Employer Attractiveness Research Articles

The impact of LinkedIn posts on employer brand perception and the mediating effects of employer attractiveness and corporate reputation

PurposeThe aim of this study is to identify the relationship between employee-generated content (EGC) and firm-generated content (FGC) in the form of LinkedIn posts, employer brand perception, and the effect of employer's attractiveness and corporate reputation on this relationship.Design/methodology/approachThis study comprises two phases. In phase 1, the focus was on stimuli selection through an online questionnaire on favourability. In phase 2, for the main study, data were gathered through an online survey from 214 information technology (IT) employees via a survey. Multiple linear regression and mediation analyses were conducted.FindingsThe results show that EGC and FGC have a positive influence on employer brand perception, and the relationship is positively mediated by employer attractiveness and corporate reputation. These findings suggest that organizations can strategically use their own as well as employees' LinkedIn accounts, and encourage employee advocacy initiatives to attract new talent, enhance attractiveness and corporate reputation.Originality/valueThe study covers two different categories of content – employer and employee-generated – and examines both content types' influence on employer brand perception. It adds to the body of literature regarding employee branding and paves the way for further research in employee advocacy.

Generation Z job seekers in Vietnam: CSR-based employer attractiveness and job pursuit intention

ABSTRACT This study aims to advance our understanding of the effects of Generation Z job seekers’ attitudes towards corporate social responsibility (CSR) and initial job pursuit intention (JPI). A survey of 290 senior students in Vietnam shows that two of three aspects of Generation Z job seekers’ attitudes towards CSR (positive CSR assessment and CSR engagement) are positively related to JPI. In addition, the relationship between Generation Z job seekers’ attitudes towards CSR and JPI is mediated by CSR-based employer attractiveness. These findings suggest that including social and environmental issues into corporate strategy is a valuable approach for attracting Generation Z job seekers. We discuss the implications for theory and practice as well as the limitations and directions for future research, of these findings.

Organizational reputation: does it mediate the effect of employer brand attractiveness on intention to apply in Indonesia?

This study aims to examine the role of organizational reputation in mediating the influence of employer brand attractiveness on intention to apply. Organizational reputation has an essential role in attracting potential talent to apply for an organization, as organizational reputation is an intangible and valuable resource to gain the competitive advantage that shows the working atmosphere in the organization. The study investigated organizational reputation as a mediating variable on the relationship between employer brand attractiveness as an independent variable and intention to apply as a dependent variable. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire that was distributed to 425 respondents. Respondents for this study were final-grade students from public universities in Indonesia. The path analysis technique was used to analyse the data. The result shows that employer attractiveness significantly influences the intention to apply. The result also reveals that employer brand attractiveness significantly affects the organizational reputation. Meanwhile, organizational reputation does not influence the intention to apply. Therefore, organizational reputation does not mediate the influence of employer brand attractiveness on the intention to apply. From this study, organizations can learn how to design programs that can improve employer brand attractiveness, particularly among gen millennials.

Does office aesthetics drive job choice? Boosting employee experience and well-being perception through workplace design

PurposeDrawing from experiential theory and decision-making theory, this article aims to posit that workplace aesthetics acts as a driver for job choice when included with an employment offer. Whilst organisational literature has recognised that office experiential cues in general, and aesthetics in particular, affect employee performance and well-being, employer attractiveness scales have not yet incorporated office aesthetics as a component of job-offer choice.Design/methodology/approachA choice-based conjoint (CBC) experiment was conducted to estimate the weighted utilities of three aesthetic and three non-aesthetic employer attributes. Subsequently, the attributes' importance in the job choice decision was estimated.FindingsThe results indicate that aesthetic attributes in the workplace can be equally important in the decision-making process as non-aesthetic attributes and that aesthetic attributes deliver as much utility as non-aesthetic attributes in driving job choice.Practical implicationsThese conclusions are relevant for Human Resource (HR) managers engaged in crafting job offers, who should consider that employees may improve their assessment of a job offer as a result of superior organisational aesthetics demonstrated during the recruitment process as well as in contexts where employees would be expected to combine remote and office-based work.Originality/valueThe present study represents a novel approach to understanding job applicants' preferences for aesthetic elements in the workplace. The results suggest that the workplace experience is relativistic and that considering applicants' latent preferences is crucial when designing efficient job offers.

Does Artificial Intelligence (AI) Enabled Recruitment Improve Employer Branding?

