Becoming An Employer of Choice

I don’t need to tell you that the competition for talent is intense. Many companies continue to turn away customers because they don’t have the people to meet the demand. This was brought home to me anew recently when I got a first-of-its-kind request for a proposal. Instead of helping this client drive growth by creating new value for its target customers, we’ll be helping the firm drive growth by attracting more talent.

While this is an unusual application of the jobs-to-be-done (JTBD) innovation approach, the process is flexible enough to create unique value for any “target customer,” even when those target customers are prospective employees. The “product” they are buying is employment with the firm.

But job seekers don’t really want employment with the firm; they want to accomplish a bunch of functional, emotional, and social objectives through employment such as:

• Grow as a person
• Develop professional skills
• Work with a great team
• Feel appreciated
• Be perceived as a valuable contributor
• Gain financial security
• Etc.

Employers who understand their employees’ objectives and know how to help employees achieve those objectives will attract and retain more talent.

Additionally, because job seekers have to execute a variety of steps to gain employment, employers that help them navigate through the process and remove any friction will further differentiate themselves as an employer of choice.

Reveal needs, create value, drive growth. We can help.