Introduction
Every firm is striving to get the best employer status. Such firms, therefore, focus on not only recruiting but also engagement of the talented human resource. The issue of employer branding and its effect on worker perceptions has attracted significant interests from various studies and researches. This research aims to find out the impact that employer branding has had on the engagement of employees. Different research has explored the pros of being “an employer of choice” and reports that the branding of leaders will positively contribute to the performance of the company. A comprehensive literature review of contemporary and significant contributions to the concern was performed, and different themes within employer branding literature were identified.
The subjects included the culture of the organization, training and induction, brand values, internal brand communication, brand values, benefits and rewards, and management of the employer brand. General evaluation of the literature review illustrates that employer branding is incorporated into the firm and the different employer features, together with the culture of the firm, holds value for workers and contributes to their employment in the organization. The findings plus some previous studies coherently conclude that employer branding does not have a specific impact on worker engagement.
Scope for future studies could involve the use of quantitative research, testing the designed ideal framework, and also, discussing into details the major themes identified within retail employer branding to recognize the brand with the most valued attributes. This study seeks to investigate and illustrate the underlying shifts in employer branding in talent attraction and engagement all over the world. The research strives to discover the way in which firms can attract potential talent and also maintain the existing expertise using various employer branding factors. The study looked at factors such as age, race, gender, and employment status of the current employers. The major findings of the study there are various aspects driving employer branding, and these values are identified in the order of importance.
Background to the Study
Competition of skilled labour has intensely increased in developed nations, and talented workers vote with their feet. Firms operating in very competitive markets should be alert and establish strategies so that they can become the employer of choice. In the recent past, “brand management" does not only mean creating the best client experience but also centres on internal marketing and branding. Researcher’s talk about employer brand management as the shaping mechanism that is behind the success of a firm. Worker’s brand experience is incorporated in the firm’s Remarketing and control and involves how all the steps of worker’s experience is aligned with the ethics and ethos of the company. The objective of this study is to demonstrate the process of what makes a person attracted to a particular organization to the extent that the person decides to apply for a job in that firm or accepts a job offer from that specific firm. In addition, the research aims to investigate whether the congruencies and incongruence in employee perception before and after joining the workplace have effects on their engagement.
Competition in the labour markets has intensified because of liberalization and globalization, resulting in the increase in the war of talents. Besides, employment and engagement of new talent have been crucial in the development and growth of a firm. This is because human capital tends to create value for the organization and improves the performance of the organization. Employer branding has therefore recently drawn significant attention. Factually, it is essential to recognize the connection between employer brand and worker’s retention as a strategy of retention management. Employer brand plays a vital role in attracting and retaining talented people, and because only a few studies have investigated the connection between employer and workers' retention, there is a theoretical gap in this field, and this kind of relationship should be carefully investigated through research.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
This chapter presents existing literature regarding the current study. It is a preview of employer branding impact on attraction of talent and engagement of employees.
Employer Branding Impact on Attraction of Talent and Engagement of Employees
In the recent times, employer branding has succeeded in capturing the right and smartest attention in the global market (Eeden, 2014). Practitioners and academicians have proved beyond reasonable doubt that firms and organizations spend a great fortune on people or leaders whose services are of great benefit to the company. Employer branding is a term that first came into existence in the year 1990 in a convention where the senior fellow of London Business School, Tim Walker, was addressing the audience in a more subtle manner under the topic, brand name management (Grünewälder, 2008). Since then, employer branding has remained to be an inspiration and its extension to marketing and shared principles with economics has immensely contributed to the success stories of successful companies across the globe.
Leader disapproval in the context of employer branding is applied to refer to the principals of the human resource management that is disapproved by some sect of employees whose main ambition and agenda is to ensure the success of the company but with the desired principles and policies. Scholars and researchers have not come up with one definition for leader approval but most of the presented definitions are subjects of scrutiny and explorations. Leader approval is someone who identifies the associate organization within the global market and ensures that it’s made distinctive (Grünewälder, 2008).
Within the repair of the company and the financial stability of an organization, employees play very crucial roles which are necessary in developing the image’s name of the company. In this light therefore, recruiting employees of imminent talents becomes a necessity and a basic requirement in order to maintain the name image of the organization just like having the talented leader to represent the whole organization within the marketplace. It is even more necessary for these employees to carry these talents and use them to impact change within the organization and beyond. Companies spend fortune of resources to bring out the best out of their employees through education, sustainable training, conferences, seminars, and talent shows among others. The main aim of companies in so doing is to find and add value to their employees (Passmore, 2017).
