Based on the theories of resource-based view, social exchange, social identity and social information processing, the current research propounds a model that investigates the role an employer’s brand image plays in influencing organizational identification, trust in organizations and work engagement. Data were collected from 508 employees serving in Indian public and private sector companies. Hypotheses were tested using regression analyses. Results suggest that work engagement is influenced directly by employer brand image, as well as indirectly through trust in organizations and organizational identification (mediators). Thus, it is logical that if an organization creates and maintains a unique employer brand image, then employees’ identification and trust with organizations would likely to increase and impact work engagement. Implications for theory and practice are discussed in this article.
AbramsD.HoggM. A. (1988). Comments on the motivational status of self-esteem in social identity and intergroup discrimination. European Journal of Social Psychology, 18(4), 317–334.
2.
AgarwalU. (2014). Linking justice, trust and innovative work behaviour to work engagement. Personnel Review, 43(1), 41–73.
3.
AmblerT.BarrowS. (1996). The employer brand. Journal of Brand Management, 4(3), 185–206.
4.
AndersonJ. C.GerbingD. W. (1988). Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two-step approach. Psychological bulletin, 103(3), 411–423.
5.
AshforthB. E.HarrisonS. H.CorleyK. G. (2008). Identification in organizations: An examination of four fundamental questions. Journal Of Management, 34(3), 325–374.
6.
AshforthB. E.MaelF. (1989). Social identity theory and the organization. Academy of Management Review, 14(1), 20–39.
7.
AveryD. R.McKayP. F.WilsonD. C. (2007). Engaging the aging workforce: The relationship between perceived age similarity, satisfaction with coworkers, and employee engagement. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(6), 1542–1556.
8.
AxinnW. G.PearceL. D. (2006). Mixed method data collection strategies. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
BackhausK.TikooS. (2004). Conceptualizing and researching employer branding. Career Development International, 9(5), 501–517.
11.
BakkerA. B.DemeroutiE. (2007). The job demands-resources model: State of the art. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 22(3), 309–328.
12.
BakkerA. B.HakanenJ. J.DemeroutiE.XanthopoulouD. (2007). Job resources boost work engagement, particularly when job demands are high. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(2), 274–284.
13.
BarneyJ. B. (2001). Resource-based theories of competitive advantage: A ten-year retrospective on the resource-based view. Journal of Management, 27(6), 643–650.
14.
BaronR. M.KennyD. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173–1182.
15.
BarrowS.MosleyR. (2011). The employer brand: Bringing the best of brand management to people at work. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons.
16.
BassiL.McMurrerD. (2007). Maximizing your return on people. Harvard Business Review, 85(3), 115–123.
BerthonP.EwingM.HahL. L. (2005). Captivating company: Dimensions of attractiveness in employer branding. International Journal of Advertising, 24(2), 151–172.
19.
BladerS. L.TylerT. R. (2009). Testing and extending the group engagement model: Linkages between social identity, procedural justice, economic outcomes, and extra role behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(2), 445–464.
20.
BlauP. (1964). Power and exchange in social life. New York, NY: Wiley.
21.
BonabeauE. (2009). Decisions 2.0: The power of collective intelligence. MIT Sloan Management Review, 50(2), 45–52.
22.
BothaA.BussinM.De SwardtL. (2011). An employer brand predictive model for talent attraction and retention: Original research. SA Journal of Human Resource Management, 9(1), 1–12.
23.
HairJ. F.BlackW. C.BabinA. J.AndersonR. E. (2010). Multivariate data analysis: A global perspective. India: Pearson Education.
24.
ShuckM. B.RoccoT. S.AlbornozC. A. (2011). Exploring employee engagement from the employee perspective: Implications for HRD. Journal of European Industrial Training, 35(4), 300–325.
25.
BuchananL. (2004). The things they do for love. Harvard Business Review, 82(12), 19–20.
26.
BurkeC. S.SimsD. E.LazzaraE. H.SalasE. (2007). Trust in leadership: A multi-level review and integration. The Leadership Quarterly, 18(6), 606–632.
27.
CarmeliA.GilatG.WaldmanD. A. (2007). The role of perceived organizational performance in organizational identification, adjustment and job performance. Journal of Management Studies, 44(6), 972–992.
28.
CascioW. F.GrahamB. Z. (2016). New strategic role for HR: Leading the employer-branding process. Organization Management Journal, 13(4), 182–192.
29.
