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Introduction
Employer branding is one of the few long-term solutions to the shortage of talent
problem. Whereas most employment strategies are short-term and reactive to job
openings, building an employment brand is a longer-term, proactive solution designed to
provide a steady flow of applicants. Employment branding is the process of placing an
image of being a great place to work in the minds of the targeted candidate pool.
Employer branding is an occidental concept, used to define the strategic work with
becoming an employer of choice. It is about continued marketing, which does not end
with a signed contract. Workers can be brand ambassadors for their workplace.
At the heart of employer branding is the need to understand what it is like to work
for an organization, and what drives employees desires to keep working for that
organization. If an organization wants its employees to live up to the company brand
promise, it clearly needs to understand what drives their sense of engagement or
commitment. By focusing on employer brand, companies can better understand the
attributes which are likely to attract new recruits to a business, allowing them to adapt
their recruitment strategy accordingly.
*
Freelancer, Flat No. 13, Jaycee Apartments, A/38 Lake Gardens, Kolkata, India. E-mail: brandvikram@rediffmail.com
2010 IUP
. All Rights
Reserved.
Employer
Branding:
A Study
of Its Relevance in India
51
However, being an employer of choice entails more than success in recruiting and
retention. Employees should choose not only to join the company and stay with it, but
also to identify with its vision and values and give it loyalty, commitment and
performance.
Employer branding undoubtedly is one of the most important precepts of modern
management, one that offers a fine blending of the science of marketing with the art of
enlightened human relations management. It is also one of the strongest bulwarks ever
against the scourge of unbridled employee attrition.
However, the irony lies in the fact that it happens to be one of the haziest idioms of
modern management, least understood often by the very persons vested with the
responsibility of implementing its basics. This is particularly relevant in respect of what
employer branding is notfor instance, a corporate image building exercise. It is also an
area which has seen the least amount of original studiesa sprinkling of them in the UK
and Australia, the mecca of modern management, and certainly none of consequence in
India. This research project, therefore, proposes to take a fresh look at employer branding,
especially with respect to its role and relevance in India.
Literature Review
The Dictionary of Business and Management defines a brand as: A name, sign or symbol used
to identify items or services of the seller(s) and to differentiate them from goods of
competitors. However, this definition has been claimed to be incomplete as signs and
symbols are only a part of what a brand actually is. A comprehensive definition of a brand
is: A brand is a collection of perceptions in the mind of the consumer. This definition
makes it clear that a brand is very different from a product or service. Branding is a
strategic decision, as it is designed to not only highlight what a brand means, but also how
it is different from its competitors. Branding
Figure 1: Brand Pyramid
provides consumers with a reason to buy
and is thus much more than just giving a
brand a name and signaling to the outside
world that such a product or service has
Brand
Vision,
been stamped with the mark and imprint
Purpose,
Values
of an organization. Branding is not about
being on top of something, but within
Brand Tone, Codes,
something (Kapferer, 1997).
Personality, Style
The companys ultimate goal is
undoubtedly to generate sales and profit.
But brand purpose is something else.
Specifying brand purpose consists in
(re)defining its raison detre.
Major brands can be compared to a
pyramid (Figure 1). The predicament is
52
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
that consumers view this pyramid from bottom up, i.e., they start with what is real and
tangible. The wider the base, the more the consumer is skeptical that all these products
emanate from the same concept and carry the same brand essence. Brand management
resolves this issue by starting from the top, i.e., what is intangible like brand vision,
purpose and values.
The concept of branding which was initially confined only to products and services
was extended to ideas, events, places, employers and even to ones self. Ideas like the Hello
Kitty campaign, events like Olympics, places like India, UK, etc., started being branded.
The concept of branding has become an all-pervasive one, ruling the roost everywhere.