Reports and research shows that employees’ talents when coupled with effective leaders’ disapproval increase the competitive advantage of the company. When right channels are followed and exemplary policies are adopted by companies then leader disapproval may as well contribute to the worker retention in the company (Grünewälder, 2008).
In the current global competitive market, so many organizations attempts to employ several mechanisms to aid in pushing for the success but employee branding has an overwhelming significance. So many organizations still believes in employing branding to only goods and services but when branding is employed in employees it has an immense contribution to the development and success of companies and organization (Passmore, 2017). Every organization should strive to employ branding to employees rather than goods and services. Apart from the above mentioned advantage, employee branding also aid in inducing good things from the market in the organization (Meier, 2006).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This chapter is a preview of the various stages as well as phases that will be followed to complete the study. It presents the research design, target population, data collection and data analysis as well as presentation. The methodological approaches to be used in the study and empirical measurement to be undertaken are presented in this chapter. This will help achieve the objectives of the study and report the findings of the study in a logical manner
Research Design
Research design is defined as the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in the procedure.
This research uses both exploratory and descriptive approach. A descriptive study will help in portraying accurate profiles of the persons. In this case the respondents. This design will be useful since it will focus on information that is coming from the field as this will be describing the conditions as well as variables in the prevailing situation and the relationship between them.
Mixed method, Qualitative and Quantitative research methods have been employed for the success of this study. The quantitative data is analyzed through qualitative analysis an exploratory study has been defined as a valuable means of finding out what is happening.
Qualitative Date
It provides the information about quality hence cannot be measured. It provides information that explains why some people act the way they do and their feelings about their actions. It is of great deal to examine the disadvantages and advantages of qualitative data.
Advantages
i. Creates openness – when people are encouraged to expound o explain further their responses then there is likelihood that some new areas about the topic would be opened for investigation and questionings.
ii. Pre-judgments are avoided – it tends to explain why some responses are given especially when used alongside quantitative data in a specified area of collecting data.
iii. Detail oriented – it provides in-depth data in a particular area
Disadvantages
i. Relies on the researcher skills – when conducting an interview and recording down the observations then researcher’s skills plays an important role.
ii. Generalization – it is very difficult to generalize the outcome because of the fewer respondents that are normally under study.
iii. Time consuming – it takes a lot of time for such data to be collected and not unless supported by a good budget then the data may not be accurate.
Quantitative Data
It is information that can be measured and written down about quantities. It is therefore important to examine the advantages and disadvantages of the quantitative data.
Advantages
i. It allows for a broader study because it involve a variety or so many subjects that provides an information about one thing and besides so many respondents are involved thus can be used for generalization purposes.
ii. Allows for accuracy and objectivity of results – there are so many cases and some few variables that are involved to aid in the generalization purposes of the study.
iii. Replications are possible thus enhancing analysis for much more accurate results
Disadvantages
i. In most cases the data collected are narrow and superficial
ii. There is limitation of results because detailed narrative is overshadowed by the numeral descriptions which in real sense are less elaborate for generalization.
iii. The questions are structured by researchers thus is likely to lead to some structural biasness.
Mixed Methods
This is a methodology that aids in conducting a research which basically entails integrating qualitative and quantitative research, analyzing and collecting information. The study herein is an example of a mixed method research. Because it involves both qualitative and quantitative research methods, it has a combination of their advantages and disadvantages which is very important for our study.
Advantages
i. It helps in explaining the workability of the casual processes or findings
ii. It provides a more comprehensive and complete understanding of the study that is not provided by both qualitative and quantitative methods.
iii. It provides an approach that aid in the development of a more context specific instruments.
iv. It provides the strengths that overshadow the disadvantages of both qualitative and quantitative research.
Disadvantages
i. Finding proper and acceptable way of resolving discrepancies is very difficult. These discrepancies normally arise in the interpretations stages and finding levels of the research.
ii. It is so difficult to plan on deducing a plan and implementing it from another even if they both have similar findings.
iii. It normally takes a lot of resources and time for it to be planned and executed diligently and accordingly.
iv. It can be very complex to design the research.
