In light of the growing importance of corporate branding at companies, a new StepStone study with over 5,900 Belgian employees and jobseekers shows that a company’s culture is crucial throughout an employee’s entire career.
Only 6 in 10 of employees can identify with their employer’s corporate culture – but 95% feel like it’s an important topic
When asked if they could identify with the corporate culture of their employer, 63% of employees agreed. Just over 20% of the participants said the opposite and explicitly stated not being able to identify.[1]
However, 95% of the respondents mentioned that they thought corporate culture and it suiting them was important – an impressive 57% even confirmed that they felt it was critical.
49% says a potential employer’s culture is even crucial when looking for a job
Not just during someone’s career, but during the application process, as well, corporate culture is key.
Just shy of 1 in 2 (49%) stated that they felt a potential employer’s culture to be crucial when applying. Only 7% of the respondents thought it was unimportant, while the other 93% found it to be (very) relevant.
Work-life-balance, communication and teamwork are the main giveaways when seeking a new job
During interviews, jobseekers are mostly interested in a few key indicators of an employer’s company culture.
The main decisive factors are a company’s stance towards work-life balance, respect for private life at work and teamwork with colleagues.
Another clear influencer is the communication style used at work – although here, there was a noticeable difference between Dutch speaking (60%) & French speaking (40%) applicants confirming the importance of corporate communication.
How does the Belgian jobseeker draw conclusions about the corporate culture of a potential employer?
While applying for a job, the average Belgian jobseeker pays attention to a handful aspects of the interview to decide if there is a match with the employer’s culture.
By far, the conduct of company representatives during the interview is the most important one – and is something 75% of the respondents mentioned.
Other “evidence” is the content and design of the job advertisement (52%), as well as communication with HR department (54%).
Methodology
StepStone conducted this survey in April and May of 2019. Our analysists have screened the data to ensure both the representation and the validity of respondents’ answers are accurate.
In total, there were 5,983 filled in surveys submitted in Dutch, French and English.
[1] 16,20% refused to answer the question.