AI

Don’t Forget The Human Touch: AI in employer branding

There is so much discussion about what it actually says about us that we hand over our work to AI without batting an eyelid. How much do we hate our jobs if we are so grateful that someone (or something?) else is doing them? When I thought about whether we are all secretly fed up with our tasks, I did a quick check. What do I actually use AI for in my daily work, and what don’t I use it for? I quickly came up with one of my to do for which I would never use AI: our internal newsletter.

Ironically (or logically?), this is also the task for which I receive the most praise by far. My colleagues appreciate not only my humor and style, but above all the personal appreciation, insider knowledge, and sincerity of the content. These are things that would be very difficult to teach ChatGPT & Co.

But what am I trying to say? Is AI a no-go for me in employer branding? No, definitely not, but I see clear limits to its use in communication for and with employees. Let’s take a look at what works and what doesn’t! Three practical examples:

1. Finding the employer brand – EVP & Co.

Believe it or not, AI assistants can already be a huge help when it comes to the strategic preliminary considerations required to delve into the depths of your own employer brand. What is my competition actually doing? What benefits and advantages are they promoting? What are we doing completely differently, and what could our EVP (Employer Value Proposition) be? These are all questions that companies can now answer with the help of artificial intelligence. This ChatGPT, for example, is a good place to start.

What’s particularly exciting is that AI not only provides structured competitive analyses, but also valuable insights into blind spots in your own communication. Do you feel strong in a particular area, but when asked innocently, you don’t appear in the recommendations of ChatGPT and Co.? Then you know exactly where you need better content to get on the radar of potential talent!

Julia Beyer, Expert for Storytelling and Employer Branding at Mashup Communications

The keyword here is GEO, and I have summarized exactly how to do this in this blog post.

2. Bringing values to life – Employee Stories & Corporate Campfire

This is a perfect transition, because while good prompts will certainly help you come up with attractive designs for your About Us or Values and Benefits descriptions, your external image will still be missing the most important thing: soul. And who better to breathe life into it than your team?

Every company value, every special feature, every advantage for employees only becomes convincing when potential talents understand what they mean in your everyday work. So-called corporate campfires are a good way to find this out. And they still work best when conducted human to human.

In small groups, ideally with colleagues from a wide range of departments, different hierarchical levels, and diverse backgrounds, we gather around the proverbial campfire. Using questions, thought experiments, and creative techniques, we invite the team to share anecdotes, moments, and memories from their everyday work. In the circle, the small sparks of storytelling from each individual quickly turn into blazing flames of team spirit, and the core of the employer brand becomes visible.

Of course, this only works if you have a keen sense for picking up on small comments, which, with some skillful probing, can sometimes turn into the most wonderful employee stories. As much as we love ChatGPT and the like, people would be reluctant to share such insights on screen, and the output would remain rather superficial.

Julia Beyer, Expert for Storytelling and Employer Branding at Mashup Communications

But of course, our favorite sidekick AI can still be useful here, too. Whether it’s setting up the questionnaire or live transcription, AI makes life easier for workshop leaders in its role as an assistant. Only teasing out the most significant stories that will set you apart from your competition at the end is better left to live storytellers.

3. Showing closeness – AI in employee communication

In addition to the career page and social channels, employee stories can of course also be used for internal communication. When it comes to intranets, newsletters, or internal updates, many companies are tempted to hand this task over to AI. After all, it’s supposedly just about disseminating information. But this is precisely where tact and sensitivity are required. Employee communication thrives on trust, transparency, and a personal tone. Those who work with AI texts run the risk of losing the communicative touch to the team and alienating rather than connecting.

However, that doesn’t mean AI is completely out of place. It can be a great help in finding topics, for example, when it comes to identifying potential content for internal communication from a mountain of meeting notes or project updates. Or simply to find nice, creative check-in questions for the next team meeting. It can also be helpful in structuring texts, designing standard modules, or translating for international teams.

A small highlight of my personal work with AI: I once wrote a text about a dear colleague who loved to travel. I then asked ChatGPT to calculate and add up the kilometers she had traveled and compare them to the distance to the moon. And lo and behold, our Mashie had actually flown halfway to Earth’s satellite. That’s a nice image, of course, and it sticks in your mind. But as someone who’s not good with numbers, it would have taken me forever to figure it out without help.

But when it comes to celebrating personal successes, appreciating team members, or sharing emotional moments, genuine relationships are essential.

A good employee story or an appreciative birthday greeting cannot be created using prompt logic. It thrives on human connection, genuine interest, and knowledge about the person.

Julia Beyer, Expert for Storytelling and Employer Branding at Mashup Communications

If you don’t have any insights yourself, it’s not ChatGPT that will be able to provide information, but rather colleagues and friends. Texts that are intended to convey closeness can only be authentic if they are written from a place of genuine closeness.

Let AI help to leave more room for genuine communication, but don’t delegate relationship management to the algorithm.

Conclusion: The closer to people, the closer to people

AI is a powerful sparring partner, but it cannot replace real relationships. Employer branding is not just about efficiency, but also about emotions, identification, and dialogue on equal terms. The more personal the message, the more important the human touch.

Tip: Use AI where it can take work off your hands, but keep control. Whether it’s EVP, intranet, or storytelling, the strongest employer brand is created where technology and people work together, not compete.

Julia Beyer, Expert for Storytelling and Employer Branding at Mashup Communications

Wie wir bei Mashup die Zusammenarbeit mit KI gestalten, haben wir in unseren KI-Prinzipien festgehalten.

TL;DR: AI in employer branding: What works, what doesn’t?

  • AI is useful for…
  • Competitive analysis & benchmarking
  • Initial drafts of EVP texts and value descriptions
  • Brainstorming and creative inspiration
  • Finding topics from meeting notes & project updates
  • Structuring, translation, and transcription
  • Humans remain indispensable in…
    • Emotional stories & personal appreciation
    • Employee communication with a genuine connection to the team
    • Authentic stories from everyday working life
    • Conveying culture & community building
  • Conclusion:
    Use AI where it can reduce your workload, but keep relationship management in human hands. Employer branding thrives on interaction, not substitution.
julia

Seit 2012 Teil des Teams, steht Julia neuen Kund:innen und Kolleg:innen beim Start der gemeinsamen Heldenreise zur Seite.

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