Recruiting, Employer Brand, and Employee Communications, During COVID-19

A crisis is a game of probability and consequence. And while the probability of a viral pandemic isn't as high as you might think, the consequences are tremendous as we're experiencing now. It's essential to understand the impact to your team, your stakeholders, and yourself. You can't control a crisis, but you can control how you respond. The choices you make now about how to manage your candidates, your pipeline, and your employer brand can make or break both your talent strategy and your career.

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"How companies respond is going to define their brand for decades. Not only is it smart to take care of your employees, but it’s also good business."
- Mark Cuban, billionaire entrepreneur

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Take this time as an opportunity to take action. Don't wait to be told what to do. Look to your key stakeholders—from new work from home employees to hiring managers to candidates in limbo—to understand, assess, and act on their needs. Whether you're on a hiring freeze or a hiring binge, you can leverage communications and your employer brand to demonstrate your care, consideration, and commitment.

We are taking your confidential questions 1:1 via our Crisis Response Inbox.
Watch a video message from Susan LaMotte, exaqueo CEO + Founder, on how we work with meaning during COVID-19.
How are Employer Brand leaders responding during this time? Access the results from our latest COVID-19 survey of 80+ employer brand professionals.

While our organizations are consumed with mass communication responses, effects on products, sales, stores, or other immediate impacts, the effects on hiring and talent are often de-prioritized. But that doesn't mean you can't consider the impacts and plan your own actions and response.

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Clear policies: working from home isn't new to us; we're a 100% virtual firm. Effective and clear policies and communication are essential to manage a remote and productive workforce.
Response speed: candidates are more hesitant to make a career move in turbulent times. If you're first to communicate with them during this time, keep them warm and engaged, and demonstrate you're making an effort, you'll gain a competitive edge. If you don't take action, your competitors will.
Spread the message: use your employer brand to amplify organizational messages and actions. It's crucial to ensure the measures your company takes for customers and employees are also communicated to candidates.
The risky allure of 'business as usual': ignoring the situation or waiting to see if it will affect your candidates or your employer brand can lead to others filling the gaps you leave. Candidates will share stories of silence or promises unmet; silence isn't always golden. You have an opportunity to show authenticity and transparency—take it.
Organizational alignment: whatever you do, ensure your employer brand messaging aligns with what the organization is saying. Having marketing and communications on your side is important. They'll be happy you're considering your own audiences and customers since they may not have the time or headspace to support your function and respect and appreciate you more for driving alignment.

COVID-19 Response Resources for HR

Need a primer on what to do and how to plan?

Candidate and Employee Crisis Response Framework: a downloadable worksheet to help you plan how to manage your role and function in a time of crisis.‍
Managing Your Talent Acquisition Role in a Time of Crisis: people at the center (PDF slides)‍‍
Maintaining Your Candidate Experience and Employer Brand: a guide for uncertain times (PDF Slides)‍‍
Five for the Fire, Five for the Future: what to do now, what to plan later (PDF Slides)
‍Candidate Communications: sample templates for key channels
Work From Home Strategy: team guide, planning form, planning form with notes, and form sample templates

Please click on each link to access or contact us for more information.

Need to understand candidate and employee sentiment during this time?

Deploy a custom candidate survey.
Deploy a custom employee survey.
Survey Results: Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the Employer Brand Industry (PDF)

Please contact us for more information.

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Need to create a custom approach to address key issues?

Candidate Experience Strategy: strategy assessment, recommendations, and activation support designed to keep candidates warm, energized, interested, and maintain brand perception.
Candidate Experience Marketing Toolkit: micro campaign to keep candidates informed and engaged through messaging, content, and custom communication templates
Employee Experience Strategy: strategy assessment, recommendations, and activation support to keep employees warm, energized, interested, and maintain engagement
Employee Experience Marketing Toolkit: micro campaign to energize and keep employees engaged through messaging, content, and custom communication templates
Employer Brand Strategy: assessing the effect of the crisis on the employer brand during and after the crisis
Work from Home Templates: access our work from home guide, sample, form, and form+notes templates

Please contact us for more information.

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Need to mobilize virtual recruiting options ASAP?

We have engaged our virtual event platform partner Brazen, to offer pricing flexibility and priority support for organizations looking for virtual recruiting and hiring event support. This platform is a completely self-contained and branded experience that integrates seamlessly into your careers site. It allows for multiple communication modes: video, private chat, and group chat and has an easy to use admin console and content management system.

Potential uses include:

Moving your hiring events online
Connecting with candidates to provide updates and answer questions
Staying in touch or connecting with furloughed employees
Career fairs or re-hiring events
Intern update or Q&A sessions
Virtual onboarding or orientation

Please contact us for more information.

Need insights from the greater talent and HR community?

Latest Pandemic Updates from the WHO (World Health Organization)
Complete List of Who's Hiring/Who Freezing (Live Database)
Comprehensive Coronavirus HR Resources (Google Doc)
Recruiting Brainfood Marathon - 100 Recruiting & HR experts and practitioners on COVID-19 and the community response
The Employer's Coronavirus Checklist (HR Examiner)
How to Support Remote Workers (exaqueo blog)
Cornerstone Free Online Public Learning and Support Resources (Cornerstone on Demand)
HR Legal Alert (National Law Review)
CDC Interim Guidance for Employers (Centers for Disease Control)
Coronavirus Resources HR Community Conversation (CXR)

Please contact us for resources or information you don't see here.

Responding to the Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Workforce Crisis Response Resources

Recruiting, Employer Brand, and Employee Communications, During COVID-19

While our organizations are consumed with mass communication responses, effects on products, sales, stores, or other immediate impacts, the effects on hiring and talent are often de-prioritized. But that doesn't mean you can't consider the impacts and plan your own actions and response.

COVID-19 Response Resources for HR

Need a primer on what to do and how to plan?

Need to understand candidate and employee sentiment during this time?

Need to create a custom approach to address key issues?

Need to mobilize virtual recruiting options ASAP?

Need insights from the greater talent and HR community?

What would you like to know more about?