The area of this paper is employer branding of small-and medium-sized family firms. Its function is to attract the necessary quantity and quality of labour force to build competitive advantage in the market, differentiate from peers and thus facilitate company’s prosperity. Labour shortage and aging society strike Central and Eastern Europe, therefore, employers face a disadvantageous bargaining position. Family firms, that are mainly small companies, are in a unique situation. Although employer branding is a useful and hot topic nowadays in some regions of the world, it is yet greatly underresearched empirically for some kinds of associations. To close this gap, this paper aims to present an employer branding concept. We extracted the output from a two-folded literature review on the existing knowledge about the public image of small family firms and the psychological needs and employee expectations about such workplaces and employers. We narrow down the area by handling a specific pattern of employees and conducting the whole research in Hungary. The solution we are proposing to fill the gap is an employer branding concept created by customization of the Business Model Canvas.

The present paper overviews academic literature and statistics related to labour migration in part where it concerns Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), with special attention paid to Hungary. It aims to discover the main notions and results of European migration along with potential future trends. The paper, inter alia, focuses on the changing characteristics of host countries’ labour markets and demographic profiles. It has found that CEE’s involvement in intercontinental migration is expected to continue, and is driven by demographic and economic catalysts. Therefore, to address all related issues and map trends, not only an economic perspective is required. The conclusion is that preparation for integration of the newly arrived labour force is a permanent ongoing task for all employers and policymakers, as well as for the entire society.