The demographic, economic, sociopolitical and technological shifts are driving five
workforce trends:
Smaller and less sufficiently skilled
Increasingly global
Highly virtual
Vastly diverse
Autonomous and empowered
The competition in the labor market has intensified as a result of which companies
have started showing an increasing interest in implementing strategies to differentiate
themselves. What has become indispensable is to recruit new talent and retain old
employees so that they dont get poached by the competitors.
The hottest strategy in employment is gathered under the international concept of
employer branding (John Sullivan, October, 1999). Employer brand is one of the best
weapons in a companys armory. Employer branding is one of the few long-term
solutions to the shortage of talent problem. Whereas most employment strategies are
short-term and reactive to job openings, building an employment brand is a longerterm proactive solution designed to provide a steady flow of applicants. Employment
branding is the process of developing an image of being a great place to work in the
minds of the targeted candidate pool. Product branding is designed to develop a lasting
image in the minds of the consumer so that they start to automatically associate quality
with any product or service offered by the owner of the brand. An employment brand
does the same in that it creates an image that makes people want to work for the firm
because it is a well-managed firm where workers are continually learning and growing.
Employment branding uses the tools of marketing research, PR, and advertising to
change the image applicants have of what it is like to work at the firm. In a nutshell,
employer brand can be said to be both the cause and effect of all the disparate elements
of marketing. A successful employment branding strategy develops a common theme for
current workers, reinforces the image of the firms culture, continually monitors the
firms employment image both inside and outside the firm, and energizes the potential
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
53
candidates to apply for jobs at the firm. Employer branding is about continued
marketing, which does not end with a signed contract. Sporadic attempts at it would
only be futile. At the heart of employer branding is the need to understand what it is
like to work for an organization, and what drives employees desires to keep working for
that organization. If an organization wants its employees to live up to the company
brand promise, it clearly needs to understand what drives their sense of engagement or
commitment. By focusing on employer brand, companies can better understand the
attributes which are likely to attract new recruits to a business, allowing them to adapt
their recruitment strategy accordingly.
If organizations spend their time trumpeting their brand and then act otherwise, they
are bound to face the consequences. The world can be a very unforgiving place. Employer
branding is all about marketing and the relationship of customers and employees; about
culture and the need for fundamental vicissitude in the role of the HR function.
Companies have realized that valued employees are like lucrative customers. Employer
branding has introduced a new paradigm by constructing an effective commercial bridge
among HR, internal communications and marketing. For long, the HR department has
been regarded by many organizations as an administrative cost center rather than as a vital
component in the creation and delivery of business value. This is rapidly undergoing
changes. Employer branding commences with initial employer brand awareness, and
continuing throughout the tenure of employment, even extending into retirement.
Employer branding is a relatively new idea, but in practice some organizations have been
making use of the idea implicitly for some time now. Take Starbucks, for instance, which
spends practically nothing on traditional marketing activities, but has created a culture
in which the staff knows how to behave in a way which supports the brand, in their
attitudes to customers and each other, their presentation, etc. All of these say something
about their brands and help fulfill the brand promise.
It is no fad! Certainly the spotlight on employer branding has enhanced over the past
few years, coinciding with the fact that corporate scandals have led to a general decline
of trust in business. In the past, anything associated with branding fell under a
communication/marketing remit and the employer brand may not have been distinguished
from the consumer brandscompanies who had strong product/service brands would, de
facto, be attractive to potential employees. Today, companies require blended capabilities.
We cannot gainsay the fact that talent at any level can be attracted by an impressive
reputation, by the promise of exceptional career progression, competitive financial
rewards, and so on, but ultimately, it is the personal experience of the relationship that
a person develops within an organization that determines the longevity and the win-win
consummation of the relationship.
According to Pransenjit Bhattacharya, CEO of Great Place to Work Institute, The
organizations are using various means to communicate their employer brand. The
employer brand in Cadbury is reinforced through their anthem based on the Lagaan song
chale chalo. The anthem video features employees from all functions and levels, senior
54
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
management and operations in factories, working and enjoying together. The anthem is
developed by an in-house and cross-functional team of employees and is refreshed every
year to include new members of the team Cadbury. The anthem is played at the end of
all conferences and meetings to reinforce the beliefs.