It is because of the aforementioned strengths that the following research methods were employed to aid in this study.
Study Setting and Target Population
Cooper and Schindler (2017) define population as the total number of elements that can be relied upon to make inferences. According to Mugenda and Mugenda (2013), a population is the whole group of people, objects or events that have common observable characteristics.
The target population refers to the group of individuals that the research endeavours to investigate their behaviour pattern and make meaningful conclusions out of the findings. A sample is the representative portion of the population that is subjected to analysis by the researcher. The population for this particular experiment entailed nine subjects who volunteered to offer information. All of the subjects were taken from different countries across Europe. Subject 6 was a 30-year-old Norwegian currently working in Norway. Subject one was of Spanish origin currently working in Spain. Subject 2 was a 23-year-old Spaniard currently employed in Spain. Subject three was 30-year-old Spaniard currently working in the UK. Subject four was a 29-year-old Spanish national currently working in Spain. Subject 5 was a 24-year-old Spaniard currently working in Switzerland. Subject seven is a Spanish national currently working in the UK. Subject eight is a 25-year-old Polish national currently working in Spain. Subject nine is a 32-year-old Irish working within the UK.
Sampling and Sampling Techniques
Sampling will be used to collect the data since it will not be possible given the time and budget constraints to collect data from the whole population. According to Saunders et al (2011, Pg. 137) ‘Sampling techniques provide a range of methods that enable you to reduce the amount of data you need to collect by considering only data from a sub-group rather than all possible cases or element’. There are two types of sampling techniques, probability and non-probability.
Non-probability sampling will be used for this study. ‘Non-probability sampling (or non-random sampling) provides a range of alternative techniques to select samples based on your subjective judgment’ (Saunders et al, 2013) This is because of possible lack of data in regard to actual current number of businesses as well as information on precisely which ones are owned by women. Judgment of the researcher will play a very important role in determining if the sample used is a representation of the population. According to (Kothari Garg, 2017,) although there is always the danger of bias entering into this sampling technique the researcher will be impartial, work without bias so as to make sound judgment to obtain results that are tolerably reliable. Sampling error in this kind of estimated and a small element of bias is always there.
For non-probability sampling the issue of sample size is ambiguous. What is more important is the logical relationship between the sample selection technique and the purpose and focus of the research. (Saunders et al. 2017). Quota sampling is the first proposed method of sampling for this research. ‘Quota sampling is entirely non-random and is normally used for interview surveys.’ (Saunders et al. 2017).Snowball sampling will also be used. ‘Snowball sampling is commonly used when it is difficult to identify members of the desired population’ (Saunders et al, 2017). Snowball sampling entails making contact with a few members of the population and using them to get other contacts that will then identify other contacts and so forth).
The intended target had been fifteen persons, but six of them dropped out at this stage. For the nine that agreed to take part in this study, the session continued, and the interviewer indicated that recording had commenced. The six who dropped out accepted the questionnaire which was structured using the interview question questions. A particular guideline was followed to ensure that all the questions were asked thus ensuring that the interviews were successful. Several questions were thus prepared and asked during each session (refer to Appendix A). Once the session was done, the tape recorder was stopped. The interviewee was then thanked for his or her input besides being asked if he or she had any questions. Finally, each of them was asked for a referral to any other employee that would likely welcome the idea of taking part in the study.
Data Collection and Research Instruments
In this study, both primary and secondary data will be used.
Primary Data
Data collection instrument refers to a device that is used to gather data in an objective and logical manner purposely for research. Data collection instruments include questionnaires, existing records, interviews, focused groups and surveys among others (Cooper and Schindler, 2017). Interviews and questionnaires were used for this study and the records will be kept for future references.
