Category Archives: Employer Branding

All employers have a brand; some are intentional, others are by default.

Online Customer Relationship Management In Action

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It was driving me crazy.  Norton, my internet security provider, was blasting me with pop-up ads for other products. It’s not like you can ignore a Norton pop-up.  You have to read the message to know if you’re being warned of a potential breach that requires action.  No amount of research helped me stop those evil little yellow boxes from appearing on the screen. Then I remembered the great results I’ve gotten from Twitter in the past.

So, as a last resort, I decided to tweet about it.  Here’s what I wrote:



Norton responded!  So I launched my challenge:

After several more questions from Norton Support, they came up with a solution that worked instantly. I have just had 2 full days with no pop up ads. And I’m feeling a lot more loyalty toward my internet security provider. When it comes time for the annual renewal I’ll remember that Norton is out there listening and offering solutions.

This is not the first time I’ve had a great customer experience via Twitter. Last week during a presentation to the B.C. Career Development Association, I used a humourous story about Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee to illustrate how online connectedness is becoming the new basic business standard.  You can read the story here.  This got tweeted by one of the attendees and resulted in some interesting banter the next day with the Vancouver Airport and WestJet — both of whom were monitoring and engaging in customer conversations on Twitter.

Now, if I could just figure out a way to eliminate those irritating Netflix pop ups.  Wish me luck!

How Can I Win In This Job?

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If you’re hiring right now, applicants should be able to expect a clear and succinct answer to that question.

Many recruiting plans go off the rails late in the process when the hiring company suddenly realizes they haven’t invested sufficiently in front-end planning to ensure they’re looking for the right skills.

Try asking that question the next time you’re in a planning session.  “How will the successful candidate win in this job?”

Crystal clear position objectives are measurable.  They’re black and white.  Detailing them before you advertise will simplify the recruitment process, ease onboarding, and increase retention and morale.

It Isn’t Your Grandfather’s Workforce Anymore

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Social media has thrown employers and workplaces into the limelight.  How?  Workers are using social networking to share their employment experiences.  Even people you interview and don’t hire are invited to rate your hiring process.  You can see this for yourself at GlassDoor.com.

Candidates have become savvy shoppers when it comes to choosing their next job.

Employers should regularly check out their employment brand by searching for comments about the company on Twitter, Glassdoor.com, Facebook.  Use Google or Bing to search for comments about your firm.  This will help you gauge the temperature of your employment brand.

The opportunity here is to form a community around your employment brand.  Invite comments and online discussions – and then use the conversations to build on your brand.  You need to showcase your work environment and the career opportunities you offer.  After all, it isn’t your grandfather’s workforce anymore.

Is Autocratic Management Stifling Passion in Your Company?

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Many companies undertook a more authoritarian management style to better weather the economic pressures of the recent downturn.  Now that the economy is showing signs of improvement, it’s time to loosen the reins and invite creativity and passion to fuel us toward greater productivity and accomplishment.

The table below compares the old command and control style management to a leadership style that ignites passion by leading people toward a common goal rather than enforcing compliance to top-down edicts.

Symptoms of an Autocratic Organization Evolved Behaviours Seen in High-Performance Organizations
  • Communication is generally downward.  Feedback is either not sought, or is invited only at certain times of the year.
  • Regularly initiate upward communication streams; encourage a fresh stream of new ideas.
  • Conflicting viewpoints are met with sarcasm or disrespect.  This keeps the autocracy intact by teaching others to refrain wherever possible.
  • Grow and mentor the organization’s emotional intelligence (EQ) and leadership quotient by inviting respectful debate and disagreement.
  • Tell the rank and file they are concentrating on the wrong things if they are coming up with new ideas.  Innovation is guarded by a small group of people.
  • Identify areas where more authority can be shared.  Make it ok to make mistakes – even celebrate mistakes as attempts at innovation.

Recommended reading:  Jack Welch and the 4E’s of Leadership (Jeffrey A. Krames)

Execution – The Discipline of Getting Things Done (Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan)

Good to Great (Jim Collins)

3 Things You’re Missing on Twitter

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This post is dedicated to those who think the only thing people do on Twitter is report what kind of sandwich they had for lunch.  Instead of pulling out my hair every time I hear this line, I decided to showcase what you’re missing.  It’s way more polite and I’m too vain to go through life with random bald patches.

Connections with lifelong learners

Meeting these people is the reason I participate.  Sometimes their tweets contain a link to online material – sometimes they’re just a short, provocative thought designed to get the mind turning.  They enlarge my perspective and introduce me to other great thinkers and learners.  Here is a sample:

Accessing help from the Twitter community

Everyone needs assistance as some time.  Are you looking for a job?  Do you need help finding an apartment in a certain neighborhood?  Have you just received a medical diagnosis and wonder what community support might be available?  Tweeps (Twitter people) are tireless sharers.

Building your business

If you’re in business and you’re not using Twitter to listen to your user community and engage in two-way conversations, shame on you.  That’s like discarding customer demographics data because you don’t like the way the text is formatted.  I’m not talking about using Twitter to post ads. The opportunity Twitter affords is that of building a community around your brand.  Where else do you get the chance to overhear people discussing their experience with your product or service? Below is a tweet from ING’s CEO, Peter Aceto. I admire the way he regularly engages with his community by listening to them.

So there you have it: my totally biased view of Twitter as a valuable tool.  If you’re looking for me on Twitter, I’m @SWrightBoucher.