ChaudharyR.RangnekarS. (2017). Socio-demographic factors, contextual factors and work engagement. Emerging Economy Studies, 3(1), 1–18.
30.
ChristianM. S.GarzaA. S.SlaughterJ. E. (2011). Work engagement: A quantitative review and test of its relations with task and contextual performance. Personnel Psychology, 64(1), 89–136.
31.
ChughtaiA. A.BuckleyF. (2008). Work engagement and its relationship with state and trait trust: A conceptual analysis. Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 10(1), 47–71.
32.
CialdiniR. B.BordenR. J.ThorneA.WalkerM. R.FreemanS.SloanL. R. (1976). Basking in reflected glory: Three (football) field studies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 34(3), 366–375.
33.
CoetzeeM.de VilliersM. (2010). Sources of job stress, work engagement and career orientations of employees in a South African financial institution. Southern African Business Review, 14(1), 27–57.
34.
CoetzeeS. E.RothmannS. (2005). Work engagement of employees at a higher education institution in South Africa. Southern African Business Review, 9(3), 23–34.
35.
Conference Board. (2001). Engaging employees through your brand. New York, NY: The Conference Board, Inc.
36.
CropanzanoR.MitchellM. S. (2005). Social exchange theory: An interdisciplinary review. Journal of Management, 31(6), 874–900.
37.
DaviesG.MeteM.WhelanS. (2018). When employer brand image aids employee satisfaction and engagement. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, 5(1), 64–80.
38.
DirksK. T.FerrinD. L. (2001). The role of trust in organizational settings. Organization Science, 12(4), 450–467.
39.
DirksK. T.FerrinD. L. (2002). Trust in leadership: Meta-analytic findings and implications for research and practice. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(4), 611–628.
40.
DuttonJ. E.DukerichJ. M. (1991). Keeping an eye on the mirror: Image and identity in organizational adaptation. Academy of Management Journal, 34(3), 517–554.
41.
DuttonJ. E.DukerichJ. M.HarquailC. V. (1994). Organizational images and member identification. Administrative Science Quarterly, 39(2), 239–263.
42.
EdwardsM. R. (2010). An integrative review of employer branding and OB theory. Personnel Review, 39(1), 5–23.
43.
FosterC.PunjaisriK.ChengR. (2010). Exploring the relationship between corporate, internal and employer branding. Journal of Product & Brand Management, 19(6), 401–409.
44.
GabarroJ. J.AthosJ. (1976). Interpersonal relations and communications. New York, NY: Prentice-Hall.
45.
GebauerJ.LowmanD. (2008). Closing the engagement gap: How great companies unlock employee potential for superior results. New York, NY: Penguin Group.
46.
GouldnerA. W. (1960). The norm of reciprocity: A preliminary statement. American Sociological Review, 25(2), 161–178.
47.
GubmanE. (2004). From engagement to passion for work: The search for the missing person. People and Strategy, 27(3), 42–46.
48.
HamelG. (2006). The why, what, and how of management innovation. Harvard Business Review, 84(2), 72–84.
49.
HaslamS. A.EllemersN. (2005). Social identity in industrial and organizational psychology: Concepts, controversies and contributions. International Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 20(1), 39–118.
50.
HaslamS. A.PowellC.TurnerJ. C. (2000). Social identity, self-categorization, and work motivation: Rethinking the contribution of the group to positive and sustainable organizational outcomes. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 49(3), 319–339.
51.
HayesA. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
52.
HoggM. A.ReidS. A. (2006). Social identity, self-categorization, and the communication of group norms. Communication Theory, 16(1), 7–30.
53.
JiangT.IlesP. (2011). Employer-brand equity, organizational attractiveness and talent management in the Zhejiang private sector, China. Journal of Technology Management in China, 6(1), 97–110.
54.
JooB. K. B.McleanG. N. (2006), Best employer studies: A conceptual model from a literature review and a case study. Human Resource Development Review, 5(2), 228–257.
55.
KahnW. A. (1990). Psychological conditions of personal engagement and disengagement at work. Academy of Management Journal, 33(4), 692–724.
56.
Karanika-MurrayM.DuncanN.PontesH. M.GriffithsM. D. (2015). Organizational identification, work engagement, and job satisfaction. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 30(8), 1019–1033.
57.
KaratepeO. M. (2013). High-performance work practices and hotel employee performance: The mediation of work engagement. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 32, 132–140.
58.