Extant research over the last decades has stressed how artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to boost the recruitment process and to attract the best talents. Although AI is increasingly used for talent acquisition, with 36% of hiring processes expected to have a pre-screen through AI (Oracle, 2019) in the next two years, we have limited knowledge of how AI shapes talents’ perceptions about the organisation to which they are applying to. The goal of this research is to investigate if and how the usage of AI in the recruitment process improves employer attractiveness and employer branding in the eyes of the applicants. To investigate this issue a survey has been conducted on a random sample of individuals composed of 50% females and 50% males. To examine the survey’s result a structural equation modeling (SEM) has been applied. Results showed a positive relationship between EB and AI and more in particular that AI-enabled tools are perceived in a positive way by potential candidates. Thus, according to this study, AI is significantly related to Employer branding and therefore it contributes to improving talent attraction.

ОСОБЛИВОСТІ ЗАЙНЯТОСТІ У БАНКІВСЬКОМУ СЕКТОРІ УКРАЇНИ В СУЧАСНИХ УМОВАХ

Анотація. У результаті проведеного дослідження виділено і проаналізовано сучасні характерні особливості зайнятості в банківському секторі України, які сформувалися під впливом нових напрямів і тенденцій трансформації зайнятості, поява і розвиток яких була спричинена глобалізаційними соціально-економічними процесами і кризою COVID-19. Установлено високий рівень привабливості зайнятості у вітчизняному фінансовому секторі, обумовлений більш високим рівнем оплати праці в ньому, широкими можливостями для молодих працівників навіть без досвіду роботи, що спричиняє ситуацію значного навантаження на одну вакансію у фінансовому секторі та низьку мобільність персоналу через острах втратити посаду. Визначено вплив цифровізації банківської сфери щодо як позитивних наслідків для зайнятості, що зумовлюються створенням поліпшених робочих місць у нових сферах роботи банківських установ та з новими завданнями, так і негативних, які передбачають скорочення потреби в кадрах і зменшення кількості робочих місць. Проаналізовано проблеми, що перешкоджають досягненню ефективної зайнятості в банківському секторі за сучасних умов і визначено тенденції до розширення і превалювання додаткових навичок працівників, наявність яких забезпечує високопродуктивну роботу банківських установ. Охарактеризовано сучасні пріоритети діяльності банківських установ, що ґрунтуються на широкому використанні інновацій та інформаційних технологій, розвитку онлайн-каналів і штучного інтелекту, що змінює структуру посад і найбільш суттєво впливає на формування і забезпечення тих посад, що передбачають наявність у працівника високої кваліфікації та рівня освіти. Визначено, що під впливом цифровізації економічної діяльності від банківських працівників, окрім володіння основними управлінськими, професійними і соціальними компетенціями, вимагається набуття та опанування спеціальних технічних навичок. На основі аналізу фахових джерел літератури та експертних висновків провідних HR-компаній розроблено сучасний профіль працівника банківської сфери і встановлено, що сьогодні найбільший попит у банківських установах має працівник, що володіє поєднанням технічних, соціоемоційних і передових когнітивних навичок. Ключові слова: зайнятість, банківський сектор, компетенції банківського працівника, дистанційна зайнятість, цифровізація. Формул: 0; рис.: 2; табл.: 0; бібл.: 12.

Comparing Employer Attractiveness of Public Sector Organizations to Nonprofit and Private Sector Organizations: An Experimental Study in Germany and the U.S.

Sector preferences in job choice have rarely been tested empirically across different administrative systems. We address this gap and apply a between-subject experimental design to examine the attractiveness of public, private, and nonprofit employers in two countries in different administrative traditions. Respondents ( n = 362) from an Anglo-Saxon (i.e., the U.S.) and continental European country (i.e., Germany) were exposed to job advertisements that only differed in the employer’s sector affiliation, with other job attributes, such as payment and working hours, held constant. Contrary to expectations, and consistently across the two country samples, respondents evaluated public sector jobs more positively compared to vacancies in the private sector. In contrast, we found no such comparative advantage of public over nonprofit employers. By providing counterevidence to the prevalence of negative attitudes toward public organizations, our study warns against overgeneralizing previous findings on negativity biases to the context of employer attractiveness.

