About the Author: Warren Wong is a strategic Human Capital Advisor and Business Consultant with more than 35 years of global human resources management leadership experience and success. He has forged a career passion for inspiring, enabling and transforming hyper-growth organizations. Warren works with the Launchpad leadership team on talent management and business strategy best practices.

How can you tell which are the truly exceptional tech employers? The ones that would really be great to work for?

It's easy, if you know what to look for.

But first, I'll let you in on a secret.

Exceptional employers don’t just happen; they build themselves using 4 strategic pillars. Like a 4-legged stool, all those pillars need to be in place for a company to be great...and to be a great potential employer.

I normally guide employers and C-level executives through implementing those 4 key pillars.

But in this article, I'll turn things around to show how those 4 pillars also act as 4 signposts that in-demand Salesforce Developers like you can use to spot awesome potential employers.

The 4 Talent Management Pillars

Before we get into the 4 signposts you should look for to spot an exceptional potential employer, here's a quick overview of what they're based on: the 4 Talent Management Pillars.

Employees love what the 4 Talent Management Pillars produce: ideal employers.

The 4 Talent Management Pillars represent a strategy and mindset I started shaping early in my career. It grew out of an epiphany I had after hearing the Canadian Armed Forces tagline, "Be the Best You Can Be."

I realized that the best I could be was to help others be the best they could be. That's been the core of my approach with companies over the years, and it's proven very successful.

Employers love the 4 Talent Management Pillars because they create the foundation needed to build a hyper-growth organization.

Employees, meanwhile, love what the 4 Talent Management Pillars produce: ideal employers.

But this isn't a one-time set-it-and-forget-it process. Successful companies need to continue working on and investing in all of the 4 Talent Management Pillars at all times.

Remember, it's like a 4-legged stool. If even one pillar is neglected, the entire structure becomes unstable.

Now, let's see how these 4 pillars act as 4 signposts for spotting dream employers.

Signpost #1: Talent Organization

The first signpost of an ideal employer is that it knows how to organize its greatest asset: its talent.

Here are some of the things you should look for to spot this signpost:

• The employer has efficient work processes

• They have clearly articulated core values that guide their culture and decisions

• They proactively review and communicate how work is defined, assigned and organized

When done right, Talent Organization enables an employer to build a highly engaged team and a high-performance culture.

Let's look at the real-world example of Launchpad Technologies Inc.

Launchpad is a leading provider of next-generation integration platform capabilities and custom integration services for connecting and managing enterprise automation and data integration.

Although I had officially retired, I chose to be a Special Advisor to the Launchpad leadership team on talent management and business strategy best practices.

Why did I choose to work with Launchpad when I didn't need to work at all?

Because I saw the signpost of their clearly articulated core values, guiding their culture and decisions.

Even more important, their values perfectly mapped onto the values I know are needed to create the culture of an ideal employer.

In Launchpad's case, they articulate their core values this way:

• Growth

• Fairness

• Integrity

• Passion

• Drive

Why is it important to look for an employer that clearly articulates their core values?

Because core values are the sign of confident leadership that's based on principles, not just a blind drive for growth or profits.

Clear core values also enable an employer to recognize and reward "star" employees that live those values, which is precisely why Launchpad created their Launchpad Values Program (more on rewarding employees in Signpost #4).

The Talent Organization signpost also involves proactively reviewing and communicating how work is defined, assigned, and organized.

A job competencies library helps employees see how they could best fit with the organization and set goals for learning and moving up to the next level.

Since every organization is different, it's important for an employer to define the roles that are involved along with a set of key competencies necessary for the organization to be successful.

The result is a job competencies library. This resource helps employees see how they could best fit with the organization and set goals for learning and moving up to the next level.

Why is it important to look for an employer that provides this type of resource?

Because you want to join a company that's committed to supporting your career advancement. That includes management talking to employees about how the organization can help them develop their skills and gain new certifications (more on that in Signpost #3).

Signpost #2: Talent Acquisition

The second signpost of an ideal employer is that it knows how to rapidly identify, attract and acquire the right people at the right time.

In other words, they consistently hire the best talent.

Here are some of the things you should look for to spot this signpost:

• The employer has a growth mindset

• They provide a great "candidate experience" from beginning to end

• They're committed to making the world a better place

Why is it important to look for an employer with a growth mindset?

Because you want to work for the best...and the best organizations grow. Part of that growth is because they're great at what they do. But a big part is because they expect and plan to grow.

I was fortunate to experience this type of growth mindset in a significant way when eBay Canada created their initial footprint in the country. As the Human Resources leader and their first Canadian manager, I oversaw the company growing from 8 employees to over 1200 in only 2 years.

While most companies never experience that level of hyper-growth, you still want to look for an expanding organization. Not only is it one of the signs of success, but it also means more opportunities for your own career advancement.

Why is it important to look for an employer that provides a great "candidate experience" from beginning to end?

For multiple reasons:

1. Because organizations that provide a great candidate experience recognize they're competing with other potential employers for top employees. That means they'll make it clear to you what advantages and benefits you'll receive if you decide to work with them.
   

