The Great Resignation may no longer be dominating the news, but that doesn’t mean it’s over. A strong employer brand still plays a critical role in attracting and retaining top talent in today’s competitive job market. Companies like Apple, Google, and Lululemon Athletica, all with robust employer brands, rarely struggle with recruitment or customer loyalty. One simple and effective way to highlight your company culture is by showcasing your team through employee profiles.
This post explores everything you need to know about creating compelling employee profiles that support your employer brand and internal culture.
Why Staff Directories Are Important
Modern employee directories are more than just contact lists, they’re strategic tools that enhance your overall employer branding and boost internal engagement. Your team members are your strongest brand ambassadors and can promote your business far beyond office walls. That’s why staff directories remain one of the most essential features of internal websites, contributing to a more connected and informed workforce.
But that’s just the beginning. Here are the top six business benefits of using employee profiles.
6 Business Benefits Of Employee Profiles
1. Connect With Remote Workers
Remote work has grown dramatically in recent years. According to data, the number of regular US remote workers increased by 216% between 2005 and 2019. The rise of the gig economy has also led to more freelancers and contractors joining company ecosystems. Forbes reports that over two million new gig workers entered the U.S. workforce in 2020 alone.
Keeping remote and freelance workers engaged and connected is no easy feat. This requires next-level internal communication strategies. A great starting point? Employee profiles. They humanize coworkers by showing their personalities, skills, and expertise, building stronger virtual connections that emails alone can’t achieve.
Rich employee directories help remote workers feel included and aligned with company goals, bridging the geographical gap effectively.
2. Improve Working Relationships
In larger companies, especially those with 50+ employees, it can be difficult to get to know everyone. Traditional paper directories only listed names and job titles, not exactly relationship-building material.
Today’s online employee directories offer visual, interactive profiles that help colleagues understand one another on a deeper level. They make the workplace feel more personal and connected, improving day-to-day collaboration and morale.
3. Smarter Collaboration And Community Building
Comprehensive employee directory software highlights internal expertise, active projects, and shared interests, all crucial for building a culture of collaboration. Features like activity streams and #hashtag channels (similar to social media) allow employees to follow relevant conversations and colleagues across the business.
Even when physical networking isn’t possible, these virtual spaces make it easy to connect and share knowledge. Employees can search profiles by name, department, topic, or skills, enabling internal networking without ever leaving their desk.
4. Increase Employee Engagement
When workers can explore and interact with employee profiles in a self-service format, it boosts their sense of autonomy. They can find resources, identify experts, and solve problems without needing to go through traditional hierarchies.
What’s more, showcasing individuals through profiles recognizes their contributions and reinforces their value. This kind of visibility and acknowledgment directly increases employee engagement and job satisfaction.
5. Tool For Organizational Talent Scouting
It’s far more efficient to develop existing talent than to hire new staff. Managers can use employee profiles to identify skill sets, project experience, or leadership potential. Whether you’re assembling a cross-functional task force or building a pipeline for succession planning, searchable directories make talent identification fast and effective.
Employee directories offer the transparency leaders need to uncover hidden gems and future stars within their teams.
6. Help Onboarding New Staff
Employee onboarding is smoother and faster when new hires can browse profiles to learn names, faces, and roles. No more awkward introductions or trying to memorize org charts. With access to a searchable employee directory from day one, new recruits can connect with team members and hit the ground running.
Employee Profile Format
So, you’re convinced that creating employee profiles is a smart move, but what exactly should they include? That’s a great question. The truth is, there’s no universal template because every company is different. However, your employee profile software should be customizable to suit your specific organizational needs and culture.
That said, there are several core components every profile should feature. These essential elements ensure consistency and provide valuable context for both colleagues and management:
- Name
- Job role
- Photograph
- Team or department
- Office phone number
- Mobile phone number
- Email address
- Summary of job tasks and responsibilities
These fields should be considered the minimum requirements for any effective employee profile. Depending on your business goals, you can enrich the profile further. For instance, companies with multiple office locations might include geographical information to help staff identify where team members are based.
Some organizations go beyond the basics with detailed employee bios covering academic qualifications, certifications, and career history. Others prefer a more skills-based approach, focusing on current projects, areas of expertise, and professional accomplishments. These additions can significantly improve knowledge sharing and internal collaboration.
Don’t overlook the power of personal details. Adding a human touch, such as hobbies, interests, or fun facts, makes profiles more engaging. This helps foster company culture and allows employees to showcase their personality, building a stronger sense of connection across teams.
Pro Tip: Give employees control over their own profile. It’s part of their personal brand and identity within your organization. Empowering them to update and manage their information ensures accuracy and boosts engagement.
