This document provides a summary of 10 trends in employer branding that the author expects to see towards 2020 based on his decade of research and experience in the field. Some of the key trends he identifies include time replacing money as the new currency for employers as work-life balance becomes increasingly important, the blending of functions across organizations as employer branding becomes a whole-business approach, and employer brands becoming truly global as companies strive for alignment across cultures and regions. The author aims to provide insights on how employer branding may evolve and ways for organizations to prepare and adapt to these changes.

1. My views have been shaped by lead­ers,
practitioners and academics I have
been fortunate to collaborate with over
the past 10 years with the past 3 spent
travelling to 30 cities in 20 countries as
part of my Employer Brand Global Mas­terclass
Some of the trends below have al­ready
started and will gain momentum
towards 2020. Whilst it is by no means
a complete list, I hope it will provide in­sights,
awareness and facilitate discus­sions
into how I see employer branding
evolving over the next decade and your
preparedness to meet these challenges.
Global companies such as Google,
Sodexo, Apple, McKinsey & Co, South­west
and Philips have been frequently
spoken about as leading employer
brands over the past decade. Whilst
there are many lesser known or visible
employer brands, they are in fact in all
industry categories and in companies of
all shapes and sizes. These companies
consistently articulate a clearly defined
employment proposition to their target
audience and align systems, policies
and processes to ensure an authentic
employment experience for emplo­yees
across the employment lifecycle.
In short they care about the welfare of
their employees and have leadership
conversations to better understand
what drives superior performance in
their teams.
Companies who are judged as the
leading employer brands over the next 10
5
Tour.
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years will be those who identify, react and
adapt to the people and product/service
challenges that lay ahead. These include:
1) Time replaces money as the new
currency. With increasing amounts of
women entering the workforce and one
parent working families’ being a thing of
the past companies who can trade time
for other rational benefits such as pay
and career development by embracing
flexible work practices and ensure work
commitments align with social and fam­ily
responsibilities will be highly sought
after. The notion of ‘work’ will be re­placed
by striving to provide an employ­ment
experience which is closer aligned
with living a rewarding life throughout
all stages of the employment lifecycle
(e.g. recruitment, induction, promotion,
etc) rather than working towards retire­ment
merely being seen as a reward at
the end of a lifetime of work.
2) Functions will blend. Employer
branding is not a HR function, it is a
business philosophy and all functions
have a role to play. The business envi­ronment
is dynamic and moving way
too fast for Human Resources, Market­ing
and Communication professionals
to continue driving the strategy in isola­tion
whilst trying to achieve alignment
between people, products and consum­ers.
The study of employer branding
will continue to make its way into the
University syllabus in HR, Marketing and
Communications courses and the sci­ence
of employer branding will advance
Employer
branding
towards
2020....
Consider
Brett Minchington
Having spent the best part of the last decade researching,
writing, speaking and consulting in the field of employer
branding, I thought as this new decade begins now would
be a good time to reflect and share my opinion on employer
branding trends towards 2020 and how they will impact on the
workplace.
Scenari e Nuove Tendenze

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as an increasing number of academ­ics
and students undertake research
in emplo­yer
branding building upon
the research previously undertaken in
employee engagement, organisational
psychology and brand management.
3) Less is more, small is big. As every
dollar spent has come under closer scru­tiny
during the Global Financial Crisis,
this culture will continue towards 2020
and leaders will need to demonstrate a
ROI of investment in employer branding
and how it impacts on delivering the
company’s mission and vision - two ar­eas
the top company’s get right whilst
others’ actions fall well short of their
promise leading to disengagement and
lack of trust amongst employees.
There will be an increased focus on
employer brand strategy development
to avoid brand fragmentation and con­fusion
which exists when the market
produces innovative ways to attract, en­gage
and retain talent faster than com­panies
can keep up with. There will be
less focus on creative communications
and more focus on relevancy, customi­sation
and authenticity as companies’
invest to build their brand from the in­side
out and reward behaviours which
reflect a defined employer brand posi­tioning
and strategy which takes a ho­listic
approach to the employee lifecycle
and diverse employee segments.
4) The talent crisis becomes the
matching crisis. Companies will tune
into the global network of untapped
talent in emerging economies such as
India, China, Middle East and Turkey
where technology and access is acce­lerating
skill build in these regions. As
organisations become more knowledge
and technology reliant the demand for
more diverse skill sets will result in com­panies
building virtual teams of specia­