The employer brand encompasses various aspects which are shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2: The Employer Brand
Post
Employment
Vision and
Leadership
Reward
System
Policy and
Values
Working
Environment
Fairness and
Cooperation
Development
Corporate
Personality
Performance
Management
External
Reputation
Recruitment and
Induction
Communication
A strong employer brand has immense value for the organizations (Table 1).
Table 1: External and Internal Values Associated with a Strong Employer Brand
External Value
Internal Value
The author opines that the ultimate goal of employer branding is to make the Brand
Action Triangle (BAT) a virtuous circle wherewhat a company promises outside is what
its employees really connect with, is what its leaders really live, and so the triangle
becomes a full circle which keeps on growing and growing. The concept of BAT is
elucidated below (Figure 3).
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
55
Brand Inside
Brand Outside
Brand leadership is the boardroom and how the boardroom interacts with the brand,
over and above the brand inside.
The ultimate goal of employer brandingmake the triangle a virtuous circle which
keeps on growing and growing.
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
concept. However, the underlying objective with the investigation is to deliver data,
coupled with theory, which opens the door to an understanding of the importance of
employer branding.
Methodology
Selection of Research Sample
The main objective of the research was to gain an insight into the importance of employer
branding. In this study, over 60 respondents were surveyed. The target population was
working employees, mostly from marketing and HR departments of Indian companies and
MNCs operating in India. No restrictions were made concerning the choice of
respondents. The surveys were mostly conducted in the National Capital Region (NCR)
of India. Also, other metropolitan cities and other states of India were covered on a basis
of convenience via the electronic medium. The choice of contact persons at different
companies varied. It depended on which person the company handed over the issue to.
The group of people asked to participate in the research was chosen on the basis of
convenience. The company representative contact person was in charge of generating a
list of randomly chosen employees. Companies were promised anonymity, due to
sensitivity of the information needed. A few of the companies approached to, refused to
participate due to research-fatigue among their employees.
Data Classification
This research work was based on secondary as well as primary data. Secondary data was
collated from a myriad of sources, and served as a base for the research. To fulfill the
objective of the research, complementary primary data was also needed which was
collected by means of a non-disguised structured questionnaire.
57
The Questionnaire
After the personal and professional details, the questionnaire asks whether the respondent
is aware of the concept of employer branding. If the answer was affirmative, the respondent
would be asked to continue or else discontinue. The questionnaire also delved into the
source of awareness of this concept. An open-ended questionnaire was used to gain an
in-depth understanding into employer branding. This was basically qualitative. Other
questions used rating scales to quantify the qualitative data.
Method of Analysis
To compare secondary data with the primary data collected in the research, Excel was
used. The data collected in the surveys done among employees was stored in Excel. When
all data were transmitted into Excel, comparable diagrams/profiles were created. These
served as the base for the analyses.
2%
4%
32%
33%
5%
13%
Others
Peers
Research and Case Studies
The 57 respondents who answered in the affirmative were asked whether they had an
active role to play in employer branding is and the results are shown in Figure 5.
A very confusing aspect of employer branding iswhich department(s) is/are
responsible for managing it. The results obtained when the respondents were asked about
this, are shown in Figure 6.
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The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
2%
Corporate Affairs
HR
26%
HR and Communications
66%
HR and Marketing
2%
The research problem was basically to gauge whether this concept of employer
branding is merely superficial or is there something more innate to it. A very important
question was whether the companies where the respondents worked had developed a clear
employer brand strategy. When the respondents were asked this, the following results were
obtained (Figure 7).
Figure 7: Clear Brand Strategy of the Organization
4%
39%
57%
After gauging whether the companies had a clear employer brand strategy or not, the
respondents were asked to rate the various factors that they considered were pertinent in
developing/enhancing the employer brand of an organization. Following were the
parameters against which the respondents rated on a scale of 1-5. The average ratings for
all the 57 respondents are put together (Table 2).
