4 MIN READ
building a stronger EVP
- How leadership shapes loyalty
- Why EVP should never be one-size-fits-all
- What flexibility really says about your culture
- The truth about progression and retention
- How recognition drives performance
- Making purpose part of the day-to-day
- Turning EVP from words into action
- Creating a place people want to stay
So when a high performer walks out the door – someone you trusted and invested in – it lands harder than you admit. Not just because of what it costs, but because it reveals something deeper.
No one tells you this part: that being a leader means carrying the weight of everything – strategy, morale, market shifts, and the quiet burden of others’ expectations – while still trying to lead with clarity and conviction.
This is the quiet reckoning many employers are facing right now. Not that hiring is hard (you already know that), but that what used to work doesn’t anymore.
The original playbook – culture decks, flexible hours, stock options – feels tired. And if you’re honest, you’ve felt it too: the energy dip. The hesitations. The way even the strongest people seem less certain they want to be part of your company.
Here’s the hard truth: Top performers aren’t leaving because they’re ungrateful. They’re leaving because something’s missing.
According to Denholm’s latest research report, The truth about high performers, it’s not pay or perks that are pushing people out.
It’s leadership that isn’t listening. Values that feel performative. Environments that talk about trust, but don’t follow through. People leave when the story they were sold doesn’t match the one they’re living.
And make no mistake, this isn’t a marketing problem. It’s an integrity problem.
But here’s the good news: you’re not powerless. This isn’t about fixing everything overnight. It’s about showing up differently – more honestly, more consistently, and with a sharper eye on what your employee experience is actually like.
What follows isn’t a list of surface-level EVP tweaks. It’s a reframe. A set of bold, research-backed shifts to help you reconnect your vision with the people you’ve hired to realise it.
Because the best people don’t need perfection. They need proof that what you’re building is still worth believing in.
Elevate Leadership as a Central EVP Promise
What's happening?
Across all functions surveyed, poor leadership was cited as the number one reason people leave – even more than salary or burnout. For HR professionals, a staggering 91% had already exited a job due to leadership issues. The message is clear: your EVP cannot just speak to culture or benefits. It needs to speak to leadership – how it behaves, listens, and evolves.
What can you do?
- Go beyond executive bios. Share real stories of when leaders accepted feedback and made meaningful change. Candidates are looking for proof, not promises.
- Include “leadership accountability” in job descriptions. Be explicit about how leaders are measured – not just on revenue, but on inclusion, feedback, and development support.
- Create opportunities for candidates to engage with leadership during the hiring process. A casual “coffee chat with a director” can be more persuasive than a slick brand video.
Tailor Your EVP by Function, Not Just Brand
What's happening?
The data makes it undeniable – different departments care about different things. A single EVP message won’t cut it anymore. Marketers want creative freedom. Finance professionals want clarity and structured progression. Sales teams want recognition and autonomy.
What can you do?
- Create role-specific EVP messaging. Don’t just say “we value innovation.” Say, “Our finance team has clear, documented career paths and mentorship programs.”
- Use dynamic job pages. Let candidates choose to explore what your company offers for their discipline, whether they’re in tech, sales, or HR.
- Find internal advocates. Ask current employees from each department to record 60-second videos about what keeps them engaged.
Use Flexibility to Signal Trust — Not Convenience
What's happening?
Flexibility is no longer a “nice to have” – it’s a core trust indicator. In Denholm’s survey, 0% of sales, marketing, or tech professionals opted for fully onsite roles. For high performers, rigid hours feel less like structure and more like control.
What can you do?
- Name and define your approach to flexible work. Give it a framework – like “TrustFirst.” This shows flexibility as an intentional choice, not a concession.
- Don’t just say “remote-friendly” – explain what that looks like. Can employees define their own hours? Are they measured by outcomes rather than attendance? Make it clear.
- Support your managers. Many people resist flexibility not because they don’t believe in it, but because they don’t know how to manage it well.
Make Career Progression a Visible, Living System
What's happening?
One of the clearest findings across nearly every function is that people are leaving because they can’t see where they’re going next. They’re not looking for promotion every six months – but they are looking for signs that growth is possible.
What can you do?
- Visualise the path. Create career journey maps that show what skills and experiences lead to each level – not just titles.
- Check in regularly, not reactively. Managers should ask quarterly: “What do you want to learn next?” rather than waiting for performance review season.
- Offer lateral movement, too. Not every high performer wants to climb – some want to pivot. Let them.
“What stood out most in this research wasn’t what people said—it was what they’d already done. The majority of high performers we spoke to had already left roles because leadership didn’t listen, values felt hollow, or growth had stalled. That’s not a hiring issue. That’s a disconnect between intention and experience.
At Denholm, we’re not just helping clients fill roles—we’re helping them close that gap. When a company’s EVP becomes something you can feel, not just read, it stops being a pitch. It becomes a magnet for the kind of people who build businesses, not just join them.”
MARISA CARROLL, COO of denholm
Embed Recognition in the Day-to-Day, Not Just the Milestones
What's happening?
Recognition consistently shows up in the top three motivators for high performers, especially in Sales, Finance, and HR. Yet many companies still treat it as a quarterly box to tick.
What can you do?
- Empower peer-to-peer recognition. Let employees call out each other’s efforts in real time via Slack, Teams, or other platforms.
- Not every project is a home run, but people are more likely to stay when both outcomes are rewarded and genuine effort is acknowledged.
- Celebrate small wins. Consistent, quiet validation beats the occasional grand gesture.
Show Purpose in Every Job — Not Just in the Mission Statement
What's happening?
Across all disciplines, purpose was either the top motivator or a close second. But it’s not enough to post “changing the world” on your About Us page. Employees want to understand how their work contributes to something meaningful.
What can you do?
- Map team goals to the company mission. Help people connect their everyday work to bigger outcomes.
- Let employees rewrite their own job titles. It may sound small, but it reinforces impact.
- Ask during interviews: “What kind of work feels most meaningful to you?” Then find a way to give them more of it.
Treat Your EVP Like a Conversation, Not a Campaign
What's happening?
Many companies still see EVP as something they define in a workshop, print on posters, and then forget. But top performers – especially in HR and Tech – are hyper-aware of gaps between what’s promised and what’s actually lived.
What can you do?
- Launch quarterly EVP feedback surveys. Ask: “Are we living the values we say we believe in?”
- Share what you’re improving. Even saying, “Here’s what we got wrong, and here’s how we’re fixing it,” builds trust.
- Involve employees in refining your EVP. Especially your high performers. Their insights will surprise you and likely improve retention just by involving them.
Build an EVP That Feels Like Home
You don’t need to have it all figured out. But you do need to be asking the right questions.
Attracting and keeping great people isn’t about being the trendiest brand or offering the flashiest perks. It’s about building something real – something that resonates with the kind of talent that drives companies forward.
That’s where we come in.
We work with leaders who care deeply about their people and their culture – leaders who know that an EVP isn’t a tagline, but a lived experience. If you’re ready to build the kind of proposition that earns trust, reflects your values, and speaks to the people you actually want to hire – we can help you shape it.
Talk to Denholm
At Denholm, we help ambitious companies hire at the level they need to grow.
Whether it’s rare skillsets, tight timelines, or complex hiring challenges, we know how to find the people who raise the bar—and stay the course.
We don’t just connect you with exceptional talent. We work with you to shape the kind of EVP that makes them choose you and choose to stay. Contact us on 03303 359 818 for advice and support. We’re ready to help.