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lists on retainers in order to keep up with
the accelerating pace of market change.
Companies will leverage affordable,
high quality technology to connect vir­tual
teams and provide an environment
where employed and contracted talent
feel valued and a sense of belonging, -
an experience much like the one today
being enjoyed by millions on social net­working
sites. The uptake of Talent Re­lationship
Management (TRM) software
will accelerate in much the same way
as Customer Relationship Management
(CRM) technology did in the 1990’s as
companies strive to find competitive
advantage in TRM – let’s hope the same
mistakes aren’t made!
The demand for specialist virtual
consulting will accelerate towards 2020
as the demand for real-time access and
transfer of explicit to tacit knowledge
to optimise performance demands real
time reflection, feedback and action. The
game will be won by the companies who
can match talent (from anywhere on the
planet) to be up to speed on roles and re­sponsibilities
much quicker than today’s
3-6 month onboarding period allows.
5) Relationships will replace reputa-tion.
The key to sustainable business
success has always been established in
the relationships between the people
involved, not just in a superior pro­duct
or service. The cost of a bad hire or ven­dor
selection is costly so companies
will rely less on a ‘pitch for service, ’and‘
tender processes and choose partners
based on a previous working relation­ship
or referral when allocating resour­ces
for employer branding initiatives.
The key shift will come in defining,
nurturing and evolving relationships
based on a value return as opposed to the
‘bigger is better’ approach companies and
agencies have strived for the past 20 years

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leading to redundant information and
disen­chanted
candidates and vendors.
6) Employer brands become global.
In the past decade employer brands
have been highly localised. That’s why
an organisation that is judged a number
1 employer in the USA may only rank
number 6 in Asia. The evolution for the
world’s leading employer brands is to
find closer alignment between the cul­ture
nuances in attracting and retaining
talent in different countries and cultures.
This will require increased communica­tions
between Head Office and Regional
leaders. I am amazed of how many global
brands talk about having a global em­ployer
brand strategy and when I meet
their regional leaders they advise, “What
Global Strategy.” Technology will support
improved global collaborations between
regional offices but it is going to take a
culture change of moving from a “com­mand
and control employer brand leader­ship”
at headquarters to a “collaborative
and evolve” employer brand leadership”
style to enact engagement across regions
which enhances business performance.
7) Slow is fast. Information will be deliv­ered
faster towards 2020 but the churn
of redundant information will become
slower. Technology and tools will get
better at filtering out noise that has the
tendency for employees to waste pro­ductive
time online and on social net­working
channels.
Training will become a daily occur­rence
inside organisations and tools will
allow for knowledge to be requested,
captured, customised and transferred to
employees via their hand held communi­cation
devices. Employees will receive real
time updates aligned with their career de­velopment
plans and leaders will be able
to view real time updates on performance
to plan and provide coaching and men­toring
before or at the moment when it
is most needed rather than 3-12 months
later at a formal performance review.
8) Organisations will get naked. Just
as reality TV shows have become the
norm the past decade, reality workplace
TV will become the norm towards 2020
as companies allow access into the cul­ture
of the organisation through web
streaming and reality shows about the
day to day operations of what makes the
company a success or a failure. View­ers
will be encouraged to participate
in and solve workplace problems simi­lar
to how crowdsourcing works today.
Job offers will be made and filled within
hours as companies exploit the benefits
of crowdsourcing.
9) Work becomes living. Companies
will empower employees to come and
go as they feel is required to deliver
the outcomes of their role. The level of
distrust in corporations today will be a
tipping point for talent to move to an
organisation that provides an employ­ment
experience which is closer aligned
with their lifestyle choices.
Exiting baby boomers will pave the way
for a new workplace dynamic where
Gen X’s, Y’s and Z’s will provide a melting
pot of skills, attitudes and a ‘can do’ at­titude
with lower levels of bureaucracy.
Just maybe, this reduction in bureaucra­cy
will provide talent with an increased
sense of ownership of time as efforts are
focused on outcomes and performance
rather than politics and bureaucracy.
10) Connected, cleaner and greener.
The penetration rate of the internet is
growing at rapid speed in emerging
economies and along with the increasing
speed and lower cost of delivery, compa­nies
will increasing opt for greener con­sulting
services which can be delivered
over the web rather than in-person and
in doing so, save on time (which will add
value to #1 trend) and carbon emissions.
This will add up to significant tangible sav­ings
and market support for companies
amongst all sections of the community.
Top talent will choose between compa­nies
who can demonstrate they care about
making the world a better place to live
rather than just maximising profits at the
expense of society’s negative externalities.
Some closing thoughts
If the economic downturn has
taught us one thing, it is the value of
the three business performance pillars
of trust, communication and leadership
in building competitive advantage. The
rate of technological innovation is in­creasing
at rapid speeds and the great­est
challenge for business will be to
manage the needs of shareholders and
employees to ensure that profit is re­turned
in a manner that is both healthy
for the environment and for employees.
We should not forget these pillars have
always been within our reach, the chal­lenge
will be how we balance our focus
on them whilst managing the complexi­ties
of the workplace towards 2020.
About the author
Brett Minchington, Chairman/CEO of Employer
Brand International and Managing Director of
Collective Learning Australia is an International
employer brand strategist, author and educator.
Brett’s expertise in Employer Branding led
him to author “Your Employer Brand attract-engage-
retain” in 2006 which has since been
sold in over 42 countries. Brett has delivered
employer branding key note addresses,
executive briefings, masterclass events and
chaired Summits in 30 cities in 20 countries
and has been published in HR, Marketing and
Management magazines globally including
‘The Economist’ and ‘Business Week’. With a
global perspective on employer branding he is
also a regular commentator for the media.