These parameters, when arranged in descending order, reflected that the top three
important criteria were current employee research, developing strategies for retaining
talent, and retention initiatives.
Attracting requisite talent is extremely important in employer branding. In fact, it is
one of the reasons why companies go for employer branding. It is both the cause and effect
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
59
Average Score
4.70
4.68
Retention Initiatives
4.66
4.65
Coaching/Mentoring
4.53
4.50
Induction Program
4.50
CEO Engagement
4.43
4.42
4.40
4.40
4.40
Communications Planning
4.39
Recruitment Advertising
4.37
4.37
4.30
4.28
Customer Research
4.21
4.21
Competitor Analysis
4.18
4.16
Alumni Program
4.14
4.04
4.00
3.91
of successful employer branding. When respondents were asked to rate the attributes
which they considered pertinent in attracting new talent to their companies, certain
results were obtained and those are presented in Table 3.
After arranging in descending order, it was revealed that a companys mission, vision,
and values, performance management, and leadership were the top three attributes that
employees consider important in attracting new talent to their companies.
We cannot gainsay the fact that implementing an effective employer brand strategy is
not an easy task. There are various challenges associated with it. The respondents were
60
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Average Score
4.89
Performance Management
4.79
Leadership
4.70
4.70
4.70
4.65
Work Environment
4.63
4.60
Career Development
4.53
Innovation
4.51
4.49
CSR
4.40
Employee Research
4.40
Communications System
4.26
asked to rate those challenges that they encountered in managing their employer brand
program. The results obtained are presented in Table 4.
Apart from issues that the respondents were either unsure of or were not comfortable
discussing, the top three challenges identified were that of communicating key employer
brand messages to potential recruits, engagement of senior leadership, and coordinating
employer brand messages across different departments.
Successful implementation of strategies cannot condone their evaluation. Hence,
companies use various metrics to measure the Return on Investments (ROI) for their
Table 4: Challenges in Managing the Employer Brand Program
Item
Average Score
5.00
4.77
4.46
4.44
CEO engagement
4.40
4.33
4.32
4.14
3.96
3.46
61
Average Score
Retention rate
4.67
Quality of hire
4.58
4.51
Promotion of internal
candidates to key roles
4.42
4.39
Number of applicants
4.37
Profit/employee
4.26
Cost/hire
4.09
I dont know
3.75
2.09
Increase
37
Unchanged
10
Unsure
Grand Total
57
Average Score
5.30
5.23
5.23
5.19
4.96
4.89
Respondents were asked to rate the communication media which they think should
be utilized to communicate their employer brand. The results are shown in Table 8.
The ratings revealed that performance appraisals, training and development programs,
and employee referral programs were the three most important communication media.
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The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Average Score
Performance appraisals
5.47
5.19
5.14
I dont know
5.00
Induction Process
4.82
Graduate programs
4.75
On campus activities
4.68
4.51
4.47
4.35
Career website
4.28
Company brochures
4.28
Blogs
4.16
3.95
Career fairs
3.89
Alumni events
3.75
Trade shows
3.37
Sponsorship
3.00
Creating an employer brand is a short-term goal. What is really important is not only
to create and maintain but also to enhance the brand. The respondents were asked to rate
those activities that they considered important in enhancing the employer brand of the
companies, and after ranking in descending order, certain results were obtained and these
are presented in Table 9.
Talent pool development, talent relationship management and talent development
strategy emerged to be the top three activities.
Incurring cost without gaining benefit is not justified. Hence, the respondents were
finally asked to rate those benefits that they felt they gained from implementing their
employer brand program, and the results bear testimony to the fact that recognition as
an employer of choice is the most important benefit. Table 10 shows the detailed results.
