Employer branding as a response to talent shortage - The importance of balancing the need of employees with employer offerings

Abstract: Repeatedly it has been demonstrated that the specific performance of an individual or a small group of workers have a significant impact on the profitability of a company. Hence, talented workers are vital for companies in order to stay competitive in today’s fierce business market. In addition, in industries where employees constitute the offered product the role of talent becomes even more important. However, as talent is a scarce resource a war of talent has emerged which, in turn, has made it harder for companies to stay competitive. In terms of attracting and retaining employees, employer branding has gained a lot of attention in recent years. It involves how employers position and differentiate themselves from competitors on the labour market. It further emphasizes that employers must understand what their employees value in terms of work. Given that the winners of the war are those companies who manage to address the talent shortage with the most success, the purpose of this thesis is to illustrate how an effective employer brand can help companies engage and retain their talented employees. The design of this research is based on a case study where the specific case represents a company that is operating in an industry where talent shortage is recognised. The findings show that the process of creating an effective employer brand originates from the talent itself and the ability of the organisation to create and offer that the talent want. Since organisations and its employees are different there is not a “one size fits all” solution to how an organisation can develop a strong employer brand. However, the process and the steps included when developing an employer brand are somewhat universal.