Whether you’re focused on attracting qualified chef candidates or retaining the talent you already have, employer branding can be the make-or-break factor in navigating the hospitality talent market. Surveys have shown that 86% of people would not apply to, or continue working for, a company with a bad reputation — and your employer brand is your reputation among both current and future employees.
So, what steps can you take to cultivate a compelling employer brand? Here are 5 tips to consider.
Employer branding tip 1: Improve your chef candidate experience by making your application process quick and easy.
Applying for a job should take minimal effort. To make your application process easier, remove any unnecessary extra steps, such as asking candidates to upload their CV and then manually fill out their job history. This will improve your candidate experience and leave chef job seekers with a better impression of your company.
Tip 2: Trim the word count on your career page.
Chefs often turn to a company’s career site or their Company Page when they’re interested in a job. Career sites that are brief and to-the-point best convey your company’s culture and benefits — while also acknowledging your chef candidates’ busy lives.
Employer branding tip 3: Shine a spotlight on the benefits that matter most.
Chefs can tell a lot about your company by the benefits you offer, so mention those up front in job postings and on your career site. But be sure to focus on the right benefits. And don’t forget to highlight opportunities that focus on career development.
Finally, include the SALARY or SALARY range (yes we are shouting). The evidence is overwhelming. Popular job websites say that jobs posted on their sites with a salary perform on average 32%-40% better than those without.
Candidates are generally pretty cynical about the real value that will be applied to a job which doesn’t have salary information attached. Application behaviour shows that candidates want to know all the details of the job that they’re about to apply for.
Tip 4: Crowdsource content from your employees.
To keep your employer brand fresh, it helps to regularly put out new and compelling content — and you can do this quickly by crowdsourcing content from other chefs and employees. This helps bring your brand and workplace culture to life in an authentic way – boosting your chances of greater interest in the chef role you are recruiting for.
Employer branding tip 5: Create a better candidate experience by asking for feedback.
When candidates have a bad experience during their recruiting and hiring process, they often tell their family and friends and according to a 2021 report, 35% will share about it publicly online. You can improve your employer brand by asking for candidates’ feedback at multiple touchpoints throughout your recruitment process. Online surveys and the like are great tools for doing this.
Bonus tip!
Send a thank-you note to all your chef candidates, even if it’s autogenerated (and unsuccessful in their application). Everyone loves to be thanked. That’s why it’s a good idea to send thank-you notes to candidates after interviews, whether they’re going to advance in the hiring process or not. You can use templates and autogenerate the notes, to save time. Candidates will think better of your company after receiving such a note, and it will help to build your brand reputation.
Employer branding summary
Building and strengthening your employer brand now can help reduce the time it takes you to fill your chef roles, lower your overall cost per hire, and improve employee retention rates. Small (regular) steps can add up to a big impact, so what are you waiting for!
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And finally..
The industry has changed, but has your approach to hiring chefs?
A smaller chef talent pool and much more competition means it’s vital for every employer regardless of size to utilise the most effective recruitment tools in the market to engage the talent they need.
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