Evaluating the reliability and validity of the measurement model of employer attractiveness

Employer attractiveness is an important concept that has attracted the attention of many scholars in the fields of human resource management and organizational behavior over the years. Several studies have been conducted in order to develop and activate conceptual connotations. Since it was first published in 2005 by Berthon, Ewing & Hah (2005), many authors have expanded and measured the scale under many different aspects. Inheriting from Reis, Braga & Trullen (2017), we have tested the model of measuring employer attractiveness with the addition of the authenticity component of the workplace. This study was designed through two phases to assess the reliability and validity of the employer's attractiveness scale with an updated and expanded version of Reis et al. (2017). In phase 1, a study with a sample of 204 employees working in different enterprises aimed to assess the reliability and validity of the components in the scale. In stage 2, the scale continues to be evaluated through a specific situation (survey samples are collected at a media company) to evaluate and compare the reliability and validity of the components when applying the scale to a hypothetical real-world situation. The results of the two-phase study show that the components of the employer’s attractiveness scale are reliable and valid.

Effects of Organizational Culture on Employer Attractiveness of Hotel Firms: Topic Modeling Approach

As the acquisition and retention of motivated and skilled employees are key to the high performance of hotel firms, employer attractiveness of hotel firms is a critical factor in achieving competitive advantage. Focusing on organizational culture, this study analyzes how different cultural attributes affect hotel firms’ attractiveness as employers. For the empirical analysis, this study collected 54,040 reviews of 157 large hotel chains and firms from Glassdoor in the United States. This study combines an unsupervised machine learning tool for topic modeling (latent Dirichlet allocation) with the coding process of researchers to measure the different cultural attributes of hotel firms. The research results show the positive and significant impact of four cultural attributes—collaborative, employee development, fair compensation, and customer focus—on employer attractiveness measured by both users’ employer satisfaction and recommendations to friends. In contrast, an innovation culture has no significant effect on attractiveness.

Employee perceptions of employers’ creativity and innovation: Implications for employer attractiveness and branding in tourism and hospitality

Attracting and retaining high-quality employees is becoming an unrelenting challenge for many employers. Therefore, employer branding is a key developmental area for companies, as it aims to attract potential employees and to engage the current staff. This paper investigates how current employees in tourism and hospitality perceive their employers regarding the level of creativity and innovation in the workplace. The study adopts the Employer Attractiveness scale, with a specific focus on the component capturing aspects of creativity and innovation. An online survey and in-depth interviews were conducted with employees working in different areas of the tourism and hospitality sector in Sweden. The results suggest that many employees perceive their jobs as creative, and further indicate that the possibility of being creative and innovative at work is an important driver for employees to stay with their current employer. This factor also influences their intention to recommend employment at the company to others. Moreover, the results of this study suggest that the economic value in terms of total compensation is important for employees in the tourism and hospitality sector, as it affects intention to stay as well as likelihood to recommend.

Attracting talent through diversity at the top: The impact of TMT diversity and firms' efforts to promote diversity on employer attractiveness

At a time where firms encounter a “race for talent”, it is crucial for many MNCs to present themselves as attractive employers. Failing to position themselves in the international labor market can reduce firms' ability to acquire valuable international human capital, thereby generating disadvantageous organizational effects. Against this backdrop, drawing on signaling theory and employer branding literature, our paper aims to shed light on the association between nationality diversity in the executive suite and MNCs' employer attractiveness. Our lines of argument build on the notion that top management team composition can affect MNCs' efforts to promote diversity among their employees. This focus on diversity, in turn, can affect MNCs' employer attractiveness. Examining firms from various European countries, we find that top management team nationality diversity is positively associated with firms' employer attractiveness for foreign job seekers. We also show that a firm's efforts to promote diversity mediate the relationship between TMT nationality diversity and employer attractiveness. We therefore advance the academic debate on diversity as an employer branding tool and a means to enhance employer attractiveness. In practical terms, we also provide valuable insights for firms wishing to transform into (more) diverse entities.

Organizational attractiveness after identity threats of crises: how potential employees anticipate social identity

ABSTRACT This study examines how organizations shape potential employees’ social identity prior to joining the organization. This is relevant in light of growing demands for knowledge workers together with a lack of knowledge about the determinants of employer attractiveness for this group. Our study uses different organizational crises as identity-threatening events and extends current research by showing how such events influence potential employees’ anticipations about social identity, as well as their perceptions of the organization’s attractiveness. Empirical evidence from our scenario-based experiments in the United Kingdom and the United States shows that identity changes occurring from organizational crises reduce organizational attractiveness and that anticipated self-continuity and anticipated self-esteem mediate this relationship. The effects become stronger with increasing crisis responsibility. More surprisingly, our qualitative data indicate that certain forms of crises can also attract certain types of employees by triggering organizational compassion, engagement to help the organization recover, and beliefs in learning and future improvements.

