Here we are, in full on working from home mode. Apart from the odd moment of stir-craziness, the team at Tonic seem to be settling in to this new normal quite rapidly. We're having virtual team drinks at lunchtime on Workplace (with fancy hats), we have a daily meeting with the team and regular team updates and meetings with clients on Zoom. So far so good. 

The conversations we're having with clients seem on the whole to be mainly forward looking and positive, although we're obviously all in the same boat when we try to second guess the future of the economy or the virus - and positioning our businesses accordingly.

It strikes me that most of our clients are thinking about employer brand as a broad business tool, working for them throughout the employee experience (eX), rather than as a recruitment tool alone. Quite different to how it would have been just a few short years ago. Great that the practice and the discipline have evolved so far. 

It seems logical that the employers who think beyond recruitment and consider reputation as the main driver of attractiveness will already be thinking this way, but equally there will no doubt be those employers that only see their EB as a front-end of the funnel tool.

In this very strange business environment we're all working in right now, my money would be on the employers with the wider vision winning as we emerge. 

Why's that? Because reputation is driven by the whole eX, not just the recruitment experience, and that means focusing your internal communications, engagement, care for and motivation of your people - all of which should be driven through the lens of your EVP. Especially if you want to deliver a joined up experience.

Plus, there's likely to be a reduction in recruitment volumes, so if you're only deploying your EB through recruitment comm's, what's happening to your brand in the hiatus in hiring?

What would I do to ensure that an employer benefits from their EVP? I'd think about the following:

• Do I have a handle on our entire eX? If not what is it? Does our EVP inform everything we do?
• Are my colleagues across internal comm's, D&I, engagement and corp comm's aligned? 
• Is our recruitment activity continuing - if so, how are we managing candidates?
• Are we maintaining visibility high up in the recruitment funnel? Can we afford to pause or stop?
• What is going to deliver best value to my business now? Attraction, recruitment, motivation or engagement? How can I impact best there?

None of us can be sure where and when we'll revert to 'normal', but we can be pretty sure that normal won't be the same as it was. We wish you all health and happiness - and perhaps the space in your day to think about eX and your EVP.

If you'd like our help investigating what that could be, let us know.