5. Certificate in
Employer Brand Leadership
About Employer Brand International
EBI provides research, advisory and thought
leadership in employer branding through
strategic consulting, conferences/training,
publications, research and global think-tanks.
EBI’s expert services are provided
through an international network of expert
employer brand Senior Associates. EBI’s
Global Advisory Board consists of leading
corporate professionals and academics
from around the world.
Why choose to study the Certificate in
Employer Brand Leadership?
• Study for an in demand leadership skill
• Case study approach to support
theoretical frameworks
• Real world application
• Flexible study options
• Supportive learning environment
• Access to the world’s most extensive
employer branding learning resources
• Alumni support
1. Since 2007 EBI has trained thousands
of managers in employer branding in
more than 50 cities in 28 countries.
2. Access to an employer branding global
community of 3500+ members.
3. Course is supported by world class
learning resources including books,
handbooks and global research reports.
4. The first course of its kind offered in
partnership with educational institutions,
business and the community.
5. Accredited by EBI
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Enrol Today!
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6. WELCOME FROM THE
CHAIRMAN/CEO
Welcome to the Certificate in
Employer Brand Leadership
Course – a contemporary
leadership program for
managers around the world.
Since 2007, Employer Brand
International has conducted
training for thousands of
managers in employer branding
in more than 50 cities in
28 countries including Australia, Belgium, Denmark, France,
Germany, Italy, Russia, UAE, UK, and the USA.
Employees are fast becoming central to the process of brand
building and their behavior can either reinforce a brand’s advertised
values or, if inconsistent with these values, undermine the credibility
of your messages. Employer branding is a whole of business
concept concerned with the attraction, engagement and retention
initiatives targeted at enhancing your company’s employer brand.
The contest amongst employers to attract and retain talented workers
takes place in a world where changes in the political, economic,
social and technological environments and concerns about a
company’s environmental footprint is driving widespread change in
employment patterns. Today, competition for the best employees
is as fierce as competition for customers and market share.
The course brings together a talented team of academics,
strategists and corporate leaders to create an inspiring learning
experience in the growing field of employer branding.
Our emphasis is on assisting you to develop leadership,
communication, problem solving and team building skills, which
will enable you to better understand and deal with the complex
issues of management in a changing business environment.
In selecting students we look for high quality people with the potential
to not only benefit but also contribute to the learning experience.
Whilst practical in orientation, your learning experience will include
networking with like minded professionals around the world to
support a solid theoretical grounding in employer brand leadership.
Organizations that can attract and retain the best minds by
leveraging a unique, relevant and distinctive employer brand
will have a competitive edge in the marketplace.
We look forward to welcoming you and wish
you the very best with your studies.
Brett Minchington
Chairman/CEO
Employer Brand International
PROGRAM STRUCTURE
CORE MODULE A
THE BUSINESS CASE FOR EMPLOYER BRANDING
Study Unit 1: The Fundamentals Of Employer Branding (EBLFU)
CORE MODULE B
BEST PRACTICE IN EMPLOYER BRANDING
Study Unit 2: Employer Brand Leadership Principles & Practices
(EBLPP)
Study Unit 3: Employer Brand Strategic Management (EBLSM)
Study Unit 4: Employer Branding Mapping & Competitor Analysis
(EBLCA)
Study Unit 5: Employer Brand Analytics & Reporting (EBLAR)
Study Unit 6: Contemporary Practices in Employer Branding & Social
Media (EBLSM)
Study Unit 7: Employee and Customer Experience (EBLCE)
CORE MODULE C
THE FUTURE FOR EMPLOYER BRANDING
Study Unit 8: Employer Branding Social Responsibility (EBLSR)
Study Unit 9: Future Trends in Employer Branding (EBLTD)
Study Unit 10: Employer Branding Case Study Analysis (EBLCS)
HOW TO APPLY
Apply online at
www.employerbrandinternational.com
or to enquire please email Andrea at:
andrea@employerbrandinternational.com
Please direct all course
enquiries to:
Ms Andrea Fielding
P +61 8 8443 4115
F +61 8 8443 4149
ALUMNI SUPPORT
The EBI Employer Branding Global Community is an important part of
the life and community of the School, as it forms an integral part of the
School’s business relationships.
The network is diverse, including students and graduates who work and
live locally, interstate and overseas.
With more than 3500 members, the EBGC supports members in
various ways:
• Fostering global networking opportunities
• Informing the business community of latest trends in employer branding
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