“Without a beer tap in the office, beanbags, yoga mats in your breakout area, and a rooftop terrace you will never hire great digital talent…”

That is exactly what a Talent Attraction Specialist said at a London networking event recently… and you’ve probably noticed many job descriptions and articles also list these benefits to entice talent. Benefits and perks definitely appeal, but they are not all you need to attract people to want to work with you.

Our CEO, Jacqui Barratt, recently spoke about this at an Employee Engagement event and said that ‘pool tables and beer fridges, for example, are just surface details and are not sustainable in getting real employee engagement – you’ve got to go deeper’.

We speak to people who are looking for new roles every day so we thought we’d share some of the things people actually care about and want to see when applying to jobs.

Company Values and Purpose

Most companies have values now but it’s important that they’re not just written on your website and that’s it. Values are more effective when people in the office are aware of them and believe in them too. Job seekers are concerned on businesses’ stance on important matters, such as diversity, so it’s vital that you not just say, but do too.

Some people don’t want to just clock in, do their job and clock out – they want to do work that genuinely matters to them. In fact, in Glassdoor’s Mission & Culture Survey 2019, they found that 79% would consider a company’s mission and purpose before applying and half of those surveyed said that company culture is more important than salary when it comes to job satisfaction.

Having meaningful values and purpose helps people feel motivated and excited about what they can contribute to the company.

Training and Development opportunities

LinkedIn’s recent research into attracting and retaining talent found that the most common reason a person leaves an organisation is the same as the most common reason someone joins an organisation: career development, or lack thereof.

So, when you’re talking to talent – show how your company culture and training programmes connect them to their career goals. People have career and life aspirations and want to see if they can achieve them with you.

Positive company culture

We spend the majority of our time at work, so it is important people are happy to come in. It’s all about showing your workplace as a place where people are able to truly be themselves, contribute ideas, and enjoy a good work-life. Highlight your diversity agenda, any CSR activities you’re taking part in, company initiatives, and how your company works, to give your employees an all-round idea of your culture.

Another way to convey your company culture to potential talent is to speak to your current employees and find out what it is they like about the company. Be transparent if you are making improvements on certain aspects, it is positive to hear that you listen to employees, regardless of feedback, and act on it.

Flexible Working

There are many benefits to flexible working for employees and employers. The way we work is changing and companies are starting to adapt. Flexible working is a hotly debated topic, however, there are many proven benefits such as boosting employee morale, reducing tardiness, absenteeism, employee turnover, and enhances your company image. Flexible working appeals to job seekers as it doesn’t exclude anyone from applying – it enables parents or carers to meet demands of family life or means people can work more effectively, in a way that suits them.

This agreement does require trust, but research from LinkedIn has shown that organisations with higher levels of trust and transparency often have higher levels of performance and retention, (therefore reducing turnover and talent acquisition costs). If you decide to try out flexible working, it has to be something that everyone gets on board with from the board down.

Feeling like you need to keep up with the latest office perk to attract talent can be difficult. However, it is more important to focus on the things that genuinely matter to your employees, such as purpose and flexibility, to benefit your company as a whole.

Are you an employer who needs some help with hiring digital talent? Visit our Employer page to submit a short brief and we’ll be in touch shortly.

Looking for a new job? Check out our current opportunities on our job page.