A strong EVP isn’t just about listing benefits -  it’s your promise to employees. It defines why people join, why they stay, and what makes your organisation stand out. More than just a hiring tool, a well-crafted EVP is a retention powerhouse.

Here’s the thing: your EVP only works if employees experience it, not just hear about it. So how do you create one that feels real, valuable, and is experienced daily? Here are five data-based considerations straight from Extraordinary’s CEO, Steven Zinsli. You’ll be set up for success when:

1. Your EVP is Personalised

Forget any notion of a one-size-fits-all workplace. Employee-driven micro-cultures are redefining our workplaces, shaped by teams, roles, locations and personal values. Deloitte’s 2024 Global Human Capital Trends Report powerfully highlights how employees no longer see themselves as part of a single, monolithic company culture. Instead, they now expect a work experience tailored to them that recognises their unique needs, priorities and career goals.

What does this mean for your EVP? If it doesn’t flex to accommodate the differences and subcultures you already have, it’s a slippery road to your organisation being another ‘stepping stone’ to that dream people-first role.

Action steps: 

• Empower your employees to personalise their work experience. Offer flexible benefits that let them choose what works for them, whether that’s customised benefits packages, tailored learning paths, or work models that fit their needs. Find out more about delivering benefits to diverse and distributed teams.
• Ditch the guesswork - use data. Your EVP should be backed by insights from employee surveys, engagement trends, and internal mobility data. Track what employees actually value and make strategic decisions based on their real behaviour.
• Make it human. A truly people-first EVP acknowledges that employees are more than their job titles. Create programs that support individuals, not broad workforce initiatives. Whether it's early-career employees prioritising growth or parents valuing flexibility, your EVP should feel like it was designed for them, not just offered.

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2. Your EVP Is Aligned With Your Employee’s Expectations

If you’re still making decisions based on what you think employees want or what other organisations are doing - there’s a problem: assumptions don’t drive results. McKinsey’s Great Attrition or Great Attraction report showed a major disconnect between what leadership thinks motivates employees and what they actually value. Too many companies focus on compensation as the key to loyalty, while their employees rank feeling valued, having supportive leadership, and a sense of belonging as top priorities.

If your EVP isn’t addressing these needs, expect higher turnover and disengagement. Pay increases alone won’t fix a workplace where employees feel unheard, unseen, or unappreciated. Your team isn't just working for money but also for meaning, connection, and a workplace that reflects their values.

Action steps: 

• Stop guessing and start listening. Employee surveys, focus groups, and sentiment analysis will help you understand what truly matters to your team.
• Act on your data. Employees need to see real change from their feedback. If they say they want better mental health support or clearer career growth paths, deliver on it. Regularly communicate your organisation’s growth and development in this space - this also communicates your commitment to it.
• Make the EVP a two-way conversation. Don’t just tell employees what your EVP is, co-create (and co-evolve) it with them. Build feedback loops that continuously refine your EVP and keep it relevant.

Find out how to build trust and suceed in your leadership role.

3. Your EVP is Authentic and Differentiated

Employees quickly see through EVPs filled with corporate buzzwords and hollow promises that don’t translate into the real company culture. To build an effective EVP, it must be distinct, credible and authentically embedded in the daily work experience. According to Gartner, organisations with a clearly differentiated EVP experience 69% lower annual employee turnover, proving that standing out pays off. Gallup’s State of the Global Workforce 2024 report supports this, finding that having a strong, proactively managed EVP leads to a 23% profitability increase and an 18% productivity increase.

But take caution: only one-third of employees said their organisations actually consistently deliver on their EVP promises - meaning if you think your EVP commitments are going unnoticed, you’re mistaken. When employees perceive a gap between the promises and their actual work experience, trust erodes, engagement declines, and turnover can skyrocket. Go beyond words - live your EVP, don’t just list it.

Action steps:

• Tie your EVP to what makes you unique instead of copying others. What does your company do exceptionally well? Make that a defining EVP pillar.
• Check your EVP’s accessibility and usability. Employees shouldn’t have to search for their benefits. Keep it simple, seamless, and front and centre. Clear communication, easy digital access, and regular reminders support engagement. In fact, for each additional channel through which they learn about their EVP, they are 24% more likely to agree that their organisation delivers on its EVP promises.
• Reinforce through leadership. Employees look to leaders to set the tone. If managers and executives don’t embody the EVP, others aren’t likely to follow. Ensure leadership actively promotes and models company values.
• Make it visible in daily work. Your EVP isn’t a slogan - it should be felt. Employees should experience career growth opportunities, flexible work arrangements, and well-being programs firsthand, not just read about them in a handbook.