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
63
Average Score
5.26
5.19
5.09
4.96
4.77
4.63
4.04
3.08
Average Score
Recognition as an employer
of choice
5.23
5.12
5.09
4.84
4.75
Decreased time-to-fill
4.67
4.63
4.54
Increase in number of
unsolicited resumes
4.33
Conclusion
The main conclusions of the study are:
Top three factors pertinent in developing/enhancing the employer brand: Current
employee research, developing strategies for retaining talent and retention
initiatives.
Top three attributes considered most important in attracting new talent to the
companies: Mission, vision and values, performance management and leadership.
Top three challenges in managing an employer brand: Others (if any),
communicating key employer brand messages to potential recruits, senior
leadership engagement.
Top three metrics considered useful for measuring the ROI for a companys employer
Brand: retention rate, quality of hire, and employee referral rate of new hires.
Top three factors an employee considers important about working with his
company: My friends perception of the company I work for is important; It is
important to me that my family knows the company I work for; my familys
perception of the company I work for is important.
Top three communication media considered important for communicating the
employer brand: Performance appraisals, training and development programs,
employee referrals program.
Top three activities considered important in enhancing the employer brand: Talent
pool development, talent relationship management, talent development strategy.
Top three benefits arising from implementing employer brand: Recognition as an
employer of choice, ease in attracting candidates, and increased internal hire rate.
Limitations: Although employees were chosen on the basis of convenience, yet they fit
within the frame of occupational roles. Although the research was not free from
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The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
complaints about the questionnaire being very extensive and time-consuming, yet it was
done with reflection and consideration. Some responses were not complete. At some
points, questions were not entirely compatible.
Bibliography
1. Aaker David A (2002), Building Strong Brands, Simon & Schuster Ltd., UK.
2. Barrow Simon (2003), Is the Employer Brand Too Important to Leave to HR?, available
at http://www.mrs.org.uk/networking/erg/meetings.htm/, accessed on February 11, 2009.
3. Barrow Simon and Mosley Richard (2005), The Employer Brand: Bringing the Best of
Brand Management to People at Work, 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, London.
4. Bhattacharya Prasenjit (2009), Do You Know Your Employer Brand (Great Place To
Work Institute), available at http://www.employerbrandingonline.com/articles/124do-you-know-your-employer-brand.html/, accessed on February 12.
5. Buckingham Ian (2007), Brand Engagement, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
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to Talent Management and Succession Planning, AuthorHouse, UK.
7. Doyle Peter and Stern Phil (2006), Marketing Management and Strategy, 4th Edition,
Financial Times/Prentice Hall, Great Britain.
8. Dunmore Michael (2002), Inside-Out Marketing: How to Create an Internal Marketing
Strategy, Kogan Page Ltd., London.
9. Gratton Lynda (2000), Living Strategy: Putting People at the Heart of Corporate Purpose,
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10. Huselid Mark A, Becker Brian E and Beatty Richard W (2005), The Workforce Scorecard:
Managing Human Capital to Execute Strategy, Harvard Business School Press, USA.
11. Ind Nicholas (2004), Living the Brand: How to Transform Every Member of Your
Organization into a Brand Champion, 2nd Edition, Kogan Page, London.
12. Kapferer Noe Jean (1997), Strategic Brand Management, Kogan Page, UK.
13. Kotler Philip and Keller Kevin (2008), Marketing Management-International Version, 13th
Edition.
14. Lawler III and Edward E (2008), Talent: Making People Your Competitive Advantage, Jossey
Bass, San Francisco.
15. Malhotra Naresh K and Birks David (2006), Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation,
3rd Edition, Financial Times/Prentice Hall, Great Britain.
16. Martin Graeme and Hetrick Susan (2006), Corporate Reputations, Branding and People
Management: A Strategic Approach to HR, A Butterworth-Heinemann Title, USA.
17. Macrae Chris (2001), Managing the Brand Action Triangle, available at http://
www.allaboutbranding.com/index.lasso?article=114, accessed on February 12, 2009.
18. Mamarchev Steve (2009), Keeping the Cornerstone of Your Organization
Employer Branding is a Necessity in an Economic Slowdown, available at
www.inwardconsulting.com/, accessed on February 11.
