Employee stories show values in action
Engage employees and recruit candidates with storytelling from your team. Employee stories show values in action internally and externally. This piece is an excerpt from our content guide, Activate Your Employee Value Proposition with Stories.
Employee stories that embody the company’s values, cultural statements and Employee Value Proposition (EVP) strengthen culture and attract candidates. Sharing these stories has the effect of increasing the connection between employees and their company’s stated values, and creating a connection with candidates.
Stories have impact in internal communications
That’s why we at Stories uncover employees’ stories with the purpose of creating content to be shared with their colleagues. Employee stories show values in action — powerful internal content. Stories increase team members’ self-identification with the EVP and culture, and that translates to increased employee engagement.
Don’t underestimate the power stories have among your employees. Great content inspires brand ambassadors, who can’t wait to share that story content with their networks on their own channels — a double endorsement of the employee experience.
Your employer brand launch is important to launch internally to employees as well as external to candidates. For example, we helped Lockheed Martin capture employee stories that brought their EVP pillars to life. The video stories now as their content for communicating their values both internally and externally. Learn more in our Lockheed Martin case study.
Stories show candidates your values in action
Employee stories influence candidates, who become employees and then gain their own perception of the culture, as colored by their knowledge coming into the company, the reinforcing behaviors they observe, and their lived experience. Stories beget more stories, reinforcing culture and further building your employer brand.
At Stories Inc., we try to uncover stories that—when pieced together in a content library—paint a truly unique picture of that company. What happens at the company that wouldn’t happen anywhere else?
In fact, the best stories that communicate your company purpose, mission or EVP will not resonate with every candidate. When you’re honest about who you are, and have examples to back it up, some people will not feel a connection to it. Therefore, they aren’t the best people to help the company in pursuit of its mission.
But when a candidate hears a story that brings your values to life for them and makes them want to learn more about the company, that’s gold. Because the story is being told by a potential future colleague, it fast-tracks the
candidate to connect with the overall organization, and take the next step.