Interview Schedule
The interview schedule is a term used to refer to an outline of a set of questions that serve as a guideline for an interviewing process (Kathuri, 2013). Interviews will be the main method of data collection. According to Kothari and Gaurav (2015), the interview method of collecting data involves the presentation of oral verbal stimuli and reply in terms or oral verbal responses. This method can be used through personal interviews and if possible through telephone interviews’. A mix of both structured and unstructured interviews will be used. Structured interviews will be used for the purpose of obtaining data for the research. Unstructured part will be used to gather further information as well as share with the participant ideas on employer branding impact on attraction of talent and engagement of employees
Furthermore, the researcher had prepared 22 questions to ask during the interview (refer to Appendix A). Some aspects were helpful in the formulation of these questions. To start with, it was important that all questions be aligned with the research topic. Secondly, employer branding needed to measure. A strong employer brand is created by an employee value proposition and employee experience. Measuring of employer branding would thus entail looking at the congruence or incongruence of the reality and expectations that the employee had. Thirdly, it was necessary to measure attraction, and it entailed seeking the reasons persons had chosen to apply. Lastly, the measuring of engagement was important as well, and the questions to be asked were based on the Utrecht Work Engagement Survey (Schaufeli and Bakker 2003, p. 5). The research exercise occurred in three different stages: the pilot stage to test the methods, the actual data collection, and the data analysis phase.
The researcher opted to carry out semi-structured interviews as it enables the realization of depth by allowing the interviewer to enquire and expand the participants’ responses (Alshenqeeti 2014, p. 40).
Workers are the most suitable source of information on how the presence or absence of employer branding and the perceived employer brand affects them. Semi-structured interviews were thus appropriate in the collection of information.
The interview schedule will be the first option as it’s easier to explain in person to the respondents more about innovation and the research topic as well as shade some light on how its adoption could benefit the organization. Interviews will also help in the exploration process as it will be easier to get more insights on the topic.
Since the intention is to use interviews to collect most of the data, interview sessions were scheduled according to the planned calendar of events. The interviews were to be timed for a maximum of thirty minutes each as most of these respondents are really busy people. The interviews were recorded of course with prior approval of the respondent to avoid taking a lot of time writing notes.
Background of the Interviewees
The researcher comprised of nine subjects all of whom differed in age groups, job grades, experience and occupation. Three of the participants were in their mid-twenties while the rest were in the thirties. Some of the participants had only a few years of experience and thus lower job grades while others had more than ten years of practice under their belts. The fact that the respondents worked for different multinational corporations proved a vital aspect of understanding employer branding. The sample group consisted of employees of organizations that spearheaded intensive employer branding campaigns as well as organizations that carried out little employer branding activities.
The difference in the years of experience amongst the employees helped demonstrate how employer branding perception differed with duration at the workplace. Employees that were new in the job market had more expectations on the employer branding than their more experienced counterparts who had embraced the undesirable conditions. On the other hand, the interviewees were from different geographical backgrounds that ensured the study was a complete representation of the impacts of employer branding on employees regardless of the locality.
Structured Questionnaire
For the responded not be available for interviews, questionnaires were be used. Questionnaires will be crucial in collecting descriptive data. Structured questionnaires are preferred in this study because they give respondents a chance to give their opinions regarding the topic under research. The information received through questionnaires is free of bias since there is no researcher’s influence and hence accurate and valid data is collected. Administering of questionnaires allows collection of data from the area of focus within the context of study (Yin, 2010). In addition, this approach ensures confidentiality as there is no indication of personal identification details. The time used to collect data is when using questionnaires is less allowing more time for scrutiny and analysis of the collected data. Structured questionnaire questions are derived from the interview questions for time saving and expanding the size of the respondents.
Secondary Data
The additional data source came from secondary data. Secondary data can include both raw data and published summary and can provide a useful source from which to answer or partially answer your research question (Saunders et al. 2009). Secondary data means that data that is already available. The main purpose of using secondary data is to compare the findings as well as fill in any gaps in terms of explanations in the primary data.
Secondary data was be collected from the various institutions that practice employee branding and data from bureau of statistics as well as internet sources from relevant education and governmental websites.
Pilot Stage
The pilot stage of the study was carried out amongst a small section of the initial subjects. The institution was selected due to its flexible policy that permits researchers to conducted research activities within their institutions with minimal bureaucratic inhibitors. Furthermore, they do not limit the participation of their employees in such exercises. During the pilot study, ten volunteers were interviewed. Selection procedures that were utilized were majorly based on convenience due to the tight working schedules and the minimal time available for the pilot study. Nonetheless, the researchers made sure that employees from different age groups, gender, years of experience, and ethnicity were represented in the pilot sample. The pilot phase was meant to fulfil the following goals:
I. To gain a preview on the main aspects of branding that the influence on employee attitude. This enabled the researchers to emphasize the most significant factors that affected employee happiness instead of the mild ones.