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
65
19. Michaels (Ed.), Handfield-Jones Helen and Axelrod Beth (2001), The War for Talent,
Harvard Business School Press, USA.
20. Minchington Brett (2006), Your Employer Brand, Collective Learning Australia, Australia.
21. Newmeier Marty (2005), The Brand Gap: How to Bridge the Distance Between Business
Strategy and Design: A Whiteboard Overview, 2nd Edition, Peachpit Press, Berkeley.
22. Quirke Bill (2008), Making the Connections: Using Internal Communication to Turn
Strategy into Action, 2nd Revised Edition, Gower Publishing Ltd., England.
23. Sartain Libby and Schumann Mark (2006), Brand from Inside: Eight Essentials to
Emotionally Connect Your Employees to Your Business, Jossey Bass, San Francisco.
24. Sullivan John (October, 1999), Stop Being Boring Become The Talked About
Company in Order to Build Your Employment Brand!, available at
http://www.drjohnsullivan.com/, accessed January 12, 2009.
25. TalentTalk (2003), About Talent Talk, available at http://www.talenttalk.se/english.aspx,
accessed on January 12, 2009.
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accessed on January 13, 2009.
27. Zikmund William G (1999), Exploring Marketing Research, 7th Edition, Harcourt
College Pub.
Appendix 1
Profiles of Respondents
Age Group of Respondents
3%
Age Group
20%
30%
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
47%
Sex of Respondents
Female
20
Male
40
Grand Total
60
Income of Respondents
5%
50%
66
12%
Income
33%
<25,000
25,000-50,000
50,000-100,000
>100,000
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Appendix 1 (Cont.)
Qualifications of Respondents
3%
2% 2%
2% 3%
3%
15%
2%
2%
3%
3%
3%
MBA
BA
MCA
B.Com
M.Com.
B.Com., Diploma
M.Sc., MBA
B.Com., Engineering
5%
43%
Architect
B.Com., MBA
3%
3%
BE MBA
B.Sc.
B.Tech.
B.Tech., MBA
23%
2%
75%
PSU
Public
Private
12%
General Manager
Manager
13%
27%
Office Assistant
Officer
Others
Senior Manager
22%
7% 2%
2%
Supervisor
Team Leader
67
Appendix 1 (Cont.)
Industry Type
2% 2%
2%
5%
Industry Sector
2% 3%
Banking
Construction
Consulting
IT
15%
34%
Manufacturing
Others
Recruiting/Staffing
Telecommunications
32%
Retail
Tourism
3%
No. of Employees
6%
101-500
58%
501-1000
28%
10,001-5,000
>5,000
Turnover of the
Organization
22%
28%
100
750
2000
7%
2%
7,000
10,000
21,150
72,000
35%
68
1,26,900
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Appendix 2
Questionnaire
Personal Details
Name
Age Group
0-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
60
Address
___________________________________________
Tel. No.
Gender
Male
Female
Income
<25,000 PM
25,000-50,000 PM
50,000-100,000 PM >100,000 PM
Qualifications
_____________________
Occupation
_____________________
Present company
_____________________
_____________________
_____________________
Email-id
_____________________
CEO/President
Vice President
Senior Manager
Supervisor
General Manager
Manager
Team Leader
Officer
Office Assistant/Clerical
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
Others
69
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
4. What is the approximate number of employees in your organization
5. Industry Sector
1-10
11-15
51-100
101-500
1,001-5,000
501-1,000
5,000+
Community Service
Computer
Consulting
Education Services
Engineering
Financial Services
Healthcare
Information Technology
Insurance
Legal
Telecommunications
Transportation
Construction
Manufacturing
Consumer Products
Defense
Government
Professional Services
Pharmaceuticals
Real Estate
Others
Yes
No
Peers
Internet
Others
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
70
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
8(b). Do you think employer branding is important?
