as a company. For us, this is normal. But we have now learned that it's not. It's really worthwhile to actively share what we stand for and what we do in this area. We are proud of that, and at the same time it motivates like minded customers and potential colleagues to work with or for us".
That’s why we decided to record our values, Way of Working and unique company culture and to give it even more attention. In 2021, together with Viastory, we started to 'load' the values of the company. What does 'we work as friends' really mean? And what is 'doing business with our heart'?
A sincere story
Walk the talk. “Our story is genuine and should be felt that way by the people who work with us," Esther explains. "We do this by sharing personal stories of colleagues who spend business time on voluntary projects and support them where we can.”
As a B Corp-certified company, we went a step further last year by joining the goals of the UN Global Compact. This indicates that we take topics such as human rights, environment and labor seriously. "The commitment that we express with this is in line with our core and challenges us every day to do things better than yesterday. It gives direction and hopefully we inspire others to do the same."
Happy message
Esther regularly talks to our colleagues who have just started at Nextview. "People tell me that they are pleased (and sometimes even happily surprised) that the stories they hear from everyone in the recruitment process are so similar. And now that they are at work, they also really feel what Nextview stands for."
That's what you want as a company. Employer branding is only really successful when there is not just one single sender proclaiming the good news over and over again. If our people share their positive experiences, then the mission is successful. "Our colleagues are our ambassadors. Their stories are much more powerful than messages coming from HR”.
The positive feedback from our new and existing colleagues is substantiated by good figures. Where many companies struggle in the battle for talent, Esther is positively surprised by the relative ease with which we are able to bring in new talent. In 2021, almost 50 people started, this year already more than 20. And that on a total of almost 150 employees. Also the retention of talent is going well. "Luckily, turnover is relatively low and we are doing everything we can to keep it that way."
Leaving nothing to chance
But even in periods where things are going well, we’re not losing focus on the subject. Recently, we have hired someone to structurally work on employer branding. Her task is to spread the word of Nextview’s company culture further and to monitor the balance with how colleagues internally experience it. "That balance is pretty fine with us at the moment, although not something we are always consciously working on", Esther explains. "However, we believe that attracting and retaining people with the help of employer branding deserves continuous attention. Based on a vision and a well thought-out plan."
The launch of our Nextview Manifest is a crucial part of this plan. A manifest that leans on the company's values and principles and that steers behaviour based on leading by example. In addition, we do our best to create benefits that make it attractive to work for Nextview. Benefits that are fully in line with our company's culture. "Think of extra attention on diversity and inclusion, providing the best facilities, partnerships with charities, choice of mobility options, working from home, flexible hours and development programmes in addition to the regular personal training budget", Esther lists.
Being happy at and with your work
One of our well-received benefits is the unlimited holidays. At first glance that may seem exciting to offer as an employer. "We give the freedom to our people to organize their own work life balance. This is very much appreciated and the execution of this benefit works out tremendously fine."
We also focus strongly on the wellbeing of our people. "For us, it is important to make and keep our people happy," Esther emphasizes. "We are a fast growing company. That offers many opportunities but also requires us to take good care of each other. To have attention on both physical and mental health. To stay close to one another we link everyone to a senior talent coach and a buddy, and we reimburse part of the gym costs." In addition, online and offline events are organized regularly. During the past corona-period we offered online sports sessions twice a week.
Next to HR's focus on wellbeing, a group of colleagues under the name Mood Ministry is active within the company. "They collect data on how everyone is feeling which helps us to identify what can be improved" says Esther. "They organize activities and create just another link from the people to HR. I’m pleased to see their enthusiasm and how well their initiatives are appreciated by everyone.”
All in all, all these efforts have paid off. We have been Great Place to Work for 6 years in a row. "We just heard that we are Best Workplace again this year! A great achievement and only possible because our people say great things about Nextview," says Esther. In addition to this title, we recently won the Salesforce Equality Excellence Award. "When you receive recognition for all the actions we’ve taken throughout the years, you can only be proud of what we have achieved together" says Esther. "By keeping a constant focus on topics like Diversity and Inclusion, also in the coming years, we create a snowball effect that will have a positive effect on our branding and growth. I’m really convinced of that."