hiring engineering talent? here’s why employer branding matters.

How strong is your current employer brand? Engineering organizations struggling with recruitment need to address this crucial question first and foremost. Unfortunately, for many, it’s one of the most difficult questions to tackle.

The good news is we’ve got insights to help you navigate, diagnose the state of your current employer brand and make changes that will translate to the outcomes that matter.

Ultimately, as you’ll see, the critical significance of a robust employer brand is almost impossible to overstate.

why your employer brand makes a difference

Just how important is a strong employer brand for engineering employers? Stats like the following should leave very little doubt about the answer:

• Nearly nine out of 10 professionals say they won’t apply to or work for a company that has a bad reputation.
• Research shows that the benefits associated with leading employer brands — work-life balance, opportunities for professional development and more — are among the top reasons engineering professionals choose to remain with their employers.

In other words, from recruiting to hiring, retention and more, employer branding impacts key outcomes. And given how readily all of those things translate to bottom-line value, employer branding can easily be the make-or-break factor in determining the overall success of engineering employers.

how engineering firms can improve their employer brand

Being known in your sector is key to winning the talent pool, period. So whatever your current level of brand awareness among engineering candidates, there are steps you can take to proactively increase mindshare — and more effectively promote your company to top talent, too.

With that in mind, here’s a simple question: Right now, would you say the majority of skilled engineers in your field know about your company? Alternatively, would they need to do some research simply to learn about your existence?

If it’s the latter, you’ve got some work cut out for you. Here are five straightforward tips to help you get started.

1. connect with relevant local organizations

Working with schools and local communities is a great way of not only connecting with aspiring STEM professionals but also making sure students know about relevant career pathways. Meanwhile, you’ll also be putting your company on the radar for future talent. It’s a win-win for everybody.

2. showcase your company culture

Sharing examples of collaboration, innovation and work-life balance on your website and social media channels can demonstrate a supportive and inclusive work environment. You can also post employee stories, highlighting their achievements and experiences working at your company.

3. offer competitive benefits

Promoting perks and benefits like attractive compensation and flexible work arrangements helps your organization stand apart from its competitors.

4. highlight your company’s impact

Today’s skilled engineers increasingly want to work on projects that matter. Explain the difference your products or services make to people’s lives and how your engineers can make a meaningful contribution.

5. seek out the right strategic partner

Not all employer brands are well-known to candidates, especially in engineering. But you’ll need to do something about it if you hope to drive different recruiting and hiring outcomes going forward.

That’s why you should consider reaching out to a strategic partner like Randstad. We have a large network of engineering talent available on demand, offer flexible delivery models and can rapidly scale up or down alongside your business.

key takeaways

It might seem like there are any number of ways to bolster your employer brand — running a digital ad campaign, for example, might help move the needle, but probably only incrementally.

To truly make an impact, and to deliver on your talent-related goals going forward, you’ll need to go further. Check out our full guide to recruiting engineering candidates for more in-depth guidance:

Our team at Randstad includes expert technical recruiters with professional engineering degrees. We have the experience, knowledge and candidate network to find the outstanding engineering talent your business needs.