Yes
No
Yes
No
Marketing
Communications
Corporate Affairs
I dont know
13. Do you agree that the following are important in developing/enhancing your
employer brand? Rate each parameter from 1-5.(1=Strongly disagree, 2=Somewhat
disagree, 3=Neither agree nor disagree, 4=Somewhat agree, 5=Strongly agree)
Alumini program
Coaching/marketing
Competitor analysis
Customer research
71
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
Focus groups with current employees
Focus groups with external stakeholders
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
Induction program
Recruitment advertising
Retention initiatives
CEO engagement
Communications planning
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
15. The following have been the challenges you have encountered in managing your
employer brand program. Please state your agreement/disagreement on a scale from
1-5. (1=Strongly Disagree, 2=Somewhat Disagree, 3=Neither Agree nor Disagree,
4=Somewhat Agree, 5=Strongly Agree)
Being creative and innovative to distinguish our
employment offering
1
2
3
4
5
CEO engagement
1
2
3
4
5
Commissioning the services of an outside firm to
develop/evolve our employer brand strategy
1
2
3
4
5
Communicating key employer brand
messages to customers
1
2
3
4
5
Communicating key employer brand
messages to potential recruits
1
2
3
4
5
Communicating key employer brand
messages to supplier/contractors
1
2
3
4
5
Coordinating employer brand
messages across different departments
1
2
3
4
5
Obtaining an adequate budget
1
2
3
4
5
Senior leadership engagement
1
2
3
4
5
Others (if any)
1
2
3
4
5
16. Which of the following is most important to you? Rank in a scale of 1-6.
It is important to me that my friends know the company I work for
My friends perception of the company I work for is important
It is important to me that my family knows the company I work for
My familys perception of the company I work for is important
Other peoples perception of the company that I work for is
important to me
None of these
17. In Financial Year 2008-2009 what are your plans for expenditure on employer
branding activities?
An increase in the amount invested
Approximately unchanged investment
A decrease in the amount invested
Need to justify investment
Unsure
Employer Branding: A Study of Its Relevance in India
73
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
18. The following metrics are very important in measuring ROI for your employer brand
strategy? 1-5. (1=Strongly disagree, 2=Somewhat disagree, 3=Neither agree nor
disagree, 4=Somewhat agree, 5=Strongly agree)
Candidate conversion ratio
1
2
3
4
5
Cost/hire
Employee referral rate of new hires
Number of applicants
Profit/employee
Promotion of internal candidates to key roles
Quality of hire
Retention rate
We havent defined our metrics as yet
I dont know
Others
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
19. The following are important communication media a company must utilize to
communicate its employer brand? Please state your agreement/disagreement on a
scale from 1-6. (1=Strongly disagree, 2=Disagree, 3=Somewhat disagree,
4=Somewhat agree, 5=Agree, 6=Strongly agree)
Online social networking sites
Career website
Company events, e.g., AGM
Induction process
On campus activities
Employee referral program
Newspaper job ads
Training and development programs
Graduate programs
Trade shows
Sponsorship
Company brochures
Career fairs
Blogs
Alumni events
Online job boards
Performance appraisals
I dont know
Others
74
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
The IUP Journal of Brand Management, Vol. VII, Nos. 1 & 2, 2010
Appendix 2 (Cont.)
20. The following activities have been most effective in enhancing your companys
employer brand? Please state your agreement/disagreement on a scale from 1-6.
(1=Strongly disagree, 2=Disagree, 3=Somewhat disagree, 4=Somewhat agree,
5= Agree, 6=Strongly agree)
Commencing action to reduce our carbon footprint
1
2
3
4
5
Building an effective leadership development program
I dont know
Others
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
21. This is the main benefit you have gained from your employer brand program? Please
state your agreement/disagreement on a scale from 1-6. (1=Strongly disagree,
2=Disagree, 3=Somewhat disagree, 4=Somewhat agree, 5=Agree, 6=Strongly
agree)
Reduced recruitment costs
Decreased time-to-fill
I dont know
Others
75
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