Research Update
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My attention was drawn yesterday to research carried out by HireScores.com which showed that for the British the dream employer is the purveyor of all things fizzy, Coca-Cola. In HR towers we see a lot of these sorts of surveys, but I was particularly drawn to this one because of the robust nature of the research and the empirical methodology.
The sample size of 1,326 people, representing a healthy 0.002% of the UK population, clearly adds validity to the conclusions from the survey which included a, “multi answer question”. Along with Coca Cola (76%), other “dream places of work” include Microsoft, Google, Facebook, Disney and British Airways.
The top reason stated for wanting to work for Coca-Cola was “the salary” with 42% highlighting this. Now the 42% of the 76% must have something on me, because try as I might, I could only find one vacancy with Coca-Cola in the UK and unfortunately it didn’t include a salary in the advert. Still, the research must be right, I must be missing a trick.
The other thing that struck me as slightly strange, however, was how the research fits with some of the other fine studies that have also been carried out. For example, the 2001 research[1] that indicated that 89% of ex- employees of Coca-Cola worldwide were Pepsi converts within 12 months of leaving. And of course the widely reported story[2] of the ex Google IT consultant who revealed that employees were given Android phones so that there locations could be mapped via GPS and Google maps at any point during the day. Neither of which suggest a completely happy bunch of campers.
As an aside, the research also highlighted that more than women than men would be willing to go abroad. Funnily enough in a similar study by a specialist family charity[3] found that two-thirds of married men would happily go and work abroad, whilst the other 33% were either unavailable for comment or replied in a foreign language. But I guess that’s the intricacies of research for you!
I open my arms in welcome to this fine study and I ask you to do the same. I am sure this goes a long way to contributing to the debate on employer branding and how to become an employer of choice. As we speak I have a room full of minions researching Coca-Cola, so that one day we too can feature as a “dream place of work”.
Until that time, I will be taking the words of Managing Director of HireScores.com Lisette Howlett to heart,
“I have a strong belief that people can achieve whatever they put their minds too [sic], if people have a desire to work for Coke all they have to do is work hard and they should achieve their goal…….If people are seeking out new employment, sites such as HiresScores.com can be such a significant help”
My Hell is Other People 
Every time Hirescores releases a piece of similar PR bilge – sorry, ‘research’ – I hear a loud cry from the internet bin men who complain at the sudden deluge of garbage which has just been unleashed on the unsuspecting public.
They produced a similar piece of tosh a few weeks ago on HRMagazine – see here http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/news/1013878/Chatting-work-costs-economy-2-billion-per-year/
I can’t imagine anything worse than reading another PR stunt by Hirescores.
Actually, i can. Spending the weekend holed up in the west country with HR folk, recruiters and social media gods talking about social media recruitment. Just kidding team! See you Saturday 😉
@garethmjones – Ridiculous isn’t it…..I really struggle to see why any publication would reprint this bollocks other than on a seriously, seriously slow news day!