I’m a young man. 

24 to be exact. 6 foot 1 (kinda) and a load of fun. Spritely. I’ve got my heart on my sleeve and the world in my eyes. But I occasionally turn 34 on Fridays when working from home. I get an extra 30 minutes in bed, a leisurely shower and my first coffee of the day in my dressing gown. I change my sheets, do my laundry and even go for a run at lunchtime if I’m feeling particularly virtuous. I keep on top of my work tasks — writing some copy, fiddling with a deck and hopping on the odd call here and there. For the last 30 minutes of the working day, I stick my gearbox into neutral and coast into the weekend.

It’s good fun. A cheeky Friday work-from-home day spent in between cups of tea and frilly pink slippers. Would I ever consider doing it everyday? 

Absolutely not.

I have a confession to make. And you have to promise you won’t tell my boss… I don’t actually get that much done when I’m working from home. I get distracted. I spend my time behaving like the trophy husband of a high-flying investment banker. I potter about the place, looking vaguely busy. Is this down to laziness? Perhaps. It’s certainly partly to blame. But, I would actually point my finger at an evolutionary function that lies deep within most of us. 

We’re social beasts. Even if we’re not that wild about shooting the breeze with Tom, Dick or indeed Harry, there’s an intoxicating unity that comes from working in close quarters with others towards a common goal. It’s exciting to divide and conquer, isn’t it? And the truth is, that experience is harder to have when you’re working from home.

If I’m not surrounded by people whose actions remind me of what this is all about, I find it easy to feel disenfranchised with my work.

Or even worse, when I receive a ‘not too sure this line works’ from someone senior in the company. It’s almost impossible for me to not become defensive, whilst also feeling inadequate. Why did it not work? Is that your opinion, or do you have some rationale there? Am I really bad at this?

That’s the beauty of being in an office space. These virtual comments can be quickly followed up by in real life conversations. Real feedback. Real opportunity to get to understand one another and get better at your craft. You allow yourself to have the wonderful experience of meeting someone, thinking about them one way and then having your perception magnificently shifted. You get to see the senior leadership have a slightly awkward one- is-going-for-a-handshake-but-the-other-is-going-for-a-fistbump interaction, making them instantly human in front of your very eyes. You get to experience the feeling of everyone, for no particular reason, taking their headphones off to chat about nothing of consequence. Inside jokes about Diet Cokes. ‘What you got for lunch today?’ Excruciating renditions of Happy Birthday which would only sound appropriate in an abattoir. 

And when you feel like you’re part of a team, you end up wanting your team to win. You have a vested interest in whatever arrives at, and leaves your desk. You begin to operate with care, almost by accident. That’s when you really start to see yourself improve. Your role is a muscle, and the more you exercise it the stronger it becomes. For someone towards the start of their career — when the progress you can make in 6 months is staggering — the results you see in terms of your improvement make everything feel worthwhile.

There’s so much you miss out on by not being in the office — especially when you’re young. And it goes well beyond a drink on a Thursday. Unless you have a child-like dog, or a dog-like child at home (or an actually good excuse) then I see no reason why you wouldn’t go in. Sure, remote working is an easy option, but so’s a meal deal for lunch. Just because you can do your work that way, doesn’t mean that it’s the best for you.

Put it this way — would you rather only Zoom quiz or pub quiz for the rest of your 20s?

Wiser is redefining employer branding and early talent hiring to make work more than just a job. Learn more about how they’re changing the way people think about work here.

Branding is a term that encapsulates so much. And in our day to day, with digital technologies constantly evolving, we are becoming more and more exposed to brands across all types of media. In a nutshell, branding organises image, reputation and voice into something that can connect with the right people. 

There are different types of branding, with the objective being the thing that sets them apart. The type of branding we probably all feel most familiar with, that tempts us to buy that shiny new car, or try out that funky looking beer, is consumer branding. 

Consumer branding is all about creating a strong, recognisable brand that resonates with consumers and helps a company’s products or services stand out from the competition.The goal of consumer branding is to create a positive association in the minds of consumers, which will in turn drive sales and increase brand loyalty.

Companies place a huge focus on consumer branding, sometimes forgetting that getting people bought into a product or service is entirely different to getting people bought into your brand as an employer. Companies are nothing without their people, and in order to attract and retain the right talent, there is a need to look past the consumer brand, towards the type of branding that really turns the dial for prospective employees. 

Two words, eight (plus eight) letters. Say it and I’m yours. 

Employer branding is all about creating a positive image of a company as an employer. It captures the company’s culture, its values, and the benefits that go along with a job there. 

The goal of employer branding is to attract top talent, and to retain current employees by making them feel attached to your mission, culture and proud to work for your company. You need to create an employer brand whose message resonates with the right people, so you find the best people for the job, who will add real value to your team. 

When fighting to find talent, the competition is fierce, and extends way past direct competitors in your industry. A strong employer brand needs to answer the burning question on everyone’s minds in the job-sphere: ‘what’s in it for me’? And it needs to be done in a way that builds a meaningful connection between the employer and the people. 

To create messaging that will pack a punch, you have to think about what makes the pockets of people you’re speaking to different. Your approach should be targeted, letting them know about the most important aspects of your values and culture. And you have to think about the things they want so that you can use your employer brand to get under their skin. 

Understand the things desired talent pools value the most and what an ideal job would offer them, and use that to flex aspects of your unique culture, all while remaining authentic to who you’re. 

Imagine you’re recruiting for a leading company in the beauty industry. If you don’t formulate a bespoke employer brand, the people you’re speaking to when you’re looking to hire will only associate your brand with who you present yourself as to consumers. 

By creating a unique and distinct employer brand, your target audience will extend past the pool of consumers that are interested in your products or services, and towards a much broader group of people that have a skillset, mindset and values that are backed by your company. 

Consumer branding and employer branding are two sides of the same coin, and should exist as symbiotic entities that work together to support an overarching mission. After all, while the consumer brand might show you that flashy new car, talent wants to see underneath the car bonnet, and understand your company on a deeper level. 

Employer branding isn’t only about the message you put out, it’s about where you put it. While traditionally it’s thought that talent checks out the job market exclusively on careers sites, LinkedIn and other job-posting boards, we are seeing the power in producing an authentic view into life at your brand on socials. TikTok and Instagram show life from the inside, and help people understand the essence of what embodies your brand as an employer. The risk is in not investing.

More and more companies are recognising the importance of employer branding because of its impact on the bottom line. The proof is in the pudding. Companies with a strong employer brand have a 43% decrease in cost per hire, which leads to 50% more qualified applicants. And once you get people in the door, there is a knock-on effect on employee retention. Active investment in employer branding has the capacity to reduce turnover by as much as 28%.

Talent waits for no one, get started on building your reputation as an incredible employer today. 

Wiser is redefining employer branding and early talent hiring to make work more than just a job. Learn more about how they’re changing the way people think about work here.