Why scale-ups need to activate their employer brand
As you expand your team, the fundamental characteristics of your business can no longer be taken for granted.
Leading a business through its scale-up phase of accelerated growth comes with a new set of challenges for founders and their senior teams. Switching focus from product to brand to drive traction with new audiences is a priority. But leaders need to ignite their newly honed brand with their growing team of employees too if they want their scale-up to rise to the top.
Here’s why, and what to do about it.
Your employees are your growth engine
You already know that launching a startup takes a core team, dedicated to rapidly building a viable business. As you move into scale-up phase that team is going to evolve. You’re ready to put a leadership team in place that’s broader than just you as founders, and begin to hire more junior team members with focussed specialisms. This expanded team will be with you during your quickest and most significant stage of growth. How they operate will make a difference between success and failure.
It’s about them, not you
In the beginning, there was a lot about your business – your values, your passion, your culture – that was innate to you as a founder team. It drove you forward, gave you energy, and enabled you to overcome inevitable challenges with creativity and determination.
As you expand your team, these fundamental characteristics of your business – what you believe, what drives you, how you behave, what you think is important – can no longer be taken for granted. You don’t yet need the structures and processes common in big corporations, but giving formal expression to what shapes you as a business is vital if you want to attract the best people and cultivate a long-lasting and positive culture your growing team will thrive in.
Productivity and creativity are fuelled by purpose
Talented individuals increasingly look to scale-ups for their career next-step because of the opportunity to meet their need for purpose in their work life. The benefit to you: a workforce that’s motivated, committed and able to bring innovative thinking to the table.
Harnessing the power of your team
Being able to articulate your vision and mission as a business is only the start point if you want to harness the power of this with your team. If you know why your brand exists, you need to spend time giving it life within your business too. Give some thought to:
How is your purpose reflected in your recruitment and interviewing process?
How do you build it into your onboarding process for new employees?
Can people see how your purpose translates tangibly to their role on a day-to-day basis?
How might it be reflected in individual goal-setting, job descriptions or performance reviews?
How can it create structure and impetus for people to think differently about how they approach tasks or new ideas?
Can it be reflected in team away-days, all-hands or working sessions?
How can it form the basis for recognition, celebration and reward?
Like any engine, your team needs fuel to perform at its best. Your brand is that fuel. Thinking about how it’s ignited in the minds of your employees will make a difference to how successfully your business scales.