EVP, meaning Employee Value Proposition, is a set of values that you, as an employer, offer to your employees, and use as a magnet for attracting new hires. Besides attracting candidates, your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) can help you engage and retain employees. In this article, you will learn what is Employee Value Proposition (EVP) and how to define it to attract candidates.
Watch the video to learn what is the employee value proposition and how to create it! 🎬
The way we recruit has changed. Compared to just a few years ago, candidates now have far more power during the job search. 💪
According to research as well as HR professionals’ everyday experience, the current job market is 90% candidate-driven. That means you don’t pick talent anymore.
Talent picks you. 💡
In order to make yourself their employer of choice, you have to be able to trigger your perfect candidates’ interest by differentiating your company from your competitors. 🎯
You can do that by presenting your unique Employer Brand that will be built upon a strong foundation of your Employee Value Proposition and promoted through recruitment marketing strategies. How? Keep reading to find out? 🙂
➡️ Get free eBook and learn how to apply the Most Productive Recruitment Marketing Strategies!
Another important benefit of the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is a significant reduction in recruiting expenses. 💰
Imagine a situation where your competitors in the war for talent offer the same salary as your company. What can you do to attract talent over to your company? 🤔
You can either offer them a higher compensation or you can focus on other values you offer as an employer. You can win talent over by emphasizing other relevant components of your Employee Value Proposition (EVP), besides a bigger paycheck.
💡 According to LinkedIn research, when candidates have to give their final answer on a job offer, the deciding factor for them is how your company would impact their career advancement and how stimulating the job will be (both financially and intellectually).
It turns out it’s not all about the money after all. Career advancement opportunities and challenging work are just as important reasons for accepting a job offer as compensation and benefits.
Finally, delivering a promised Employee Value Proposition (EVP) will also help you engage and retain your employees in a highly competitive job market.
EVP, meaning, Employee Value Proposition is the total value an employer offers to their employees in return for their work. Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses everything that employees get in return for their time and effort invested in their performance in the workplace.
💡 It is important to stress out that the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is more than just a combination of compensations and benefits.
A great Employee Value Proposition (EVP) strikes a fine balance between tangible rewards received by employees (such as compensation and benefits), but also intangible rewards (such as interesting and meaningful projects to work on, great company culture, flexible working hours, etc.).
📝 What exactly is the meaning of EVP?
Simply put, the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is a compelling answer to the following candidate’s questions:
“Why should I work for your company instead of somewhere else? What’s in it for me? Why is your company a great place to work? What can you offer me that other companies can’t?”
Contrary to popular opinion, an Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is much more than a big paycheck and a list of great benefits. EVP means so much more! 😃
Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is a comprehensive offering that companies provide to their employees, which has 5 main components:
This component of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses employee’s satisfaction with salary and additional rewards such as bonuses and promotions. In a broad sense, it is an employee’s satisfaction with a whole evaluation and compensation system, including its timeliness and fairness.
This component of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses a wide range of benefits such as paid time off (holidays, vacation and sick days), life and accident insurance and health, dental, retirement, tuition and disability benefits. In a broad sense, it’s an employee’s satisfaction with a whole benefits system.
This component of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses different factors that affect employee’s career stability and a chance for its development and progress, such as opportunities for training and education, professional consultations, evaluation and feedback, etc.
This component of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses different factors that constitute a positive work environment, from a clear understanding of employee’s role and responsibilities to a healthy work-life balance. Important factors are also a sense of autonomy and personal achievement and following recognition.
This component of Employee Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses different factors that constitute a great company culture, which is made up of positive relationships with colleagues, managers and the company’s leaders, and characterized by trust, collaboration, team spirit and support. In a broad sense, this component of the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) also includes alignment with the company's goals and plans with special emphasis on social responsibility.
If you’ve ever tried to define your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP), you know it is a very complex task. 😅
That is why I designed a 4 step guide for defining your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
It will guide you through the whole process of defining your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP) and provide useful tips from recruiting experts.
The first step in defining your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is defining your candidate persona. 👩
A candidate persona is the representation of your ideal candidate, the one you are trying to attract, hire and retain. This persona is formed by defining the characteristics, skills, and traits that make up your perfect hire.
💡 PRO TIP:
In order to successfully define your candidate persona, it is not enough to simply imagine a person that would be a perfect fit for your job. It is crucial to imagine a person who would also be the best fit for your company culture.
Get our guide for defining candidate persona! 
The second step in defining your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is specifying each of its main components with your candidate persona in your mind. 💭
💡 PRO TIP:
To define each main component of your Employee Value Proposition (EVP), follow this Employee Value Proposition (EVP) questions the cheat sheet:
The third step in defining your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is providing convincing answers to the questions from the previous step.
In order to do that, you will have to do a little research. Start by conducting your current employees' research and follow by researching your best job candidates - passive job seekers. 🕵️
1. Current employees’ research
What do you currently offer to your employees in exchange for their time and effort invested in their job? What do they appreciate the most? What else could you do to motivate them?
Use these Employee Value Proposition survey questions to find out! You can get especially valuable information from your top performers. Try to find out what motivates them to give their best each day at work.
2. Passive job seekers research
Passive job seekers are your ideal candidates who are not actively looking for a new job but would be willing to accept a better offer. Your goal is to find what would constitute a better job offer for them.
💡 PRO TIP:
Remember, a better offer doesn't necessarily mean more money. It can be flexible working time, education, opportunities to grow, benefits, cool projects, and many others.
By completing the previous 4 steps, you should have enough information to specify your company's Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
Most employees stop here, which is a huge mistake. ⚠️
In order to use your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) successfully, customization is the key. If you want to attract the right talent for your company and open positions, you need to segment and personalize your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) for your target audience.
💡 PRO TIP:
If you want to fill some entry-level positions with recent graduates, highlight your career advancement opportunities and a fun work environment.
If you’re looking to hire young professionals who are parents, emphasize your child care services and work-life balance components of your Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
Check out this great LinkedIn video on creating the powerful Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
According to this video, an Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is "your brand's promise. It's who you say you are as an employer".
Check it out, it's really worth watching! 🙂
Defining your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) unfortunately won’t mean a thing for attracting candidates if you don’t put it out there for them to see it.
There are many different types of content and communication channels that can be used for promoting your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) at various touchpoints of your candidate journey.
Employee Value Proposition (EVP) promotional content includes:
Employee Value Proposition (EVP) promotional channels include:
There is no magic formula for choosing the right type of content and communication channel that is guaranteed to work for every position and every company when it comes to promoting Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
What will work best for you depends on your candidate persona. If you followed our 4 step guide for defining your company’s Employee Value Proposition (EVP), you already have a clear understanding of the type of content and promotional channels that are most appealing to your candidate persona. So go on and utilize it to promote your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) in the best possible way! 🙂