KhodyakovD. (2007). Trust as a process: A three-dimensional approach. Sociology, 41(1), 115–132.
59.
KimW. C.MauborgneR. (2014). Blue ocean leadership. Harvard Business Review, 92(5), 60–72.
60.
KnoxS.FreemanC. (2006). Measuring and managing employer brand image in the service industry. Journal of Marketing Management, 22(7/8), 695–716.
61.
KucherovD.ZamulinA. (2016). Employer branding practices for young talents in IT companies (Russian experience). Human Resource Development International, 19(2), 178–188.
62.
KucherovD.ZavyalovaE. (2012). HRD practices and talent management in the companies with the employer brand. European Journal of Training and Development, 36(1), 86–104.
LamL. W.LiuY.LoiR. (2016). Looking intra-organizationally for identity cues: Whether perceived organizational support shapes employees’ organizational identification. Human Relations, 69(2), 345–367.
65.
LinC. P. (2010). Modeling corporate citizenship, organizational trust, and work engagement based on attachment theory. Journal of Business Ethics, 94(4), 517–531.
66.
MaceyW. H.SchneiderB.BarberaK. M.YoungS. A. (2009). Employee engagement: Tools for analysis, practice, and competitive advantage. Malden, MA: Wiley.
67.
MaelF.AshforthB. E. (1992). Alumni and their alma mater: A partial test of the reformulated model of organizational identification. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 13(2), 103–123.
68.
MartinG.GollanP. J.GriggK. (2011). Is there a bigger and better future for employer branding? Facing up to innovation, corporate reputations and wicked problems in SHRM. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22(17), 3618–3637.
69.
MaslachC.SchaufeliW. B.LeiterM. P. (2001). Job burnout. Annual review of psychology, 52(1), 397–422.
70.
MaunoS.KinnunenU.RuokolainenM. (2007). Job demands and resources as antecedents of work engagement: A longitudinal study. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70(1), 149–171.
71.
MayerR. C.DavisJ. H.SchoormanF. D. (1995). An integrative model of organizational trust. Academy of Management Review, 20(3), 709–734.
72.
MorokoL.UnclesM. D. (2009). Employer branding and market segmentation. Journal of Brand Management, 17(3), 181–196.
73.
MosleyR. W. (2007). Customer experience, organisational culture and the employer brand. Journal of Brand Management, 15(2), 123–134.
74.
MostertK.RothmannS. (2006). Work-related well-being in the South African police service. Journal of Criminal Justice, 34(5), 479–491.
75.
NayarV. (2013). Handing the keys to Gen Y. Harvard business review, 91(5), 40–41.
76.
PierceJ. L.GardnerD. G. (2004). Self-esteem within the work and organizational context: A review of the organization-based self-esteem literature. Journal of Management, 30(5), 591–622.
77.
PriyadarshiP. (2011). Employer brand image as predictor of employee satisfaction, affective commitment & turnover. Indian Journal of Industrial Relations, 36(3), 510–522.
78.
PunjaisriK.WilsonA. (2007). The role of internal branding in the delivery of employee brand promise. Journal of Brand Management, 15(1), 57–70.
79.
ReadeC. (2001). Antecedents of organizational identification in multinational corporations: Fostering psychological attachment to the local subsidiary and the global organization. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 12(8), 1269–1291.
80.
ReadyD. A.HillL. A.CongerJ. A. (2008). Winning the race for talent in emerging markets. Harvard Business Review, 86(11), 62–70.
81.
RichmanA. (2006). Everyone wants an engaged workforce how can you create it? Workspan, 49, 36–39.
82.
RobinsonS. (1996). Trust and the breach of the psychological contract. Administrative Science Quarterly, 41(4), 574–599.
83.
RobinsonD.HookerH.HaydayS. (2007). Engagement: The Continuing Story. Brighton, UK: Institute for Employment Studies.
84.
RousseauD. M.SitkinS. B.BurtR. S.CamererC. (1998). Not so different after all: A cross-discipline view of trust. Academy of Management Review, 23(3), 393–404.
85.
RubinM.HewstoneM. (1998). Social identity theory’s self-esteem hypothesis: A review and some suggestions for clarification. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 2(1), 40–62.
86.
RuppD. E.CropanzanoR. (2002). The mediating effects of social exchange relationships in predicting workplace outcomes from multifoci organizational justice. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 89(1), 925–946.
87.