4. Your EVP Connects To Your Employees’ Purpose

The Great Resignation wasn’t just about quitting - it was about reprioritising. Employees are searching for more than just a paycheck - they want work that matters and is meaningful to them. McKinsey found that 70% of employees define their sense of purpose through work, yet a stark divide exists: 85% of executives feel their work gives them purpose, compared to just 15% of frontline employees. 

That gap is a problem, one that undermines engagement, erodes trust, and fuels turnover. With nearly 70% of employees turning down companies lacking a clear purpose and 60% willing to take pay cuts to work for organisations that align with their values, now is the time to ensure your EVP connects employees to a bigger mission.

Action steps:

• Make purpose personal. Employees need to see how their work drives real impact, whether for customers, communities, or the company. Tie everyday tasks to your larger mission through leadership messaging, team meetings, employee spotlights and the like.
• Bridge the purpose gap between frontline staff and executives by aligning CSR efforts, ethical business practices, and community involvement with day-to-day work.
• Weave purpose into the employee experience. Purpose shouldn’t be just a value on a company slide deck - it should show up in onboarding, internal communications, recognition programs, and career development at every stage of an employee’s journey.
• Empower employees to engage with their values. Give employees opportunities for skills-based volunteering, personal passion projects, and flexible work structures that help them find fulfilment beyond their role.

5. Your EVP Is Woven Into Your Employee Experience

A strong EVP isn’t a slogan, it’s an experience. Employees need to see, feel, and use your EVP every day - and they’ll be rewarded for it. Gallup found that companies integrating their EVP into daily operations see higher engagement, stronger retention and deeper loyalty. And if you think you’re overcommunicating your EVP? You’re probably not. A 2024 Gartner survey of more than 1,300 employees found that only 21% said their organisation communicates enough about their EVP.

Action steps:

• Make leaders the embodiment of the EVP. Employees take cues from leadership, so if managers don’t live company values, no one else will. Leaders should consistently reinforce EVP through their decisions, communication, and interactions.
• Introduce your EVP from day one. Onboarding isn’t just about paperwork, it’s about immersion. Show new hires what your EVP looks like in action, from career growth opportunities to workplace culture.
• Tie recognition and rewards to EVP. Employees should feel valued in ways that reflect your EVP, whether that’s personalised incentives, peer recognition programs, or benefits that align with company culture.
• Back it up with real policies. Flexible work arrangements, well-being programs, and career development shouldn’t just exist, they should be actively encouraged, accessible, and embedded into everyday work life.

Extraordinary Helps You Bring Your EVP To Life

At Extraordinary, we’re transforming EVPs from theoretical concepts into real, impactful employee experiences. As the research reinforces, a strong EVP isn’t just a list of benefits; it’s a lived experience where employees feel valued, engaged, and empowered every day.

Our platform is designed to make it seamless for companies to deliver personalised, flexible, and meaningful reward and  benefits that align with their EVP and company culture. With Extraordinary, you can:

• Give employees autonomy over their benefits with customisable allowances tailored to their needs, such as wellness, learning, travel, or lifestyle perks.
• Reinforce belonging and simplify payments with branded company cards, ensuring rewards, stipends, and budgets are easily accessible and seamlessly distributed, tracking how employees engage with benefits and making adjustments based on actual usage.
• Create a culture of recognition with integrated incentives and rewards that employees actually care about, whether through peer recognition, milestone bonuses, or spot rewards.
• Streamline all non-payroll payments. This ranges from work-related purchases to team experiences, so employees can use their EVP benefits without waiting for reimbursements.
• Eliminate administrative burdens with automated compliance, tax-friendly categorisation, and built-in tracking so HR and finance teams can focus on people, not paperwork.
• Make your EVP instantly visible and tangible with seamless digital access, automated notifications, and company-wide transparency around benefits and rewards.

With Extraordinary, your EVP isn’t just a promise - it’s a reality. Ready to elevate your EVP? Let’s make it happen.