Search “roadmap employer brand on Google,” and you’ll be met with over 2.5 million results in just over half a second. With so many directives and options, Crystal Miller Lay led a member call to distill some advice on getting started using this tactic to layout your EB and RM plans.  

What is a roadmap?

According to Roadmunk, a roadmap is “a long view of where your organization is going and how you’re getting there.” A project roadmap is about goals, objectives, and benefits. These allow you to identify and create action items. Project plans are for the doers of your organization (which may include you!), such as coders, and are very specific and instructional -- think data, dates, and details. If you don’t even have a “pla,” that’s OK -- roadmaps precede project plans. 

I’m in. What are my options?

• AirTable (great if you just need a roadmap and don’t need to house items within it)

• Asana (multiple view options: by project, person, step to completion, etc.)  

• Basecamp

• RoadmapPlanner.io

• Roadmunk

• SmartSheet 

• Trello

• Venngage

Fantastic. How do I get started using a roadmap?

If you don’t have a plan, start by asking questions. If using it for a careers site, for example, what has the past performance been? Whether you leverage a heatmap or Google Analytics (or something else, we’re all ears) to answer this question, doing so will inform what your roadmap needs to address. You can even get granular, testing calls to action and different hypotheses. Here are high-level recommended steps:

• Set your priorities for strategies and deliverables

• Create the overall timeline

• Split out your workstreams

  • These are project-dependent, but you can split them up by teams (database, UX, front-end developer, etc.) or environment (server, desktop, network), etc.

• Identify key activities & define milestones

  • Best practice: ensure these map back to the program charter

• Socialize & constantly update

OK, I’m going to give this a try. What are the different use cases and layout options to stay organized?

You can create a high-level strategic project plan, or use this for a specific program or campaign/content, or get granular for advertising or a new initiative. No matter the use case, ensure that you include

• the mission statement

• all relevant stakeholders

• a clear vision

• standards of performance

To tackle those, consider these four layouts.       

Actually, this is a bit overwhelming -- I’m so busy! What if I need outside help?

You can consider a pitch to work with an EB agency. If you need to make that argument, do a quick "opportunity costs" analysis: consider the salaries of the people involved who would do the work in-house, and how much it'd actually total to launch X project in-house vs with an agency.

Final words of roadmap wisdom:

Don’t be a Ross. Do aim to create a balance: add enough to the roadmap so the campaign is cared for and no large gaps exist, but ensure the text is readable and not trying to cover an overwhelming amount of information.

Interested in having deeper discussions about employer brand roadmaps? Join the Talent Brand Alliance! By clicking here you can connect with thousands of other practitioners who are navigating the same situations as yourself.

About Our TBA Members: Nicole Stephens, Crystal Miller Lay, and Rachel.

Nicole Stephens leads the global employer brand social media strategy and content at Wells Fargo. An aspiring ex-pat, she's working on her macaron recipe and tennis serve.

Crystal’s passion, extensive knowledge, and fresh insight has made her a sought-after writer, speaker, and reliable expert source for multiple media outlets including CBS, Fox News, Hanley-Wood, Mashable, Huffington Post, and ABC. She has an extensive network in HR Technology and Industry media. As an industry leader, she is recognized for expertise in employer branding, brand strategy & marketing, reputation marketing, creative content, and digital strategic solutions. Her work in predictive recruitment marketing has helped numerous organizations refine and optimize their marketing spend as well as improve workforce retention through better hiring experiences. Her development of game-changing university marketing programs has been called “ground-breaking,” saving employers thousands of collective man-hours spent on college campuses, while strengthening relations with faculty. She has created brand, communication, digital, media, crisis PR, and B2B/B2C launch strategies for some of the biggest companies in the world.