RuppelC. P.HarringtonS. J. (2000). The relationship of communication, ethical work climate, and trust to commitment and innovation. Journal of Business Ethics, 25(4), 313–328.
88.
SalancikG. R.PfefferJ. (1978). A social information processing approach to job attitudes and task design. Administrative Science Quarterly, 23(2), 224–253.
89.
SalanovaM.AgutS.PeiróJ. M. (2005). Linking organizational resources and work engagement to employee performance and customer loyalty: The mediation of service climate. Journal of Applied Psychology, 90(6), 1217–1227.
90.
SalanovaM.SchaufeliW. B. (2008). A cross-national study of work engagement as a mediator between job resources and proactive behaviour. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 19(1), 116–131.
91.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B. (2003). UWES – Utrecht Work Engagement Scale: Test manual (Unpublished manuscript). Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands.
92.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B.. (2004). Job demands, job resources and their relationship with burnout and engagement: A multi-sample study. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(3), 293–315.
93.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B.. (2010). Defining and measuring work engagement: Bringing clarity to the concept. In BakkerA. B.LeiterM. P. (Eds.), Work engagement: A handbook of essential theory and research (pp. 10–24). New York, NY: Psychology Press.
94.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B.SalanovaM. (2006). The measurement of work engagement with a short questionnaire: A cross-national study. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 66(4), 701–716.
95.
SchaufeliW. B.BakkerA. B.Van RhenenW. (2009). How changes in job demands and resources predict burnout, work engagement, and sickness absenteeism. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 30(7), 893–917.
96.
SchaufeliW. B.SalanovaM. (2008). Enhancing work engagement through the management of human resources. In NäswallK.HellgrenJ.SverkeM. (Eds.), The individual in the changing working life (pp. 380–402). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
97.
SchaufeliW. B.SalanovaM.Gonzalez-RomaV.BakkerA. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: a two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. Journal of Happiness Studies, 3(1), 71–92.
98.
SchlagerT.BodderasM.MaasP.Luc CachelinJ. (2011). The influence of the employer brand on employee attitudes relevant for service branding: an empirical investigation. Journal of Services Marketing, 25(7), 497–508.
99.
ServaM. A.FullerM. A.MayerR. C. (2005). The reciprocal nature of trust: A longitudinal study of interacting teams. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(6), 625–648.
100.
ShahM. (2011). Talent retention through employer branding. Journal of Marketing & Communication, 6(3), 31–33.
101.
SichtmannC. (2007). An analysis of antecedents and consequences of trust in a corporate brand. European Journal of Marketing, 41(9/10), 999–1015.
102.
TajfelH. (1982). Social psychology of intergroup relations. Annual Review of Psychology, 33(1), 1–39.
103.
TanH. H.LimA. K. (2009). Trust in coworkers and trust in organizations. The Journal of Psychology, 143(1), 45–66.
104.
The Economic Times. (2014). Retrieved from https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/indian-employees-most-engaged-globally-report/articleshow/45324084.cms?from=mdr
105.
UenJ. F.AhlstromD.ChenS.LiuJ. (2015). Employer brand management, organizational prestige and employees’ word-of-mouth referrals in Taiwan. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 53(1), 104–123.
106.
VoughH. (2012). Not all identifications are created equal: Exploring employee accounts for workgroup, organizational, and professional identification. Organization Science, 23(3), 778–800.
107.
WhitenerE. M. (1998). The impact of human resource activities on employee trust. Human Resource Management Review, 7(4), 389–404.
108.
WhitenerE. M.BrodtS. E.KorsgaardM. A.WernerJ. M. (1998). Managers as initiators of trust: An exchange relationship framework for understanding managerial trustworthy behavior. Academy of Management Review, 23(3), 513–530.
109.
WrightP. M.McMahanG. C.McWilliamsA. (1994). Human resources and sustained competitive advantage: A resource-based perspective. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 5(2), 301–326.
110.
XanthopoulouD.BakkerA. B.DemeroutiE.SchaufeliW. B. (2009). Work engagement and financial returns: A diary study on the role of job and personal resources. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 82(1), 183–200.
111.
XuJ.Cooper-ThomasH. D. (2011). How can leaders achieve high employee engagement? Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 32(4), 399–416.
112.
ZhangH.Kwong KwanH.EverettA.M.JianZ. (2012). Servant leadership, organizational identification, and work-to-family enrichment: the moderating role of work climate for sharing family concerns. Human Resource Management, 51(5), 747–767.
