Abstract
In industry today, researchers and practitioners are pointing to service as the differentiating factor in competitive situations. In both the marketing and management literature—disconnects exist between the importance of the corporate brand and the service component of the offering that is supported by consistent and effective marketing employees. This research examines the relationships between corporate brand identity and employee personality traits, organisational culture and employee turnover. We found that employee need for achievement moderates the relationship between corporate brand identity and employee intent to remain with the organisation. As such, the more an organisation's brand emphasises value-goal or cultural congruence—the more likely recruits will espouse that corporate culture post hire. We also found partial support that organisational culture mediates the relationship between employee perceptions of corporate brand identity and employee intent to turnover. We discuss the implications from our findings in the context of building, managing and transmitting corporate brand identity.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Nandan, S. (2005) ‘An exploration of the brand identity-brand image linkage: A communications perspective’, Journal of Brand Management, Vol. 12, pp. 264–278.
Melewar, T. C., Karaosmanoglu, E. and Paterson, D. (2005) ‘Corporate identity: Concept, components and contribution’, Journal of General Management, Vol. 31, pp. 59–81.
Farquhar, P. H. (1989) ‘Managing brand equity’, Marketing Research, Vol. 1, pp. 24–33.
Aaker, D. A. (1991) ‘Managing Brand Equity: Capitalizing on the Value of a Brand Name’, The Free Press, New York.
Keller, K. L. (1993) ‘Conceptualizing, measuring, and managing customer—Based brand equity’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 57, pp. 1–22.
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A. and Berry, L. L. (1988) ‘SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality’, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 64, pp. 12–40.
Schultz, D. E. (2002) ‘Study internal marketing for better impact’, Marketing News, Vol. 36, pp. 8–9.
Collins, C. J. and Stevens, C. K. (2002) ‘The relationship between early recruitment activities and the application decisions of new labor-market entrants: A brand equity approach to recruitment’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 87, pp. 1121–1133.
Gatewood, R. D., Gowan, M. A. and Lautenschlager, G. J. (1993) ‘Corporate image, recruitment image, and initial job choice decisions’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 36, pp. 414–427.
Balmer, J. M. T. (2001) ‘Corporate identity, corporate branding and corporate marketing—Seeing through the fog’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 35, pp. 248–291.
Turban, D. B. and Cable, D. M. (2003) ‘Firm reputation and applicant pool characteristics’, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 24, pp. 733–751.
Belt, J. A. and Paolillo, J. G. P. (1982) ‘The influence of corporate image and specificity of candidate qualifications on response to recruitment advertisement’, Journal of Management, Vol. 8, pp. 105–112.
Schwoerer, C. and Rosen, B. (1989) ‘Effects of employment-at-will policies and compensation policies on corporate image and job pursuit intentions’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 74, pp. 653–656.
Florida, R. and Goodnight, J. (2005) ‘Managing for creativity’, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 83, pp. 124–131.
Cross, R. and Cummings, J. N. (2004) ‘Tie and network correlates of individual performance in knowledge-intensive work’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 47, pp. 928–937.
Harris, E. G. and Lee, J. M. (2004) ‘The customer, co-worker, and management burnout distinction in service settings: Personality influencers and outcomes’, Services Marketing Quarterly, Vol. 25, pp. 13–31.
Aiman-Smith, L., Bauer, T. N. and Cable, D. M. (2001) ‘Are you attracted? Do you intend to pursue? A recruiting policy-capturing study’, Journal of Business and Psychology, Vol. 16, pp. 219–237.
Kristof-Brown, A. L. and Stevens, C. K. (2001) ‘Goal congruence in project teams: Does the fit between members’ personal mastery and performance goals matter?’ Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 86, pp. 1083–1095.
Kristof, A. L. (1996) ‘Person-organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurement, and implications’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 49, pp. 1–49.
Bretz Jr, R. D. and Judge, T. A. (1994) ‘Person–organization fit and the theory of work adjustment: Implications for satisfaction, tenure, and career success’, Journal of Vocational Behavior, Vol. 44, pp. 32–54.
O’Reilly III, C. A., Chatman, J. and Caldwell, D. F. (1991) ‘People and organizational culture: A profile comparison approach to assessing person–organization fit’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 34, pp. 487–516.
Richey, R. G., Tokman, M. and Wheeler, A. R. (2006) ‘A supply chain manager selection methodology, empirical test and suggested application’, Journal of Business Logistics, Vol. 27, No. 2, (forthcoming).
Cable, D. M., Aiman-Smith, L., Mulvey, P. W. and Edwards, J. R. (2000) ‘The sources and accuracy of job applicants’ beliefs about organizational culture’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 43, pp. 1076–1085.
