From storytelling to strategy: Employer branding enters its ROI era

Lenovo, employer branding has to be a journey and not an event. Positioning and communicating isolated events and accolades may not be enough; it has to be a story. It requires reinforcing and continuously demonstrating what the organisation stands for.

Effective employer branding needs continuous investment. The CSR initiatives at the firm widely engaged the Gen Z talent who are more environmentally sensitive and socially conscious. Initiatives such as reducing carbon footprint, helping farmers revive millet farming in Kerala through technology, or creating sensitivity around LGBTQ communities have received great traction.

“Today’s talent admires organisations that contribute to society’s upliftment and environmental betterment,” Poddar pointed out.

Another branding intervention is Lenovo’s recent partnership with the FIFA World Cup 2026, envisioning the ‘Smarter Technology for All’ vision, which resonated well with the prospective employees. The vision was demonstrated through both offline and online channels like Instagram, LinkedIn, Intranet, Company website, Viva Engage, the internal platform that shares key events and updates across the organisation.

No over-reliance on recruitment marketing

One of the biggest learnings for Kaushik Chakraborty, Chief People Officer, Savills, is that employer branding cannot rely solely on polished communication or recruitment marketing.

Today’s candidates actively seek authentic employee experiences, and they can quickly distinguish between messaging and reality. It is not about projecting a perfect image; it is about ensuring that the experience employees have genuinely reflects the story a firm tells externally.

They look beyond campaigns to employee reviews, conversations on professional networks, leadership visibility, and the experiences shared by people who actually work in the organisation.

“If an employee shares a post with respect to completing one year in the organisation and talks about his experience with the people, that, in my opinion, is a key attraction of external talent, much more than any branding strategy would generate,” said Chakraborty.

Initially, Sanofi Consumer Healthcare India invested in sponsored job postings to attract talent, but the responses were limited as the brand was new. Later, they figured out that building brand awareness through employer branding initiatives was more effective by gaining trust.

Sharing authentic workplace experiences on social media has worked for Sanofi Consumer Healthcare India. Even the Opella influencers were trained to lead EVP as a cohort and further cascade EVP across levels, and internal advocacy was encouraged through internal portals.

“These approaches have improved our overall cost of hiring through open vacancies, and productivity in the role has improved with better and faster turnaround time,” said Roma Bindroo, People Director, India, Sanofi Consumer Healthcare India.

Showcasing the delivered promises matters the most

Leaders collectively agree that though external campaigns help create awareness, it is the employee experience that ultimately shapes our reputation as an employer. “Every employer branding effort should first resonate with employees before it reaches the outside world,” said Chakraborty.

The biggest takeaway was that listening to employees is far more powerful than assuming what they value. Earlier, onboarding largely focused on administrative processes and orientation at Savills India. However, based on feedback from new hires, the firm worked on building an emotional connection even before joining through the Red-Carpet Programme.

Engagement now begins before Day 1 through pre-joining communication, business updates, virtual office tours, and introductions to the work culture. Employees are welcomed through a structured induction, buddy support, and continuous check-ins via the Power of 3 Survey on Day 3, Week 3, and Month 3.

Savills India has also involved families in important milestones through initiatives such as welcome letters and promotion celebrations. This shift from transactional onboarding to a relationship-led experience has significantly improved employee satisfaction and strengthened early engagement.

Measuring the success

Across the industry, organisations are increasingly adopting a data-driven approach to measure the ROI of employer branding initiatives. External validation through employer recognitions and reviews on social media platforms remains a consistently tracked metric, alongside faster offer acceptance rates and talent attraction indices that assess the quality and diversity of candidates.

Lenovo tracks internal advocacy (NPS) through referrals, Sanofi Consumer Healthcare India evaluates social media analytics and internal employee engagement scores, while Savills focuses on onboarding satisfaction and peer recognition metrics, highlighting a multi-dimensional approach to assessing employer branding effectiveness.

As employer branding matures, the focus is steadily shifting from intent to impact. The growing emphasis on ROI signals a more strategic approach, where employer branding is closely tied to business outcomes. As organisations compete for talent in a dynamic landscape, it is this sustained commitment to people, purpose, place, and product that will define the employers of choice for tomorrow’s workforce.