10 features every Careers Site should have to promote culture

1. Learning and Development Content

How would your organisation support a potential applicant’s career growth? When two of the top 5 priorities for applicants are advancement and skill development [The Future of Recruiting] it is important you explain what your organisation is doing.

People want to see your commitment to employee growth through training, mentorship programs, and career development opportunities. Some organisations will go as far as mapping out potential career paths but even having a page of content dedicated to learning and development help you stand out from other careers sites. [B&Q Careers]

2. Benefits and Rewards

Provide a comprehensive list of employee benefits and perks, such as pensions, annual leave entitlement, flexible work arrangements, and professional development opportunities. This content needs to be across the site – not just siloed to a benefits page. Work-life balance and flexible working arrangements are the 2nd and 3rd biggest priorities to job applicants. [The Future of Recruiting]

Prominently and clearly showcasing the benefits your organisation offers across the careers site is essential to improving your applicant conversion rate.

3. Diversity & Inclusion

Highlight your organisation’s commitment to diversity and inclusion with information on diversity programs, employee resource groups, and initiatives. The benefits of a diverse workforce are well-documented across many sites. [8 benefits of encouraging diversity]

This is your chance to explain what you are doing support that diversity and encourage candidates from a wide range of backgrounds to apply for roles. Please don’t make this a box ticking exercise. It’s something that needs to be thoughtful, genuine and lived in your company. We recently saw a site discussing diversity and the main picture was 5 white women. 

4. Employee Credentials – awards & accreditations

Display any awards or recognition the company has received for its workplace culture, employee satisfaction, or industry achievements. These accreditations can reinforce your organisation’s culture whether that’s a reflection of your commitment to diversity or recognition for creating a great culture. Cygnet for example displays the recognition they have had including things like the Armed Forces Covenant from the Ministry of Defence or certification for being an age-friendly employer. These certifications show that you don’t just talk a good game, you deliver too.

5. Stories from your staff

Letting people hear directly from your workforce is really powerful. Featuring stories or testimonials from current employees about their experiences can provide insight into the company culture and opportunities for personal and professional growth. These make for excellent video content [McDonald’s what we offer] and are also great for sharing across social media and other channels. Glassdoor is generally the home of disgruntled ex-employees so take back a bit of the narrative with positive stories

6. Mission and values / a clear EVP

Clearly articulate the company’s mission and core values. This helps potential candidates understand the organisation’s purpose and what it stands for.

We have seen so many career sites with no clear EVP or ones where there is a strapline used in a few different places but an EVP is much more than that. The mission and values should come across in all of the content and be self evident to potential applicants.

A practical way of doing this is a video from your team or…???

7. Environmental Credentials

More and more people, especially younger applicants have a greater focus on the nature of the company they are joining and consider what you do and how you do it. They won’t work for companies if their values and actions don’t align with their beliefs. a recent study by Cone Communications found that 73% of millennials would be more likely to work for a company that is committed to social responsibility [Cone Communications/Ebiquity Global CSR Study]

As a result you need to clearly show what you are doing on certain key topics but one topic that affects all organisations is climate change and the responsibility every organisation has to be as sustainable as possible. This can be reflected through accreditations or a values commitment but displaying a firm commitment can really help you stand out [Patagonia Core Values]

8. Community and Charity work

Share information about the company’s involvement in the community, charitable activities, and any corporate social responsibility initiatives.

9. Accessibility Options

Your careers site should reflect your commitment to being inclusive by being accessible – we would recommend that sites achieve AA accessibility standards and that is what we work towards with all of our clients. Check now on WAVE Web and check the colour on WebAIM.

By being accessible it means any user who may have accessibility requirements can easily navigate your site and therefore understand that accessibility is something you value in what you do, not just with what you say. Tools like Reciteme can be used to further improve the accessibility of your site.

10. Blog

Keep the site updated with relevant blog posts, news articles, or press releases about the company’s recent achievements, projects, and cultural events. This helps keep the site current and relevant – is content that can be used on social media and can even help with your SEO as well.