Saks, A. M. and Ashforth, B. E. (1997) ‘A longitudinal investigation of the relationship between job information sources, applicant perceptions of fit, and work outcomes’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 50, pp. 395–426.
Vancouver, J. B. and Schmitt, N. W. (1991) ‘An exploratory examination of person–organization fit: Organizational goal congruence’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 44, pp. 333–352.
Luthans, F., Baack, D. and Taylor, L. A. (1987) ‘Organizational commitment: Analysis of antecedents’, Human Relations, Vol. 40, pp. 219–235.
Borman, W. C., Hanson, M. A. and Hedge, J. W. (1997) ‘Personnel selection’, Annual Review of Psychology,, Vol. 48, pp. 299–337.
Chatman, J. (1991) ‘Matching people and organizations: Selection and socialization in public accounting firms’, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 36, pp. 459–484.
Beyer, J. M., Hannah, D. R. and Milton, L. P. (2000) ‘Ties that bind: Culture and attachments in organizations’, in Ashkanasay, N.M. Wilderom, C.P.M. and Peterson, M.F. (eds.) Handbook of Organizational Culture and Climate’, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 323–338.
Tom, V. R. (1971) ‘The role of personality and organizational images in the recruiting process’, Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, Vol. 6, pp. 573–592.
Van Vianen, A. E. M. (2000) ‘Person–organization fit: The match between newcomers’ and recruiters’ preferences for organiza-tional culture’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 53, pp. 113–149.
Stuart, H. (2002) ‘Employee identification with the corporate identity’, International Studies of Management and Organization, Vol. 32, pp. 28–44.
Turban, D. B., Forret, M. L. and Hendrickson, C. L. (1998) ‘Applicant attraction to firms: Influences of organizational reputation, job and organizational attributes, and recruiter behaviors’, Journal of Vocational Behavior, Vol. 52, pp. 24–44.
Melewar, T. C. (2003) ‘Determinants of the corporate identity construct: A review of the literature’, Journal of Marketing Communications, Vol. 9, pp. 195–220.
Melewar, T. C. and Saunders, J. (1999) ‘International corporate visual identity: Standardization or localization?’ Journal of International Business Studies, Vol. 30, pp. 583–598.
Markwick, N. and Fill, C. (1997) ‘Towards a framework for managing corporate identity’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 31, pp. 16–29.
Aaker, D. A. (2004) ‘Leveraging the corporate brand’, California Management Review, Vol. 46, pp. 6–18.
Berens, G., van Riel, C. B. M. and van Bruggen, G. H. (2005) ‘Corporate associations and consumer product responses: The moderating role of corporate brand dominance’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 69, No. 3, pp. 35–48.
Martínez, E. and Pina, J. M. (2005) ‘Influence of corporate image on brand extensions: A model applied to the service sector’, Journal of Marketing Communications, Vol. 11, pp. 263–281.
Faust, W. H. and Eilertson, A. (1994) ‘You’ve got a logo, you need a brand’, ABA Banking Journal, Vol. 86, pp. 86–88.
Harris, F. and de Chernatony, L. (2001) ‘Corporate branding and corporate brand performance’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 35, pp. 441–456.
Dutton, J. E., Dukerich, J. M. and Harquail, C. V. (1994) ‘Organizational images and member identification’, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 39, pp. 239–263.
Ahmed, P. K. and Rafiq, M. (2003) ‘Internal marketing issues and challenges’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 37, No. 9, pp. 1177–1186.
Bendapudi, N. and Leone, R. P. (2002) ‘Managing business-to-business customer relationships following key contact employee turnover in a vendor firm’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 66, pp. 83–101.
Paswan, A. K., Pelton, L. E. and True, S. L. (2005) ‘Perceived managerial sincerity, feedback-seeking orientation and motivation among front-line employees of a service organization’, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 19, No. 1, pp. 3–12.
Eisenberger, R., Stinglhamer, F., Vandenberghe, C., Sucharski, I. L. and Rhoades, L. (2002) ‘Perceived supervisor support: Contributions to perceived organizational support and employee retention’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 87, pp. 565–573.
Waldman, J. D. and Arora, S. (2004) ‘Measuring retention rather than turnover: A different and complementary HR calculus’, Human Resource Planning, Vol. 27, pp. 6–9.
Sheridan, J. E. (1992) ‘Organizational culture and employee retention’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 35, pp. 1036–1056.
Williams, V. L. and Sunderland, J. E. (1999) ‘New pay programs boost retention’, Workforce, Vol. 78, pp. 36–39.
