EMPLOYER OF CHOICE
Are We Really Trying
Employer of Choice: Are We Really Trying?
“Employer of Choice.”
It rolls off the tongue beautifully. It sits neatly in strategic plans. It features proudly in annual reports, investor decks and LinkedIn bios. But here’s the uncomfortable question:
Are we actually doing the work or is it just another corporate buzz phrase?
Across industries, organisations declare their intention to become an “employer of choice.” Yet when you strip back the rhetoric, what’s really being measured? What’s being funded? What’s being changed?
Or is it simply the modern-day equivalent of “world-class” impressive to say, harder to prove?
The Buzzword Problem
According to research from Gallup, only 23% of employees globally are engaged at work. That means the majority of workforces are either disengaged or actively disengaged.
Yet if you reviewed corporate vision statements, you’d think engagement was soaring.
There is a disconnect between aspiration and execution.
The idea of being an employer of choice has quietly become a checkbox something that “good organisations” are expected to say. But aspiration without measurable action is branding, not leadership.
What Does “Employer of Choice” Actually Mean?
If we remove the fluff, an employer of choice should mean:
High voluntary retention
Strong internal promotion pathways
Measurable engagement
Psychological safety
Fair, transparent remuneration
Reputation aligned with employee reality
Best-practice frameworks such as the Great Place to Work Trust Index model focus on five core drivers:
Credibility
Respect
Fairness
Pride
Camaraderie
Notice what’s missing: free pizza, ping-pong tables, and motivational posters.
Being an employer of choice isn’t about perks. It’s about trust architecture.
Are We Measuring the Right Things?
Many companies track:
Revenue growth
EBITDA margins
Project delivery KPIs
But how many rigorously track:
Voluntary turnover segmented by manager?
Time-to-productivity?
Psychological safety scores?
Exit interview themes (aggregated and acted upon)?
According to Deloitte Human Capital Trends reports, organisations with strong human capital metrics outperform peers financially. Yet people data often remains secondary to financial data.
If we truly want to be an employer of choice, employee metrics must sit beside financial metrics not beneath them.
The Review Reality Check
Let’s talk about SEEK, Glassdoor and online reviews.
Do we:
Highlight the 5-star reviews on social media?
Or deeply analyse the 2-star reviews for systemic patterns?
It’s easy to dismiss negative reviews as “disgruntled employees.” It’s harder to ask:
Is there truth in the feedback?
Are certain managers repeatedly mentioned?
Are themes consistent across time?
An employer of choice does not curate perception.
It audits reality.
What Is a Healthy Level of Churn?
Zero turnover is not healthy it can signal stagnation.
However, research from the Society for Human Resource Management suggests that:
Average annual voluntary turnover across industries ranges from 10–20%
Sustained turnover above 25% is often a red flag
High early attrition (within 12 months) indicates onboarding or leadership failure
The key isn’t the raw number it’s:
Who is leaving?
Why are they leaving?
From which teams?
If your high performers are exiting while underperformers stay, you don’t have churn you have drift.
Are Executives Willing to Fund the Change?
Here’s the uncomfortable truth:
Becoming an employer of choice costs money.
It requires:
Leadership training
Coaching
Structured onboarding
Competitive remuneration benchmarking
Time invested in 1:1 conversations
Clear career pathways
Modern systems and tools
The Harvard Business Review consistently highlights that poor management is one of the top drivers of resignation.
So the real question becomes:
Are we investing in leadership capability or simply expecting technical experts to manage people without training?
What Does an Employer of Choice Actually Look Like?
It looks like:
Leaders who know their team members’ career goals.
Managers who hold regular development conversations.
Transparent decision-making.
Pay equity audits.
Clear progression frameworks.
Feedback that flows both directions.
It looks like people who say, “I’m proud to work here,” and mean it.
And importantly it looks consistent across departments. Not just in the “high-performing” teams.
Top 5 Commitments Leaders Must Make
If we’re serious truly serious about being an employer of choice, leaders and managers must commit to five fundamentals:
1️⃣ Leadership Development Is Non-Negotiable
Promoting technical performers into management without training is organisational negligence.
2️⃣ Measure Engagement Like Revenue
Quarterly engagement pulses. Manager-level insights. Action plans tied to outcomes.
3️⃣ Act on Feedback Especially the Hard Feedback
Exit interviews and online reviews are intelligence, not threats.
4️⃣ Build Visible Career Pathways
If employees can’t see their future with you, they will build it elsewhere.
5️⃣ Model the Culture at the Top
Culture is not what’s written in values.
Culture is what leadership tolerates.
Is There an Industry Standard?
There is no universal certification that magically confers “Employer of Choice” status.
However, organisations that consistently score highly in:
Engagement indices
Retention benchmarks
Internal promotion rates
Psychological safety measures
…share one common trait:
They treat people strategy as business strategy.
Not HR strategy.
Business strategy.
Let’s Challenge the Statement
If your organisation claims to be or aims to become an employer of choice, ask:
Where is it funded in the budget?
Where is it measured in the dashboard?
Where is it visible in leadership behaviour?
Where is it evident in retention trends?
Where is it acknowledged in honest feedback?
If it cannot be seen, measured, or resourced it is branding.
The Real Definition
An employer of choice is not the company that says it is.
It is the company where:
Good people stay.
Alumni speak well of it.
Managers grow leaders.
Employees feel safe.
Pride outweighs frustration.
Loyalty is earned not expected.
Our people are not a line item.
They are our capability, our culture, our brand ambassadors, and our competitive advantage.
So the challenge is simple:
Are we really trying or are we just saying we are?
Because if we want our most valuable asset people to stay, be loyal, and take pride in who they work for, then “Employer of Choice” must stop being a statement.
And start becoming a standard.