Role of Corporate Social Marketing Campaigns in Employer Branding: A Study of Campus Engagement Initiatives

Background Corporate social marketing (CSM), as a type of corporate social initiative, is considered to be the most effective tool for creating social good through behavioural change. However, the relevance and benefits of CSM in the business context are largely unknown. The understanding of ‘the business case’ of CSM initiatives can provide useful insights to practitioners in this field. In this paper, we study the boundary spanning benefits of CSM in the area of employer branding. Research Questions This research aims to answer one major question: Do CSM campaigns play any role in building an organization’s employer brand? If yes, then how? Further, two associated supplementary questions include (i) how do managers perceive the use of CSM campaigns during campus engagement initiatives? (ii) how do job seekers perceive the use of CSM campaigns in campus engagement initiatives? Methods We use a qualitative research approach to answer the above questions. Using a purposive sampling method, we interviewed 6 managers who manage and 13 management students who attended campus engagement initiatives. The research was carried out in an emerging economy context, namely India, which has had several successful CSM campaigns and is home to the youngest working population, particularly millennials. Results The study shows that CSM leads to three major employer branding outcomes – increasing employer awareness, enhancing employer attractiveness and differentiating an employer from other competing organizations. Students prefer employers who provide them opportunities to work for society and are even willing to accept a lower pay in such organizations. Managers revealed the importance of showcasing CSMs during campus presentations and confirmed the relevance of social causes in employer branding initiatives. Recommendations for Practice The study offers useful insights to human resource managers on the role of CSM campaigns in creating employer awareness and attracting talent during campus engagement. We recommend that CSM campaigns be leveraged during campus engagement sessions for achieving differentiation in a competitive talent market. Lesser-known employers can use CSM campaigns for increasing employer awareness among potential student recruits. Organizations may proactively design and implement CSM campaigns, consistent with their values and mission, for the positive spill-over effects it can yield for their employer brand. The study aims to contribute to the CSM literature by studying the boundary spanning role of CSM in employer branding.

The Relationship of Internal Communication Satisfaction With Employee Engagement and Employer Attractiveness: Testing the Joint Mediating Effect of the Social Exchange Quality Indicators

In order to improve internal communication within organizations, it is necessary to understand it better. This study explores the potential impact of internal communication on employee engagement and employer attractiveness by testing the mediating effects of social exchange quality indicators. A survey of 1,805 employees was used to test the relationships between internal communication satisfaction, employee engagement, and employer attractiveness and the potential mediating variables; reflecting the perception of the social relationship between an organization and its employees. The results showed that communication satisfaction correlated positively with the social exchange quality indicators (psychological contract fulfillment and perceived organizational support) and both outcomes—employee engagement and employer attractiveness. Additionally, the social exchange quality indicators partially mediated the relationship between internal communication satisfaction and both employee engagement and employer attractiveness. Our findings were consistent with the theoretical models in which internal communication satisfaction leads to higher employee engagement and employer attractiveness.

Internal communication satisfaction and employee engagement as determinants of the employer brand

PurposeThis study aims to contribute to the understanding of internal communication and its connections to engagement and employer brands. The authors wanted to test the relationship between the three variables and explore if employees' perception of employer brands is affected by internal communication satisfaction and engagement. Creating a desirable employer brand can have significant benefits for organizations, such as higher employee satisfaction, employee engagement and retention. It is crucial to have a clear grasp of how the determinants of these relationships affect each other.Design/methodology/approachA total of 1,805 employees participated in a large communication survey that measured internal communication satisfaction, employee engagement and perception of employer brand (operationalized as employer attractiveness). To test the relationship between variables, the authors used multiple regression analysis.FindingsThe results show internal communication satisfaction and employee engagement as significant predictors of employer brand. All of the internal communication satisfaction dimensions and two out of three employee engagement dimensions have been identified as determinants of at least two employer attractiveness dimensions.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations include using a cross-sectional dataset, which reduces the possibility of determining causality, using self-reports and a common source bias.Originality/valueThe authors added to the body of knowledge by analyzing the effects of workplace attitudes on attitudes toward the organization. The authors found that both internal communication satisfaction and employee engagement significantly shape the perception of employer brands.