Bhattacharya, C. B. and Sen, S. (2003) ‘Consumer–company identification: A framework for understanding consumers’ relationships with companies’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 67, pp. 76–88.
Dewsnap, B. and Jobber, D. (2002) ‘A social psychological model of relations between marketing and sales’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 36, No. 7/8, pp. 874–894.
Tajfel, H. and Turner, J. C. (1985) ‘The social identity theory of intergroup behavior’, in Worchel, S. and Austin, W.E. (eds.) Psychology of intergroup relations’, Nelson-Hall Publishers, Chicago, IL, pp. 7–24.
Ashforth, B. E. and Mael, F. (1989) ‘Social identity theory and the organization’, Academy of Management Review,, Vol. 14, pp. 20–39.
Ellemers, N., Spears, R. and Doosje, B. (2002) ‘Self and social identity’, Annual Review of Psychology, Vol. 53, pp. 161–186.
Yang, Sha and Allenby, G. M. (2003) ‘Modeling interdependent consumer preferences’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp. 282–294.
Barrick, M. R. and Mount, M. K. (1991) ‘The big five personality dimensions and job performance: A meta-analysis’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 44, pp. 1–26.
Costa Jr, P. T. and McCrae, R. R. (1988) ‘From catalog to classification: Murray's needs and the five-factor model’, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 55, pp. 258–265.
Aaker, J. L. (1997) ‘Dimensions of brand personality’, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 34, No. 3, pp. 347–356.
Chusmir, L. H. and Azevedo, A. (1992) ‘Motivation needs of sampled Fortune 500 CEOs: Relations to organization outcomes’, Perceptual and Motor Skills, Vol. 75, pp. 595–612.
Cornelius III, E. T. and Lane, F. B. (1984) ‘The power motive and managerial success in a professionally oriented service industry organization’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 69, pp. 32–39.
Elder Jr, G. H. (1968) ‘Achievement motivation and intelligence in occupational mobility: A longitudinal analysis’, Sociometry, Vol. 31, pp. 327–354.
Banister, E. N. and Hogg, M. K. (2004) ‘Negative symbolic consumption and consumers’ drive for self-esteem: The case of the fashion industry’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 38, pp. 850–868.
Tafarodi, R. W. and Swann Jr, W. B. (2001) ‘Two-dimensional self-esteem: Theory and measurement’, Personality and Individual Differences, Vol. 31, pp. 653–673.
Heath, A. P. and Scott, D. (1998) ‘The self-concept and image congruence hypothesis’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 32, No. 11/12, pp. 1110–1123.
Cable, D. M. and Turban, D. B. (2000) ‘The value of organizational image in the recruitment context: A brand equity perspective’, Paper presented at the 15th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychologists, New Orleans, LA, April 2000.
Keon, T. M., Latack, J. and Wanous, J. P. (1982) ‘Image congruence and the treatment of difference scores in organizational choice research’, Human Relations, Vol. 35, pp. 155–166.
Schneider, B. (1987) ‘The people make the place’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 40, pp. 437–453.
Schneider, B., Goldstein, H. W. and Smith, D. B. (1995) ‘The ASA framework: An update’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 48, pp. 747–773.
Highhouse, S., Zickar, M. J., Thorsteinson, T. J., Stierwalt, S. L. and Slaughter, J. E. (1999) ‘Assessing company employment image: An example in the fast food industry’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 52, pp. 151–172.
De Chernatony, L. (1999) ‘Brand management through narrowing the gap between brand identity and brand reputation’, Journal of Marketing Management, Vol. 15, pp. 157–179.
Burmann, C. and Zeplin, S. (2005) ‘Building brand commitment: A behavioural approach to internal brand management’, Journal of Brand Management, Vol. 12, pp. 279–300.
Personal Values Questionnaire. (1993) ‘Houghton Mifflin Company’, Boston, MA.
Tannenbaum, M. (2003) ‘Measure for culture/climate for learning’, Personal communication, (November 21, 2003).
Mitchell, T. R., Holtom, B. C., Lee, T. W., Sablynski, C. J. and Erez, M. (2001) ‘Why people stay: Using job embeddedness to predict voluntary turnover’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 44, pp. 1102–1121.
Baron, R. M. and Kenny, D. A. (1986) ‘The moderator–mediator distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations’, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 51, pp. 1173–1182.
Aiken, L. and West, S. (1991) ‘Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions’, Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
Ind, N. (2003) ‘Inside out: How employees build value’, Journal of Brand Management, Vol. 10, pp. 393–402.
Simões, C., Dibb, S. and Fisk, R. P. (2005) ‘Managing corporate identity: An internal perspective’, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 33, pp. 153–168.
