How much can it promise, how much can it demand, and how much imperfection can it tolerate?
“With us, you can truly make a difference.” This sentence was one of the reasons Max ultimately decided to join the company. During the job interview, there was much talk of personal responsibility, development, and an open culture. The website appeared modern, the benefits attractive, and the values convincing.
A few months later, his perception was more nuanced. Much was good. But he also noticed that decisions took longer than expected, development depended heavily on the respective manager, and the beautifully formulated values were not always lived out in daily operations.
Was the employer promise therefore false?
Not necessarily.
But it shows what a strong employer brand is truly about: not a perfect image, but a credible promise. An employer brand often operates in the tension between three questions:
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What can we expect from our employees?
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What can we, as an employer, promise?
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How much imperfection (expectation vs. reality) can an employer brand tolerate?
Promises Become Expectations
The strategically defined employer brand describes what a company wants to stand for, what it offers employees, and what it expects from them. The actual image of the employer, however, is formed by the people themselves – from what a company conveys and what they experience in their daily work. Communication can shape this image but cannot fully control it. Applicants and employees continuously compare the formulated promise with their own experiences.
In our work, we observe that many companies very consciously define what they want to stand for as an employer. They sharpen their values, develop benefits, create development opportunities, and invest in their communicative presence. The challenge often lies less in the individual measures than in their interplay: Does this create a clear employer promise that is attractive and also holds up in everyday work?
This is where the so-called psychological contract plays an important role. This refers to the assumption of reciprocal obligations between employees and the employer. Employees expect fairness, appreciation, and room for development and design, while companies, in turn, expect commitment, initiative, and responsibility. What is crucial is not only what was explicitly promised but also what is understood as a promise. If central expectations are not met, trust can be lost. Disappointed expectations do not necessarily lead immediately to resignation. Often, engagement and emotional attachment first decline, before a strong relationship gradually becomes purely transactional – work for pay, nothing more and nothing less. It is all the more important to clarify expectations on both sides from the outset. This is precisely where the employer brand comes into play.
1. What can we expect from our employees?
An employer brand can also make demands. Employer branding is often considered primarily from one perspective: What do we offer our employees? What makes us attractive? Why should someone want to work for us? However, a credible employer brand also needs the other side: What do we expect from our employees? What attitude is required? How do we want to work together? How much personal responsibility, willingness to perform, openness, or adaptability do we expect?
An employer brand can certainly be demanding. The crucial factor is that the offer, demands, and framework conditions align: Those who demand personal responsibility must provide room for maneuver. Those who expect openness must allow for different opinions. A strong employer brand therefore does not formulate a one-sided list of demands. It transparently communicates what both sides can expect from each other for a good collaboration.
2. What can we, as an employer, promise?
Naturally, an employer brand should be attractive. It should pique interest and clearly demonstrate why it is worthwhile to work for this particular company. At the same time, it must not paint an idealized picture that cannot withstand daily reality. We often experience this conflict of objectives in our workshops: The desired image is already clear, but the lived reality is different. However, the result should not be a non-committal compromise, but a credible promise that combines current strengths with a clear direction for development. An employer brand can therefore certainly be ambitious in its promises – as long as it remains credible and has a recognizable connection to today’s reality.
3. How much imperfection can an employer brand tolerate?
A strong employer brand does not have to present a perfect company. A flawless image quickly appears interchangeable or incredible. People do not necessarily expect perfection, but they do expect honesty and orientation.
Therefore, the crucial point is not to avoid every gap between aspiration and reality. The crucial point is to know these gaps, to deal with them consciously, and to visibly work on them. An employer brand can also formulate a target image – as long as it remains comprehensible what is already reality today and what still needs development. Therefore, the message can also be credible: “We are not where we want to be in everything. But we know what we stand for, what we are working on, and what people can reliably expect from us.” Honesty does not mean revealing all weaknesses or making oneself seem smaller. Not every weakness belongs in employer communication. But every central statement must stand up to reality.
The Decisive Test
For Max, the employer promise was not ultimately false. It gained strength where it was actually fulfilled in daily life and lost power where it was merely beautifully formulated. How does your employer brand fare? Ultimately, a simple test matters:
Would your employees articulate the employer promise externally in the same way you do?
If not, that is precisely where the work on the employer brand lies. Because its credibility is not decided in strategic positioning, but in the experienced daily work life.
