Earlier this week, I wrote about an Apple contractor quitting due to his boss, pointing out that based on the details, it was further proof that people quit jobs due to the boss, not the company.

You don't quit Apple because of Apple.  You quit because your boss sucks, which is totally against the brand presented.

A commenter in my social stream added the following tag: "People join companies due to the brand.(my words - actual tweet below)

They join for brand. RT @LeaderChat: Even at Apple, People Quit Bosses, Not Companies... http://t.co/mWETFWu0wF By @kris_dunn

— Michelle Wilkerson (@1chilladynaz) February 13, 2014

She's right.  One of the things that always amazes me in the recruiting game is the fact that almost every candidate has DRAMATICALLY IMPERFECT information regarding the company and situation they are thinking about joining.

As a result, what are they buying when they join a company?  They're buying the brand. The brand isn't necessary the logo or what the consumer sees. The brand they've experienced in the interview process includes:

1. The people they've met in the interview process.

2. What people are saying in their social circles about the company.

3. What they find online.

4. The careers site.

5. LinkedIn Stalking about the department they're going into.

6. The attractiveness level of the co-workers they will be working with.

and....

7.  100 other imperfect snippets of information they may have access to in an informal capacity.

Add it all up, and it's a brand impression in the candidate's eye.

It's imperfect, it's biased, it's never the same for any two candidates, and it's totally the reality.

People join your company based on the hodgepodge brand they create in their minds of who you are.

When that brand impression doesn't meet their expectation, they're at risk.

Having a crappy manager is one of the things that can cause a new hire to voluntarily eject from your company.  

Which leads me to ask the following two questions.  What are you doing to create an organic brand impression in the minds of your candidates (something that seems real, doens't seem phony, etc.), and what are you doing to make your managers suck less?

Buy on brand, quit on the boss.  There's a t-shirt in there somewhere.