Two weeks ago, we discussed your company’s hiring brand and why that is important. Last week we talked about the employer value proposition (EVP) and offered some brainstorming tips. If your EVP is not strong, your next step is to take the results from your brainstorming exercise and punch it up.

Your company EVP will be unique, but should focus on these five areas, in order of importance:

With your EVP complete, here are some ways you can use this to attract, land, and retain top talent in an extremely competitive, candidate-driven environment.

If you have stayed with us through this hiring value proposition trilogy, here is where your efforts will pay off. When you are interviewing the rock stars that every company is trying to get, you will use all of this in closing the deal. These candidates will almost certainly be interviewing with other companies — quite possibly your competitors — and the EVP will differentiate you when the candidate makes his or her choice on which organization to join.

The candidate also will probably receive a counteroffer from his or her current company, but that counteroffer will be financial. Remember that it was the least important category in establishing your EVP, partly because it is the most difficult area in which to compete. There will always be someone willing to offer a higher base salary, but they will not be able to match your culture, career path, and work environment.

About the author

Paul Sturgeon is CEO of KLA Industries, a national search firm specializing in plastics, packaging, and polymer technology. If you have a topic you would like to see discussed, a company that is growing, or other ideas for this blog, e-mail Sturgeon at [email protected].