II. To provide the ideal opportunity for testing the reliability of the different data collection instruments during the actual data collection. For instance, the phone call recorders were tested for their ability to record over-the-phone interviews in an audible manner that allowed for further analysis.
III. To enable the researcher, recognize the key variables involved in the complex relationship between employer branding and employee motivation behaviour and attitude,
IV. To enable the researchers, develop the preliminary hypothesis that would guide the following activities within the research process.
Validity and Reliability of the Instrument
Validity refers to the extent of realism of the research findings regarding what they profess to be about (Saunders, Lewis & Thornhil, 2015). Reliability is the extent to which the technique or instrument used to collect data will give consistent findings such that similar observations can be made by other researchers on the same issue (Saunders et al., 2017). The researcher will use internal consistency-test as presented by Saunders et al, (2017. In this test, responses to qualitative questions will be correlated to responses to quantitative questions in the same structured questionnaire. As such, the questions in the questionnaire and the interview schedule will be framed to capture qualitative data for this will ensure consistency of the responses in all the questions.
Internal validity involves content validity in which measuring instruments are supposed to give sufficient coverage of investigative questions, criterion-based validity where the instruments should make precise predictions of anticipated information and construct validity where instruments measure the presence of the constructs that are desired to be measured.
Ascertaining rigor for this qualitative project is a complex undertaking since no standardized threshold for measurement exists. The tests for measuring validity and reliability in quantitative research are inapplicable to this project. There exists an ongoing debate on whether such techniques for evaluation such as validity and reliability can be useful for qualitative research. However, the credibility of these qualitative findings can still be tested through a systematic process on inquiry. The first step entails developing workable strategies that can facilitate such measurements of credibility. For instance, the researchers accounted for the personal bias that may have led to inaccurate results.
Providing a reasonable room for such error ensures that the findings are a more accurate reflection of the reality. Secondly, the researchers ensured consistency in data interpretation in congruence with the flow in decision making — the clarity in thought processes as portrayed within this work further function to enhance its credibility. Moreover, responses from the respondents were represented in a comprehensive description that preserved their authenticity.
The work of this research was completed after extensive consultation with other researchers who have conducted studies in the same file to gauge the reproducibility of the data and to compare findings to identify anomalies and also minimize bias. On the other hand, the researcher invited the participants to review the transcripts and comment on the conclusions of the work. Though this, the subjects were able to inform the researchers whether the findings are the actual representation of the employer branding as perceived by the employee.
Data Preparation and Analysis
After all the data has been collected, data preparation was then carried out. This involved six steps which include: Questionnaire checking and interview transcribing, Editing, Coding Classification, Data cleaning and Data adjusting.
After the data has been prepared and cleaned the next step was exploring and presenting the data. Exploratory data analysis was be used. According to Saunders et al (2011), the exploratory data analysis approach allows you the flexibility to introduce previously unplanned analyses to respond to new findings. The data was analyzed using qualitative analysis. The deductive approach will be used for this. Data will be summarized and categorized after transcribing has been done.
Ethical Consideration
The researcher sought permission from the relevant authorizes and organizations before going into the field to collect data. The respondents were informed of the intention of the study and only those who were willingly consent to participate will form the study sample. The anonymity of the respondents was ensured to guarantee their confidentiality. The data collected from this research will be used for the sole purpose of this research and will not be shared with the competitors.
The following chapter looks deeper into analysis of the data collected.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA ANALYSIS
Introduction
This chapter will majorly focus in analyzing the quantitative data that have been collected via the aforementioned methods in the previous chapter. These data will be analyzed through quantitative analysis.
After all the eight interviews were completed, the researcher transcribed each of the sessions. Transcription entails reproduction of the recorded data as a written account (Saunders Lewis and Thornhill 2009, p. 485).With the eight different documents, the researcher then conducted a thematic analysis as it helps in deducing clear themes from the qualitative data. This step entailed categorizing data whereby categories were developed with meaningful information attached to each of them (Saunders Lewis and Thornhill 2009, p. 492). Here, the researcher took up the role of doing the analysis. The first step entailed proof-reading to ensure that no vital information is overlooked. Secondly, initial codes were created.
Coding involves grouping data based on the similarities of ideas, opinions, and behaviour thus making it easier to determine patterns. Thirdly, the codes are integrated into predominant themes. Fourthly, the researcher confirmed that the themes were related to the research topic and that
