New research by RetailChoice.com, the specialist retail recruitment website, has uncovered how highly retail professionals value employer brand when assessing prospective employers.
The research, which surveyed over 700 retail professionals, found that over half (55%) value an employer’s reputation as a great place to work even more than salary (48%) when assessing their next move up the career ladder. Other desirable attributes for prospective employers included opportunities for career progression and a good work / life balance (39%). Reputation is key for those businesses looking to pursue excellence in retail recruitment.
The research also found that 86% of retail professionals were attracted to work for their current company due to its reputation as a good employer, showing how crucial employer brand is in attracting the best class of candidate.
As an industry, retail can suffer from negative perceptions as a “destination” career and the research showed that employer brand is central to dispelling that view. Retail professionals said that they would be more likely to want a career in retail, rather than “just a job” with a company that had a strong employer brand (77%.)
However, it is clear that more work needs to be done to communicate retailers’ employer brand strategies as less than a third of retail professionals (31%) believed that their employer’s internal culture reflected its wider reputation.
RetailChoice.com retail recruitment specialist surveyed 743 retail professionals online in April 2013 via eDigital Research. RetailChoice.com is the leading specialist retail recruitment website in the UK.