Diversity and inclusion in employer branding: an explorative analysis of European companies' digital communication
| Date | 25 August 2023 |
| Pages | 121-139 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-11-2022-0522 |
| Published date | 25 August 2023 |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Industrial/labour relations,Employment law |
| Author | Maria Giovanna Confetto,Aleksandr Ključnikov,Claudia Covucci,Mara Normando |
Diversity and inclusion in
employer branding: an explorative
analysis of European companies’
digital communication
Maria Giovanna Confetto
Department of Political and Communication Sciences, University of Salerno,
Salerno, Italy
Aleksandr Klju
cnikov
European Centre for Business Research, Pan-European University,
Prague, Czech Republic
Claudia Covucci
Department of Economics and Statistics, University of Salerno, Salerno, Italy, and
Mara Normando
Department of Political and Communication Sciences, University of Salerno,
Salerno, Italy
Abstract
Purpose –The study aims to investigate the usage of diversity and inclusion (D&I) signals in communications
for employer branding through digital channels made by European companies.
Design/methodology/approach –A quali-quantitative content analysis approach was employed to detect
the usage of D&I signals of the top 43 European companies ranked in the 2021 RefinitivDiversity and Inclusion
index. These signals were organized according to Plummer’s Big 8 diversity’s dimensions. A correlation
analysis was conducted to verify a relationship between D&I initiatives and digital communication for
employer branding on corporate websites and LinkedIn. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the D&I
dimensions’pervasiveness in digital communications and relevance on LinkedIn.
Findings –The results show that the correlation exists only between D&I initiatives and communication on
the corporate website, while LinkedIn is still underused in this field. The most pervasive and relevant D&I
dimensions for European companies are “Gender”and “Sexual Orientation”.
Originality/value –This paper enriches employer branding research by providing original insights into the
use of D&I dimensions in digital communications.
Keywords Diversity and inclusion management, Signaling theory, Employer branding,
Diversity management, D&I signals, D&I dimensions
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Recruiting skilled employees has become increasingly challenging for many organizations in
today’s world, primarily due to factors such as population aging and the transition to a
knowledge-based economy(Ployhart et al., 2017). As a result, maintaininga positive employer
Diversity and
inclusion
in employer
branding
121
© Maria Giovanna Confetto, Aleksandr Klju
cnikov, Claudia Covucci and Mara Normando. Published by
Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for
both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication
and authors. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/
legalcode
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/0142-5455.htm
Received 22 November 2022
Revised 4 July 2023
31 July 2023
Accepted 31 July 2023
Employee Relations: The
International Journal
Vol. 45 No. 7, 2023
pp. 121-139
Emerald Publishing Limited
0142-5455
DOI 10.1108/ER-11-2022-0522
image has become crucial, prompting organizations to actively seeking comprehensive
strategiesthat canhelp them attract and retainpotentialand current employees(Guthridgeet al.,
2008). Consequently,the concept of employerbranding(EB) has emerged asa prime approach in
the humanresource management(HRM) domainfor tackling such challenge (Martindale, 2010).
An effective employer brand has to convey a workplace’s image that coincides with the job
seekers’needs and expectations. The “Diversity and Inclusion (D&I): Global Strategic
Business Report”(2023) testifies that new generations of job seekers prefer companies with
inclusive workplaces. For this reason, job seekers actively seek information to gain insights
into a company’s work culture before deciding to apply for a job (Turban, 2001). They
interpret what they read, hear, or see about an organization as signals of its inclusiveness
(Uggerslev et al., 2012). Companies can provide these types of signals and catch their attention
through digital corporate communication for EB (Taj, 2016).
While many scholars have focused on the relationship between D&I issues and EB
(Matuska and Sałek-Imi
nska, 2014;Puncheva-Michelotti et al., 2018;Jonsen et al., 2019), only a
few studies have investigated the use of digital communication to signal workplace
inclusivity and fairness for members of different groups (Ball et al., 2016;White et al., 2019).
Therefore, implementing EB strategies in the digital realm that pursue D&I is a pressing
competitive necessity, and academic scholars need to expand research in this area.
Drawing on signaling theory, one of the dominant paradigms used to explain how EB
activities can influence potential candidates’perceptions of an organization (e.g. Celani and
Singh, 2011;Gregory et al., 2013;Keppeler and Papenfuß, 2021), this study aims to fill this gap
and provide interesting insights on the use of D&I signals in digital communication practices
for EB, offering an overview on the European context.
In recent years, the European Commission has encouraged companies to incorporate
diversity and inclusion (D&I) management to comply with the UN Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement. For instance, by signing a Diversity Charter,
organizations voluntarily commit to implementing proactive D&I practices, often in the
context of broader corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies (Maier and Ravazzani,
2019). Furthermore, the European Union (EU) Directive 2104/95 on non-financial reporting
and diversity has changed the way large companies in Europe report and disclose their non-
financial information on economic, social and environmental aspects. Since 2017, this
regulation has required larger companies with more than 500 employees and public interest
entities to produce annual reports containing information on their social, environmental,
human rights and anti-corruption policies, risks and benefits.
Consequently, the largest European companies have been obliged to produce annual non-
financial reports to comply with national and supranational law (La Torre et al., 2020). For
this reason, the first step of this research is to examine whether the commitment to D&I
management, as disclosed in accounting statements, is leveraged to attract talent in digital
communications for EB. This leads to the first research question:
RQ1. Is there a correlation between D&I accounting statements and digital
communication for employer branding?
Furthermore, since D&I management involves addressing various dimensions of diversity
(e.g. gender, age, race, sexual orientation, etc.), this research aims to investigate which
dimensions companies tend to emphasize the most through digital channels primarily used
for recruitment communications, such as the corporate website and LinkedIn, in order to
signal the inclusiveness of their work environment. Consequently, two additional research
questions arise:
RQ2. How pervasive are D&I dimensions in digital channels for employer branding
communications among European companies?
ER
45,7
122
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