Employee Commitment Matters for CSR Practice, Reputation and Corporate Brand Performance—European Model

Wioleta Kucharska

doi:10.3390/su12030940

Abstract

So far, there have been no studies that explore how employee brand commitment moderates CSR practice outcomes. Employee brand commitment is often claimed as a focal input and output of the CSR. So, it means that it shapes CSR conditions. Then, it is a moderator. This study aims to verify it. Besides, commitment exists in many forms and can be achieved in many ways. Hence the question, if employees are committed to the brand, then how does it affect the outcomes of social responsibility practices such as corporate reputation or brand performance? This study analyzed a sample of 282 cases from the construction industry in Europe, using SPSS Amos and the PROCESS macro, to reveal the strong alignment of an excellent level of all three: CSR practice, corporate brand reputation, employee brand commitment. Still, it also shows that the high level of CSR practice may leverage corporate brand reputation even though employees are not brand committed. It exposes how meaningful the excellent level of CSR practice is. Moreover, the study also reveals that the lack of employee brand commitment may jeopardize reputation. So, the simplest way to achieve sustainability of brand performance is to keep employee brand commitment and CSR practice at the highest possible level to secure corporate brand reputation, which is a strong mediator between CSR practice and brand performance. The people are the company. So, in light of the study findings, it is clear that the future of corporate brands is in employees’ hands. Thus, companies should focus on improving employee commitment to achieve better corporate social responsibility practice outcomes. Moreover, the findings in this study present evidence supporting the importance of internal branding. This is the first study that has explored how employee brand commitment moderates CSR outcomes in a national context.

Highlights

Brands are one of the key intangible assets of a company
Given that employees are the main supporters of corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies [7], does employee brand commitment moderate relationships with CSR practice (CSRp), reputation, and corporate brand performance? If so, how are they shaped? This study aims to answer
Sample and Data Collection To achieve the aim of this study—that is, to assess the moderated effect of employee commitment on the relationship between CSRp and brand performance mediated by reputation—only employees who were familiar with brand results were invited to participate in the survey

Summary

Introduction

Brands are one of the key intangible assets of a company. They significantly influence the company’s competitive advantage and income [1]. Strong brands are powerful and can leverage countries’ economies [2]. Brands are a key asset created by employees, who have the power to create a competitive advantage for their company. Corporate responsibility and the strength of the company’s brand are some of the top drivers of employee engagement [3]. Employee brand commitment (EBC), corporate social responsibility (CSR), corporate brand reputation (CR), and company performance (BP) are significant factors in a company’s success but they are closely related and support each other. In the context of a circular economy, the mechanism of their relationships, which changes the way companies conduct business, is worth exploring in more depth [4]

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Conclusion