Retail giant bolsters employer branding

A major retail firm which pioneered employer branding within New Zealand has confirmed that it is investing yet more resources into the discipline.

The Warehouse Group – one of New Zealand’s largest employers – said it will be recruiting its first employment brand assistant in order to support employment brand manager, Leslie Taylor.

“The Warehouse Group was one of New Zealand’s first businesses to create a dedicated employment brand manager – my role – and the need has now intensified with multiple brands to look after,” Taylor told HRD.

The company currently has over 20 brands to its name – including Warehouse Stationary, Noel Leeming and Torpedo7 – and has more than 12,000 people on the payroll.

First introduced in 1990, the concept of employer branding has been around for some time but has gained significant traction in recent years.

“When I first started in my role, there were only two other people within New Zealand who were also doing employment brand,” reveals Taylor. “Fast-forward to 2017 and there are eight people within Auckland alone who are in dedicated employment brand roles.”

Taylor says the uptick comes as employees increasingly seek out companies with a strong culture or clear purpose which matches their own priorities.

“Data shows internationally that more and more people are looking for purposeful work and especially we see that come to the foreground with our millennial candidates,” says Taylor.

Taylor also says the added investment in employer branding will help the company attract the right people to the right brands and the right roles.

“I want to ensure we’re giving an honest representation of what it’s like to work in each of our brands because authenticity is an important part of employment branding,” she told HRD.

“Giving a realistic preview of what it’s like to work within our brands is an opportunity for candidates to either choose to join us or self-select themselves out.”