February 16, 2026
Shawn Kessler
Shawn Kessler
Recruitment Marketing

Your Brand Is Being Represented Nationally, and Marketing May Not Be Involved

Your Brand Is Being Represented Nationally, and Marketing May Not Be Involved

Most organizations’ marketing teams believe they completely control how their brand shows up in the marketplace. Logos are protected. Messaging is approved. But does this belief reflect reality? In today’s market, brand touchpoints have expanded beyond traditional channels.

Over the past 20 years, I’ve seen time and time again where Human Resources are being tasked with recruiting hard-to-fill roles on a national level and the Marketing Department continually tells them, “We don’t have the manpower to support you. We’re too busy doing the work we do.”

Brand misalignment is inevitable when departments fail to communicate.

Every job posting, career site page, paid social ad, recruiter email and employer review is now part of your brand story. Candidates don’t experience your organization through one channel. They experience it across many, and they evaluate it the same way they evaluate consumer brands. And in a lot of cases, these messages are being promoted far outside of your targeted new business marketing communications.

Brand alignment is essential. As LinkedIn Talent Solutions notes, organizations with strong employer brands see significantly lower cost-per-hire and higher-quality applicants (LinkedIn Talent Solutions, 2021). Yet in many organizations, employer brand is still fragmented between Human Resources and Marketing with no shared strategy or governance.

At Aloysius Butler & Clark, we see this regularly: Your brand is being activated in the talent market, but not always intentionally and/or in alignment with the organization’s master brand.

The Disconnect Holding Organizations Back

The root issue is structural. It’s a rare thing when I find organizations where the Marketing and Human Resources teams have a great relationship, are aligned, working collaboratively and driving a strong and consistent message to all their target audiences.

While Human Resources teams are measured on speed, volume and staffing urgency, most Marketing teams are measured on reputation, differentiation and brand lift. Both are essential. But when they operate independently, the same brand gets communicated in conflicting ways.

This misalignment creates:

  • Transactional recruiting messages that undermine long-term brand equity
  • Inconsistent candidate experiences across channels
  • Increased risk of attracting misaligned talent and losing great people after hire

On the other hand, alignment presents a brand that builds a stronger reputation for both consumers and employees. This is the ideal situation, where Human Resources is attracting the talent that aligns and seeks to fulfill the brand promises being communicated by Marketing. It builds trust. It’s authentic. It’s a differentiator.

Why This Matters Now

Today’s candidates behave like consumers. They research employers. They compare options. They read reviews. Glassdoor reports that most job seekers won’t apply to a company with a poor reputation, regardless of compensation (Glassdoor, 2022).

At the same time, employee experience is now inseparable from customer experience. Bain & Company (2017) and Gallup (2023) both show strong correlations between employee engagement, customer loyalty and business performance. Ultimately, your employees not only have the ability to share a review of your organization; they also represent your brand through their social media accounts.

In other words, your workforce is no longer just delivering your brand. They are your brand.

What Alignment Looks Like

Alignment doesn’t happen by accident. It requires shared strategy, governance and accountability between Human Resources and Marketing.

At AB&C, we help organizations:

  1. Establish a unified employer value proposition (EVP)
    One that aligns with, not competes with, the consumer brand and clearly articulates the mutual value exchange between organization and workforce.
  2. Create joint Human Resources/Marketing governance
    Shared goals, shared KPIs and shared ownership of employer brand and recruitment marketing strategy.
  3. Build a shared content and messaging framework
    One voice, one brand, many audiences. We help clients by developing modular content that works for both talent and customer attraction.
  4. Integrate measurement beyond cost-per-hire
    Including quality of hire, retention, candidate experience, customer/employee engagement and brand perception.

Gartner (2022) notes that organizations with strong EVP alignment and integrated talent analytics make better workforce investment decisions and see stronger long-term performance.

From Tactical Hiring to Strategic Branding

The future of recruiting isn’t about filling roles faster; it’s about building organizations that people actively want to join, stay with and advocate for. That requires marketing discipline, brand integrity and cross-functional leadership.

At Aloysius Butler & Clark, we believe alignment between Human Resources and Marketing isn’t optional — it’s a competitive necessity. Organizations that unify these functions don’t just win talent. They win trust.

Sources (APA)

 

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