What Job Hunting Taught Me About Employer Brand: Insights for Charity and Third Sector HR Leaders

As Atkinson HR's newest Operations Coordinator, I recently found myself on the other side of the recruitment process: actively job hunting. Salary, benefits and job title still mattered, of course, but I was also looking for something else: clarity, transparency, values alignment and a genuine sense of what it would actually be like to work somewhere.

With UK unemployment hovering around 5%, it's more important than ever for employers and candidates to be clear about what they're looking for.

Recruitment should be a two-way process: one that helps organisations attract the right people while giving candidates what they need to make informed decisions.

As I worked through job adverts, application forms and interviews, some organisations stood out more than others. Job hunting can be time-consuming for candidates, just as reviewing unsuitable CVs and applications can be resource-intensive for teams with limited recruitment capacity.

So, what can employers do to help candidates self-select at the application stage? And what are candidates actually looking for in a job advert and recruitment process? Here's what mattered most to me, and why I think it matters for employer brand too.

Clarity Builds Confidence

A well-written job description does more than explain a role. It signals that an organisation has thought carefully about what it needs and how the role fits into its wider purpose.

What I valued most was understanding what the role would look like day to day, where responsibilities sat, and what success might look like. It helped me work out whether my experience was a good fit, and whether I could genuinely see myself doing the job. The best adverts draw on insight from people already doing the work, which creates a far more realistic picture of what's needed.

The clearer an organisation could define the role, the easier it was for me to envision myself in it.

Human Conversations Matter

Some of the most valuable moments in the process weren't formal interviews. They were informal conversations.

Being able to speak with someone before applying gave me a much better sense of the people behind the organisation. It helped me understand the culture and gave me space to ask practical questions about the role.

For employers, offering informal conversations can feel like an extra commitment, particularly for smaller teams. There are still plenty of manageable ways to do this:

• A candidate group Q&A session

• A detailed FAQ document alongside the advert

• Designated time slots that candidates can book in advance

For me, these conversations often did more to explain a role than the job description ever could.

Values Need to Show Up Early

For values-led organisations especially, recruitment is a chance to demonstrate what matters, rather than simply describe it.

The organisations that stood out weren't necessarily the ones with the most polished mission statements. They were the ones that wove their principles into the recruitment process itself.

When application questions and interview conversations reflected those principles, it helped me understand what mattered beyond the role. Consider building in values-based questions, such as asking candidates how their own approach aligns with the organisation's.

Values are often a key differentiator for charities, non-profits and other purpose-led organisations. Bringing them into the candidate experience early helps people decide, honestly, whether the organisation is right for them.

Transparency Matters

Transparency around salary, benefits and working arrangements wasn't just helpful information. It shaped how much I trusted an organisation before I'd even met anyone from it. Being upfront saves time for both candidates and employers, and builds trust from the outset.

If I'm honest, if a salary wasn't included, I was often hesitant to apply. That's one of the reasons Atkinson HR supports the We Show the Salary pledge, which helps organisations create a more transparent and inclusive candidate experience.

The wider package matters too. Research suggests 88% of employees now count benefits as part of their total compensation. Where organisations have less flexibility on salary, benefits can play a bigger role in attracting candidates. Being upfront about hybrid, remote or office-based expectations also helps avoid mismatched expectations further down the line.

The Recruitment Experience Reflects the Organisation

As candidates, we inevitably draw conclusions about what it might be like to work somewhere based on the recruitment experience itself.

Clear communication, realistic timelines and thoughtful interactions all contribute to employer brand. In many ways, recruitment is one of the earliest experiences a candidate has of your organisation.

What I particularly appreciated was knowing what the process would involve: when interviews would take place and when I could expect to hear back. Having that upfront reduced uncertainty and made it far easier to manage my applications.

Small touches made a difference too: knowing who would be interviewing me, understanding their role in the organisation, and having interview themes in advance.

And when I wasn't successful, a thoughtful rejection email left a far more positive impression than hearing nothing at all - see our Guide to Ghastly Recruitment for what not to do!

Quick Employer Brand Wins for HR leaders

• Ask current team members what a typical week actually looks like, and use their words in the advert.

• Spell out what success looks like in the first three, six and twelve months.

• Share a realistic timeline for the process upfront, and stick to it where you can.

• Tell candidates who they'll meet and what to expect from each stage.

• Send a genuine, personal rejection message, even a brief one, rather than silence.

Final Thoughts

Looking back, the organisations that left the strongest impression were those that gave a genuine sense of who they were, what they valued, and what working there would really be like. That came through from the very first interaction.

If you'd like to explore how we can support your recruitment strategy, candidate experience or executive recruitment, get in touch

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