Employer branding lessons from Malaysia's best

Maybank, Astro and Mydin Holdings emerged the top three companies in Malaysia when it came to trophies for the best employer brand development efforts at this year's Asia Recruitment Awards.

Gold winner Maybank's ambitious expansion goals required a strategic transformation journey that commenced in the second half of 2008, with a three-pronged HR mandate of strong performance management, best-in-class talent management and to be a top-quartile employer of talent.

The team set out to refresh and reinforce the employer brand, both internally and externally, through initiatives such as the development of an EVP brand toolkit, a Career Day, and career information on its social media platforms.

More recently, the launch of the Maybank Go Ahead Challenge was a big launch, along with the setting up of the employer branding and planning unit.

The outcomes of the efforts were clear to see - Maybank clinched various awards over 2012 to 2015, including as the graduate employer of the year and the only Asian organisation to be recognised as a global high performing company.

Further, the succession realisation rate for critical positions improved significantly, standing currently at 71%, a 13% improvement over 2012.

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Astro had a somewhat similar story to tell, with an aspiration to become the employer of choice, that was driven through two-way communication, learning opportunities for both on-air and off-air talent, and employee ambassadorship, among others.

The tools used to execute the mission were a mix of formal and informal, such as quarterly company-wide townhalls, 360-degree feedback for all managers, and a focus on CSR activities to drive inclusion.

"Beyond Work is our multifaceted approach in delivering our employer brand promise through building a culture that emanates from within the organisation," explained Adeline Boey, senior associate for youth outreach, at Astro Malaysia Holdings.

The approach saw the company rising up the graduate employers' ranking in Malaysia, as well as firmed its position as one of the most attractive employers in the nation today.

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For bronze winner Mydin, employer branding was about creating an emotional relationship between the organisation and employees, of which interesting work, career advancement & loyalty, and CSR were the three pillars.

One of the ways it achieved this was the talent enrichment programme, targeted at management trainees, with the aim to expose graduates with on-the-job training, and absorb them into the department that suits them.

Under this scheme, 100 graduates were trained in 2013, which rose to 189 in 2014, who graduated early this year, benefiting the company in a number of ways.