When most companies talk ‘data-driven’ recruiting and employer brand, they are looking backwards: did that campaign work? What was our time to fill? How many requisitions did each recruiter manage? They are looking at the past in order to … well, it’s not quite clear what.

But that’s not the only way companies can use data.

In fact, using the right data the right way can help you make smarter choices about many things:

  • How to reach out to a candidate
  • Which of your employer brand pillars will resonate with your target talent
  • How to see where your employer brand is weakest against the competition

We invited Universum Communication’s own employer brand nerd James Ellis to share with us how he uses data to build a stronger, more impactful employer brand, leveraging findings from the world’s largest talent survey.

James Ellis, Universum

James Ellis
Director of Employer Brand at Universum

It's very possible that the rumours are true and that James Ellis was a mild-mannered digital marketer bitten by a radioactive recruiter six years ago and now has strange new powers. But what we do know is that James is a leading voice in employer branding, developing and activating dozens of brands of every size, running The Talent Cast podcast for more than three years, writing the Employer Brand Headlines newsletter and writing for a number of industry publications, including two new books: The Employer Brand Handbook and Talent Chooses You. His mission is to evolve the conversation around recruiting and hiring. He lives in Chicago with his wife and daughter.