How Wyborowa Pernod Ricard builds its employer brand

Effective employer branding begins where marketing ends – in the real employee experience. At WPR this experience is shaped by local initiatives and by the Group’s global Employer Value Proposition, built on three pillars: Collective Spirit, Craft Your Path, and Cultivate the Future. These principles set the direction for the company’s activities worldwide and are also reflected in how the employer brand is built in Poland.

Wyborowa Pernod Ricard demonstrates how to combine global frameworks with a local perspective, engage employees who reflect the diversity of society and the market, and design recruitment processes that ensure equal access to opportunities for all.

What does effective employer branding mean today, and what role does it play in WPR’s strategy?

In my view, effective employer branding is primarily about consistency between what an organisation communicates externally and what the actual work experience looks like internally. It is not a set of slogans or an image campaign, but a consistently delivered employer promise. Market data confirms the importance of this approach. According to the ManpowerGroup’s Talent Shortage 2025 report, 59% of employers in Poland struggle to fill positions, while globally the figure reaches 74%. This shows that employer branding is increasingly becoming a real tool in the competition for talent, rather than just an addition to HR strategy.

At Wyborowa Pernod Ricard, employer branding is an integral part of HR strategy and overall business strategy. It requires very close collaboration with leaders and a deep understanding of their real needs, aligned with the expectations of candidates. Authenticity and transparency are key for us, including in recruitment processes. We want candidates to gain the fullest possible understanding of the role, the work environment, and our organisational culture before deciding to join.

Our recruitment processes often have several stages, but we ensure that candidates are informed at each step about what comes next and how long it will take. We care about creating a positive atmosphere and, as far as possible, minimising stress. We want to get to know the real person and their competencies.

This approach also has a long-term dimension. Even if a candidate is not ultimately hired, we want them to leave the process with a positive experience and consider reapplying in the future. I am proud to say that this happens quite often.

How does WPR communicate its employer brand by combining global strategy with local realities?

We believe that combining high performance with a culture of convivialité defines our unique way of working. We strive for Wyborowa Pernod Ricard to be an employer of choice by creating an environment where people feel good and engaged. As an HR team, we support and educate employees in the areas of development, wellbeing, and building an inclusive organisational culture where everyone can feel comfortable being themselves. In Poland, we build our employer brand around narratives rooted in the everyday experiences of our employees.

We communicate both internally and externally – through social media, our website, and dedicated employer branding activities. External communication builds awareness of what it is like to work with us and often provides a ‘behind-the-scenes’ look at the organisation. The second axis of our communication activities consists of targeted campaigns that address specific business and recruitment needs of particular groups.

Our organisation includes diverse functions, and the talents within it have different competencies and needs. It comprises production plants, a warehouse, headquarters, and a geographically dispersed sales team. This requires adapting the language, channels, and communication formats to the specifics of each employee group while maintaining message consistency.

What role do organisational culture and Pernod Ricard’s values play in building the employer brand?

The Pernod Ricard Group’s global employer branding strategy focuses on building an inclusive culture, which sets the framework for our local activities. A key value for us is convivialité, understood as a friendly atmosphere, authenticity, openness, and relationship-building based on respect. It is our differentiator, as confirmed by new employees who emphasise during onboarding meetings that they feel it from their very first days.

At Wyborowa Pernod Ricard, we want employees to be themselves, feel appreciated, and have space to collaborate – both locally and within the Group’s international environment. For each person, convivialité may mean something slightly different, allowing them to bring their unique ‘self’ into the organisation while remaining authentic. This translates into the everyday working atmosphere, as well as into the way we conduct recruitment processes and build relationships with candidates.

This approach is reflected in the Randstad Employer Brand Research 2025, which shows that a ‘friendly work atmosphere’ remains one of the key factors in choosing an employer, alongside salary, job security, and development opportunities. For us, convivialité is not an abstract slogan but a set of concrete behaviours, decisions, and initiatives that influence the employee experience at every stage of their career journey within the organisation.

How do you address the needs of such a diverse organisational structure?

In Poland, we operate in several locations; production plants and warehouses in Zielona Góra and Poznań, headquarters in Warsaw, and a sales team working nationwide. Each group has different needs, work realities, and expectations toward the employer.

Therefore, our employer branding activities must be flexible. In Warsaw, we use social media channels, as this is where our potential candidates are active. In Zielona Góra, we more often use job-portals, and candidates can even apply directly by phone. One example was our Apply Without a CV campaign.

We communicate with production teams in a different manner than with office employees or field teams. The key for us is ensuring that every employee, regardless of location, feels part of one organisation, while also feeling that communication is tailored to their daily reality.

One of your interesting initiatives was the Apply Without a CV campaign. Where did this idea come from?

We noticed that in recruitment for production plants and warehouses, submitting a traditional CV via our Workday system was a real barrier. Candidates often had the competencies and experience, but the application process itself was discouraging. Additionally, the competition for talent in the special economic zone made recruitment even more challenging.

We decided to simplify the application path. We created a dedicated website and enabled recruitment through direct phone contact. This allowed candidates to enter the recruitment process more easily, and it enabled us to recruit faster and more effectively.

The results were tangible: a higher number of applications and shorter time-to-hire. This showed us that building a positive candidate experience often means removing barriers and tailoring the process to both business needs and the target group.

What role do employees and grassroots initiatives play in employer branding?

Internal ambassadors play a crucial role in building consistency and, equally importantly, authenticity in both external and internal communication. Employees are the most credible voice in showing what working at Wyborowa Pernod Ricard truly looks like. Through their daily behaviours, initiatives, and events, they help promote and translate the culture of convivialité into practice.

A good example is the employee group Equal=Important, which was created bottom-up and focuses on strengthening an inclusive culture. The group has developed and implemented numerous initiatives aimed at building awareness and openness in areas such as cultural diversity, generational diversity, disability, neurodiversity, and LGBTQ+ topics.

For several months, we have also been developing Better Together interest groups, where employees share their passions in small groups and, more importantly, build cross-departmental relationships. Board-game enthusiasts, yoga practitioners, theatre lovers, and football fans meet regularly. Importantly, these groups are initiated by employees themselves, who decide on the theme and format of their meetings.

Such initiatives are extremely valuable because they show that the values we speak about as an organisation are genuinely practiced in everyday work and do not remain merely declarations.

From the HR business-partnering perspective, what role should employer branding play in an organisation?

Employer branding must respond to real business needs. In our role, it is crucial to understand which competencies are needed today and in the future, and how to best leverage the potential and diverse talents already within the organisation.

It is not about building an image for its own sake or winning awards for campaigns. It is about ensuring that valuable employees want to join us, strengthen our business, and stay with us long term. Employer branding is a shared responsibility of HR, leaders, and the entire organisation – and only then does it deliver real results.