Dineen, B. R., Ash, S. R. and Noe, R. A. (2002) ‘A web of applicant attraction: Person–organization fit in the context of web-based recruitment’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 87, pp. 723–734.
Rynes, S. L. (1991) ‘Recruitment, job choice, and post-hire consequences: A call for new research directions’, in Dunnette, M.D. and Hough, L.M. (eds.) Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2nd edn, Consulting Psycho-logists Press, Inc: Palo Alto, CA, pp. 399–444.
Chatman, J. A. and Barsade, S. G. (1995) ‘Personality, organizational culture and cooperation: Evidence from a business simulation’, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 40, pp. 423–443.
Wanous, J. P. (1992) ‘Organizational Entry’, Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA.
Wheeler, A. R., Buckley, M. R., Halbesleben, J. R., Brouer, R. L. and Ferris, G. R. (2005) ‘The elusive criterion of fit’ revisited: Toward an integrative theory of multidimensional fit’, in: Martocchio, J. (ed.) Research in Personnel and Human Resource Management’, Vol. 24, Greenwich, CT: Elsevier/JAI Press, pp. 265–304.
Hom, P. W., Griffeth, R. W., Palich, L. E. and Bracker, J. S. (1998) ‘An exploratory investigation into theoretical mechanisms underlying realistic job previews’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 51, pp. 421–451.
Breaugh, J. A. and Starke, M. (2000) ‘Research on recruitment: So many studies, so many remaining questions’, Journal of Management, Vol. 26, pp. 405–434.
Phillips, J. M. (1998) ‘Effectiveness of realistic job previews on multiple organizational out-comes: A meta-analysis’, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 41, pp. 673–690.
Bretz Jr, R. D. and Judge, T. A. (1998) ‘Realistic job previews: A test of the adverse self-selection hypothesis’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 83, pp. 330–337.
Wanous, J. P. and Reichers, A. E. (2000) ‘New employee orientation programs’, Human Resource Management Review, Vol. 10, pp. 435–451.
Cable, D. M. and Judge, T. A. (1997) ‘Interviewers’ perceptions of person–organization fit and organization selection decisions’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 82, pp. 546–561.
Judge, T. A., Higgins, C. A. and Cable, D. M. (2000) ‘The employment interview: A review of recent research and recommendations for future research’, Human Resources Management Review, Vol. 10, pp. 383–406.
Bauer, T. N., Morrison, E. W. and Callister, R. R. (1998) ‘Organizational socialization: A review and directions for future research’, in Ferris, G.R. (ed.) Research in Personnel and Human Resource Management’, Vol. 6, Sage, Greenwich, CT, pp. 149–214.
Cable, D. M. and Parsons, C. K. (2001) ‘Socialization tactics and person–organization fit’, Personnel Psychology, Vol. 54, pp. 1–23.
Autry, C. W. and Wheeler, A. R. (2005) ‘Post-hire human resource management practices and person–organization fit: A study of blue-collar employees’, Journal of Managerial Issues, Vol. 17, pp. 58–75.
Witt, L. A., Hilton, T. F. and Hochwarter, W. A. (2001) ‘Addressing politics in matrix teams’, Group and Organization Management, Vol. 26, pp. 230–247.
Kristof-Brown, A. L., Jansen, K. J. and Colbert, A. L. (2002) ‘A policy-capturing study of the simultaneous effects of fit with jobs, groups, and organizations’, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 87, pp. 985–993.
Scandura, T. A. (1998) ‘Dysfunctional mentoring relationships and outcomes’, Journal of Management, Vol. 24, pp. 449–467.
Ellinger, A. E., Ellinger, A. D. and Keller, S. B. (2005) ‘Supervisory coaching in a logistics context’, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, Vol. 35, pp. 620–636.
Mullen, E. J. (1998) ‘Vocational and psychosocial mentoring functions: Identifying mentors who serve both’, Human Resource Development Quarterly, Vol. 9, pp. 319–331.
Richey, R. G. and Bachrach, D. G. (2004) ‘A case study of supply chain quality: Program implementation, formalization, and employee civic virtue’, Supply Chain Management Review, Vol. 8, No. 3, pp. 24–31.
Richey, R. G. and Wheeler, A. R. (2004) ‘A three hurdle model of supply chain manager selection’, Journal of Marketing Channels, Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 89–104.
Vargo, S. L. and Lusch, R. F. (2004) ‘Evolving to a new dominant logic for marketing’, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 68, No. 1, pp. 1–17.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Wheeler, A., Richey, R., Tokkman, M. et al. Retaining employees for service competency: The role of corporate brand identity. J Brand Manag 14, 96–113 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.bm.2550062
Received:
Revised:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.bm.2550062