Learning from Royal Mail’s recent Employee Value Proposition overhaul

Royal Mail, founded in 1635, faced the challenge of being perceived as outdated and lacking progressiveness. Research revealed an aging, homogenous workforce, and a failure to attract the next generation, causing a decline in its appeal.

Despite a desire to adapt to transformational challenges like fierce competition and changing work patterns, Royal Mail struggled to evolve due to problematic internal processes.

Marrying internal and external messages

‍In the realm of perception management and establishing a successful EVP, business leaders often focus externally. However, when Blue Goose partnered with Royal Mail, we had to emphasise that managing external credibility relies heavily on getting internal processes right. The journey towards a successful EVP begins by fostering internal connections, ensuring unified messaging across organisational facets, and integrating concerns and priorities for the benefit of everyone.

The initial approach involved tailoring the EVP to resonate with the primary audience, addressing the concerns of potential employees. Internal collaboration was crucial for the success of such an initiative. One common pitfall in EVP transformations is internal dislocation, where key stakeholders operate in silos. To counteract this, widespread buy-in across attraction, recruitment and onboarding stages is crucial. Without exception, alignment among every internal department is necessary to prevent the failure of EVP initiatives.

Owning the employee experience

‍It’s important because a lack of cohesion within organisations hinders their ability to claim ownership of the employee experience. The value of a clear definition and articulation of this experience cannot be overstated. Collaboration with stakeholders allows organisations to evaluate and influence current offerings continually.

Networking and stakeholder management become pivotal in this process, delivering solutions that anticipate challenges and provide tangible benefits. The importance of granularity in thinking – understanding who will use the platform, how and why – also has to be highlighted.

Formulating a future vision

‍Creating a successful EVP involves collaborative efforts, particularly with existing employees who play a crucial role in co-authoring the narrative of the employee experience. The EVP should reflect the current reality while encompassing ambitious perspectives, articulating the future vision of the organisation.

During its development, the EVP must address areas for improvement, drawing insights from exit interviews and satisfaction scores. The true essence of an EVP only materialises when there is a shared consensus within the organisation regarding its role, placement and functionality.

At Royal Mail, colleagues from various areas successfully collaborated and aligned efforts, bringing benefits to both individuals and the business as a whole. The EVP now reflects a cohesive and connected portrayal of the employee experience, both internally and externally. This stands in contrast to workplaces where the employee experience may seem fragmented and unintentional. Royal Mail has deliberately steered and shaped its employee experience into a position to present a unified and intentional image to the world.

A revitalisation journey

‍Royal Mail’s journey towards ‘renewal’ underscores the critical link between internal cohesion and external credibility. Faced with operational challenges, service setbacks and the end of its long-standing parcel delivery monopoly, it desperately needed to embark on essential transformation.

Recognising the need for change, Royal Mail prioritised fostering internal connections and streamlining processes to enhance its EVP. The emphasis on joined-up thinking and collaboration across departments became paramount, focusing on attracting, recruiting and onboarding talent cohesively. The success of this approach hinged on articulating a future vision, aligning diverse stakeholders and addressing areas for improvement through transparent communication.

Royal Mail’s collaborative efforts across diversity, equity and inclusion, wellbeing, reward and recognition and training have yielded a cohesive EVP. This deliberate strategy has not only benefited individuals within Royal Mail but it has also presented a unified image externally. As Royal Mail aims to deliver in 2024 and beyond, it has shown it understands how important it is to make a commitment to EVP transformation for overall growth and progress.