Employer branding and employee value proposition: The key success of startup companies in attracting potential employee candidates

Abstract Purpose: This study aims to analyze employer branding and employee value proposition on employer attractiveness in potential employee candidates of Startup Campuspedia Indonesia. Research methodology: This study uses quantitative research methods that are processed using Smart PLS software. The sampling technique used is proportional random sampling with a total of 51 samples. Results: The results show that employer branding and employee value proposition have a positive and significant impact on employer attractiveness at Startup Campuspedia Indonesia. Limitations: The limitation of this study is that it only uses one startup company in the field of education as the object of research and has not used several companies with different backgrounds. Contribution: The results of this study can be useful for Human Capital in the company's recruitment process in the next period as an effort to increase the interest of prospective employees to work in the company.

Employer Branding-An Employer Attractiveness Tool, Attractiveness Factors for Millennial

Purpose: In a VUCA world and growing competition within organizations to attract the right talent, it is of extreme importance for the organizations to build employer branding strategies. Organizations need to know these strategies should be based on what factors. This study aims to understand how employer branding can be used as a tool to promote employer attractiveness. The study specifically explores the preferences of Millennial when they are looking for an employer. The study was done on MBA and BBA students, with and without work experience to know perspectives of both fresher’s who without having any experience aspire and wish their organizations to be of a certain kind and students with work experience who tend to eliminate difficulties they faced in previous organizations and prefer for certain values in their new organizations. 200 students took the survey. This study shows what factors the organizations or brand-building vendors should work on to target the right talent pool.

Applicant Reactions to Digital Selection Methods: A Signaling Perspective on Innovativeness and Procedural Justice

Research has shown that the use of digital technologies in the personnel selection process can have both positive and negative effects on applicants’ attraction to an organization. We explain this contradiction by specifying its underlying mechanisms. Drawing on signaling theory, we build a conceptual model that applies two different theoretical lenses (instrumental-symbolic framework and justice theory) to suggest that perceptions of innovativeness and procedural justice explain the relationship between an organization’s use of digital selection methods and employer attractiveness perceptions. We test our model by utilizing two studies, namely one experimental vignette study among potential applicants (N = 475) and one retrospective field study among actual job applicants (N = 335). With the exception of the assessment stage in Study 1, the positive indirect effects found in both studies indicated that applicants perceive digital selection methods to be more innovative. While Study 1 also revealed a negative indirect effect, with potential applicants further perceiving digital selection methods as less fair than less digitalized methods in the interview stage, this effect was not significant for actual job applicants in Study 2. We discuss theoretical implications for the applicant reactions literature and offer recommendations for human resource managers to make use of positive signaling effects while reducing potential negative signaling effects linked to the use of digital selection methods.

Hotel employees' views on fairness, well‐being and collective representation in times of the coronavirus crisis: Evidence from Poland

AbstractThe coronavirus crisis reignited the debate over the ethical dimension of employment practices in the hotel sector. This study, which draws on the findings from semistructured interviews conducted with 51 Polish hotel workers during the pandemic, aims to ascertain their views on fairness in the workplace, their well‐being, the attractiveness of hotel employment and collective representation. Our findings were, in many respects, at variance with earlier research and our a priori assumptions. Specifically, most interviewees had regular contracts, were satisfied with their jobs, rated the attractiveness of hotel employment highly and did not complain of emotional labour. Some highlighted managerial disrespectful treatment, especially after the outbreak of the pandemic. Most were indifferent to unions or viewed them unfavourably, doubted the efficacy of collective action and were uninterested in unionisation, with the crisis having little impact on their attitudes. The paper concludes by discussing theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

The Achilles Heel of Recruiting Women: Perceived Gender Equality as a Key Determinant of the Military’s Employer Attractiveness Among Women

The German Bundeswehr, like other NATO forces, seeks to recruit more women in order to improve its gender balance and to meet its personnel needs. However, previous research on military recruitment has paid little attention to women. Given that the (German) military is still a male-dominated organization, we argue that women’s opinion regarding the realization of gender equality in the military may very well be the Achilles heel of recruiting women. Based on the assumption that women value gender equality in the work environment, we test the hypothesis that women are more attracted to the military as a (potential) employer, the more they think the military has achieved gender equality. A multivariate analysis of nationally representative survey data from Germany from 2019 provides empirical evidence to support this hypothesis. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.