2. Because even if you're not the perfect match and don't get hired right now, if the organization treats you well with their great candidate experience, you'll still consider applying later if another position opens up or if you've gained the skills they need.
   

3. Because if you are the perfect match and get hired, a great candidate experience goes well beyond the hiring and signing on stage, which means you'll also benefit from a great onboarding and orientation process.

As a result, one of the ways top employers attract top talent is by actively demonstrating their commitment to making the world better place. That can be through the organization's official business activities or by paying employees for a set amount of time during which they're free to do volunteer work for their preferred cause.

Another reason is that, even if you've never really thought about making the world a better place better, it can contribute to job satisfaction.

Signpost #3: Talent Cultivation

The third signpost of an ideal employer is that it knows how to cultivate its talent.

Here are some of the things you should look for to spot this signpost:

• The employer helps promote a healthy balance between work and personal life

• They help employees form and reach personal goals

• They strategically manage their "talent density"
  

While promoting a healthy balance between work and personal life is easy enough to understand, it's often missing in growing companies. So look for those employers that actively encourage that balance.

When it comes to employers that help employees form and reach their goals, don't just settle for help around your career growth goals. Instead, the ideal employer helps its people become all they can be in every area of their life, from work to fitness, mental health and more.

They might do that by providing the likes of benefit programs, health-related incentives, or counseling services.

Why is it important to look for an employer that strategically manages their "talent density"?

Because that can represent a tremendous win-win scenario.

"Talent density" is how much knowledge and skill an organization's employees represent in a particular space. It's usually measured through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as the total number of courses taken or the number of certifications earned.

Talent density helps companies prove to clients that:

• They have top talent

• They're up to date on standards and best practices

• They can get the job done in a timely manner the first time

That's why ideal employers are always looking to increase their talent density.

It also means they're more open to helping with your career advancement goals.

Let's look at another real-world example from Launchpad Technologies.

Launchpad is exploring using professional development journals. Employees use their journals to identify how they want their careers to grow. Then they work with management to find ways to make that happen.

To see how that process could play out, let's say one of Launchpad's employees is a Salesforce Developer named Mike.

Mike already has a B2C Commerce Developer certification but wants to work up to the B2C Commerce Architect cert. That will require:

• Time to study

• Money to pay for required training

If Launchpad needs a B2C Commerce Architect right now, it makes sense for them to provide the time and money needed to deepen their talent density while helping Mike grow his skillset.

That's the tremendous win-win scenario I mentioned earlier.
This win-win scenario holds true with any type of organization that strategically manages their talent density

But what if Launchpad doesn’t need a B2C Commerce Architect right now?

Since they're the type of employer that strategically manages their talent density, they'll have a longer view of Mike and his value to the company. That means:

• They'll still provide the time and money needed to help Mike grow his skillset

• When the time comes that they do need a B2C Commerce Architect, they'll either already have one (if Mike has already earned that cert), or they'll be well on their way to having one

And since Salesforce is continually adding to and developing their platform, it's smart for Launchpad to strategically provide the time and money for all their Salesforce Developers to proactively upgrade and expand their skills.

This win-win scenario holds true with any type of organization that strategically manages their talent density.

Signpost #4: Talent Retention

The final signpost of an ideal employer is that it knows how to retain its talent.

Here are some of the things you should look for to spot this signpost:

• The employer recognizes and appreciates their employees' contributions

• They reward employees based on their results

• They take every opportunity to celebrate successes

It's no secret that ideal employers excel at retaining their people. They do it by keeping them happy.

But that takes deliberate effort and hard work. After all, there are usually other jobs and other employers that in-demand employees can choose from.

That's why you owe it to yourself to look for the type of employer that proactively invests in keeping you around.

It reminds me of the time I was working on the top floor of the Bank of America tower in Seattle. It was the late 1990s. Suddenly an earthquake struck. I looked out to the opposite building and saw some window washers. They were swaying back and forth on their flimsy platform.

I wonder how many of them quit that day!

If they didn't, they were probably working for an ideal employer that was great at talent retention.

Here are just a few ways you might come across that an ideal employer uses to retain its talent:

• Empower managers to informally give thank-you cards or gift cards to recognize people that have gone above and beyond.
  

• Create a formal program to recognize employees that demonstrate the company's values.
  

• Consistently take the time to celebrate specific achievements but also simply celebrate and appreciate life and each other.
  

• Promote a culture of social impact and giving (remember from Signpost #2 that helping make the world a better place can contribute to job satisfaction).
  

• Allow flexible work schedules, remote work, or other lifestyle-enhancing benefits.

While every company is different, be sure to look for the employer that consistently makes the effort to keep its talent happy.

Conclusion

How can you tell which are the truly exceptional employers that would really be great to work for?

Look for the 4 signposts that tell you they're great at:

• Talent Organization

• Talent Acquisition

• Talent Cultivation

• Talent Retention

That's where you're most likely to find the most stable work environments, the most support for your personal development, the most respectful cultures, and the longest spans of employment working on industry-leading projects while being appreciated and rewarded along the way.

Happy hunting!