If you lead employer branding at a high-growth startup, this one’s for you:
For a select group of later-stage startups that have reached a specific point of growth and culture design, an EVP strategy probably makes sense.
For the vast majority, it’s a total waste of time, energy, and money.
Here’s a better approach: A reverse EVP
Start with content instead of strategy.
In the end, all EVP’s lead back to autonomy, mastery, and purpose. And EVP research questions are essentially the same questions you should be asking employees when finding stories to tell.
This approach gives you content + sources your EVP simultaneously.
It allows you to test messaging and content internally with employees and externally with candidates, providing quick wins and short feedback loops, while fostering buy-in from leadership.
It’s tangible, not fuzzy.
Too many EVP’s get blocked because of words. And companies change too quickly.
An EVP can easily be irrelevant by the time it actually launches.
Starting with content is the agile version of an EVP.
Always relevant. Always up to date.