I came across an interesting article on recruiter.com the other day entitled, “7 reasons I’ll turn down a job after interviewing with you“.
Two caught my eye:
1. You’re too negative – If you’re bad-mouthing the company, other employees, your workload, or even yourself, then chances are slim that I’ll come on board as your newest employee. Why? Because negativity is toxic. It tells me that morale is low and that you don’t enjoy your job. I recognize it’s possible that you’re just having a bad day, but it’s just too big of a risk to take.
5. You don’t tell me about your company culture – If I’m going to be spending more time with you than with my friends and family, I want to know I’m going to be in a fun and positive working environment. You don’t have to provide organic lunches or have a company bar to show me you’re a great company to be at. While these perks would be nice, I’d much rather know about the people and the culture. How do employees interact with each other? How are employees recognized for a job well done? Do colleagues go to lunch together or see each other outside of the office? If so, do they do this because it’s mandated or because they genuinely enjoy spending time together?
Ouch.
For me, the big question is, “What can a brand do to avoid these situations?”
One way is to be a truly meaningful brand and to use that brand strategy to create a meaningful workplace.
I detail how this can be done in a paper entitled “The Meaningful Workplace“.
It encourages management to move beyond its self-centered perspective, and to embrace the lives of the people they employ.
It moves employee engagement beyond mission, vision and values to a world of purposeful work and emotional rewards.
It is a different way of forming corporate cultures. But then, if your corporate culture is becoming toxic, maybe what your brand really needs is a different way forward. Some call it Employer Brand…. we call it developing a more meaningful workplace.
To download The Meaningful Workplace, please click below.
Emotive Brand is a San Francisco branding agency.