Employee Profile Example
We have developed the following basic employee profile template to get you started. Feel free to adapt it to suit your organization’s requirements.
| PERSONAL DETAILS | |
| Name: | |
| Cell phone: | |
| Office phone: | |
| Email: | |
| Location: | |
| CURRENT ROLE | |
| Job title: | |
| Team: | |
| Department: | |
| Manager’s name: | |
| Direct reports: | |
| CAREER ACCOMPLISHMENTS
(brief summary of career to date & key accomplishments) |
|
| KNOWLEDGE & EXPERTISE
(list up to five areas of expertise & knowledge e.g. workplace safety & health, procurement, social media marketing) |
|
| CURRENT WORK PROJECTS & ACTIVITY STREAMS
(list main job tasks & responsibilities, identify any special projects or collaborative initiatives) |
|
| PERSONAL STATEMENT
(short statement of your hobbies, interests & pastimes outside work) |
|
Employee profiles should also include a photo. Some companies have gone further and include video testimonials with staff chatting about their roles, knowledge, and expertise.
And like any social media platform, image-based content in the shape of photos and videos is far more popular than text. Images bring the employee’s profile to life for a more engaging and rewarding user experience. These don’t need to be professional images either. Nowadays, everyone can access high-quality videos and cameras using their smartphones, which can be easily uploaded.
How To Write Your Employee Profile
Now we come to the hard part, writing a great employee profile. Not everyone is comfortable writing about themselves, so getting started can be a challenge. To increase participation and engagement, it’s important to make the process as easy and accessible as possible.
Consider creating simple, clear employee profile writing guidelines. These can include suggested prompts to help staff decide what to include:
- What does your job involve on a day-to-day basis?
- What’s a typical workday look like for you?
- What do you enjoy most about your role?
- What common questions do colleagues or customers ask you?
- How do you unwind outside of work?
- What hobbies or interests do you pursue in your free time?
- Can you share a fun or surprising fact about yourself?
When it’s time to start writing, include these proven tips in your guidelines. And don’t forget: leading by example is essential. Managers and team leads should apply these tips in their own profiles:
- Keep it short and focused: The best employee profiles are concise, informative, and easy to read. Think headlines, not novels, aim for clarity, not verbosity.
- Be relatable: Put yourself in a colleague’s shoes. What would a new team member want to know about your role? Focus on providing useful context that others can understand and apply.
- Use a conversational tone: Avoid corporate jargon. Write in plain, everyday language that feels natural and approachable across all departments.
- Be specific and clear: Instead of saying “proficient in MS Word,” mention “experienced with advanced mail merge for marketing campaigns.” Real-life examples help illustrate your unique skills.
- Format for readability: Use bullet points, headings, and short paragraphs. These formatting tools help break up text and make your profile more digestible.
- Keep it current: Regularly review and update your profile after each major project or achievement. A fresh profile reflects your ongoing contributions and growth.
How To Get Employees To Complete Their Profiles
Even with templates and tips, some employees may still hesitate. Whether it’s time constraints, lack of confidence, or privacy concerns, you’ll need a strategy to boost participation in creating employee intranet profiles.
Here’s how to encourage company-wide involvement:
- Lead from the top: Managers and executives must complete their own profiles first. When leadership participates, others are more likely to follow.
- Explain the value: Many employees resist simply because they don’t see the point. Use internal communications to highlight the benefits of employee profiles, like better collaboration, stronger team connections, and increased visibility.
- Address privacy concerns: Be transparent about how profile data is used. Reassure staff that profiles can be kept within your secure, internal network and aren’t published externally without consent.
- Provide support: Offer guidance and one-on-one help if needed. Give employees dedicated time to complete their profiles during onboarding or team workshops.
- Gamify the process: Turn it into a fun contest! Reward the team or department that completes all profiles first with a team lunch, a gift voucher, or a bonus day off.
- Make it mandatory: As a last resort, consider making it a formal requirement, just like completing compliance training or submitting timesheets.
Intranet Employee Profiles
Ready to get started, but unsure what software to use? The MyHub intranet platform offers an ideal solution. Employee profiles come built-in and are fully customizable, so you can tailor fields to suit your company’s structure and goals.
With MyHub’s intuitive setup wizard, you can also integrate powerful social intranet features like activity walls, internal follows, and knowledge-sharing streams, all designed to foster collaboration and community.
But that’s just one part of a full-featured solution. MyHub also includes:
- Secure cloud hosting with robust data protection
- Advanced content and document management tools
- Company-wide and team-based newsfeeds
- Real-time collaboration via embedded Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 apps
- Built-in surveys and quizzes for employee feedback
- Corporate calendars and shared event planning
- Online forms and approval workflows
This all-in-one intranet requires only a single login and offers excellent value through a predictable monthly fee, including ongoing support, updates, and data backups.
Curious to see it in action? Book a free demo or start a 14-day trial, no obligation, just possibilities.
FAQ Section
What are employee profiles, and why are they important?
Employee profiles are detailed representations of staff members, including their roles, experiences, and personal interests. They are important for fostering connections, enhancing collaboration, and strengthening the employer brand by humanizing the workforce.
How do employee profiles benefit remote or hybrid teams?
For remote or hybrid teams, employee profiles help maintain visibility and connection among colleagues. They provide insights into team members’ backgrounds and expertise, facilitating collaboration and reducing feelings of isolation.
What elements should be included in an effective employee profile?
An effective employee profile should include professional information such as role and experience, as well as personal elements like interests or hobbies. Incorporating multimedia elements like photos or videos can also enhance engagement.
