Evaluating the employer branding mix model: a study in the Spanish healthcare sector
| Date | 12 February 2024 |
| Pages | 432-451 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-10-2023-0537 |
| Published date | 12 February 2024 |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Industrial/labour relations,Employment law |
| Author | M. Luisa Rayón,Marina Romeo,Montserrat Yepes-Baldó,Sefa Boria-Reverter |
Evaluating the employer branding
mix model: a study in the Spanish
healthcare sector
M. Luisa Ray
on, Marina Romeo, Montserrat Yepes-Bald
o and
Sefa Boria-Reverter
Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Abstract
Purpose –This research examines the applicability of the Employer Branding (EB) Mix model developed by
Ray
on et al. (2022), one of the few empirically validated models, to promote organizational commitment within
the context of the Spanish healthcare sector.
Design/methodology/approach –A questionnaire was administered to 310 employees of a national
company in the Spanish healthcare sector. Several multiple regression models were run between the EB
dimensions and those of employees’organizational commitment.
Findings –The results show that the elements of the EB Mix model have a positive relationship with
employee’s commitment, especially affective and value commitment.
Research limitations/implications –The existence of causality cannot be affirmed, in view of the sectional
design with a single sample taken from the Spanish private healthcare sector. Additionally, it would be worth
extending the analysis of the effect of the EB Mix model on the behavior of potential employees.
Practical implications –This research is extremely relevant, given that it can help organizations in the
health sector to implement EB programs. The model is an effective tool for retaining human talent and can
generate a competitive advantage for organizations that use it.
Originality/value –The EB Mix model presents a conceptually-based and empirically validated model that
incorporates the perception of employees as co-creators of the internal brand, which promotes the
democratization of organizations and includes the four Ps of the marketing mix.
Keywords Employer branding, Employees’organizational commitment, Multiple regression models,
Healthcare sector
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
In recent years, the demand for health and social care is increasing. It is predicted that
population growth, demographic and epidemiological changes, and the aging of the current
healthcare workforce will lead to the creation of approximately 40 million jobs in the global
healthcare workforce by 2030 (WHO, 2022a).
Nonetheless, the report issued by the World Health Organization Secretariat warns of a
global shortage of health workers and a mismatch between demand, needs and supply, and
forecasts a shortfall of 18 million health workers by 2030 (WHO, 2022b). In this context, it is
important to attract, involve and retain the workforce (Chhabra, 2015;Garc
ıa del Junco and
Br
as dos Santos, 2008), because a “committed workforce is, together with the brand, the most
important intangible asset for companies in the 21st century”(Gavil
an et al., 2014, p. 60).
One of these intangible assets that has aroused great interest in the applied field to attract
and retain talent EB (Edwards, 2010). However, its theoretical basis is limited from a scientific
perspective and a model is needed to analyze the impact of EB on organizational processes,
both theoretically and empirically.
Ray
on et al. (2022) have recently developed an EB model. The EB Mix for the healthcare
sector. This model is stated as a lasting remedy for the talent shortage issue, offering an
efficient means to attract, hire and retain essential profiles.
ER
46,2
432
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 24 October 2023
Revised 5 December 2023
12 December 2023
Accepted 12 December 2023
Employee Relations: The
International Journal
Vol. 46 No. 2, 2024
pp. 432-451
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0142-5455
DOI 10.1108/ER-10-2023-0537
Based on this model, the main goal of the present research is to investigate the relationship
between EB Mix (Ray
on et al., 2022) and employees’organizational commitment in order to
analyze empirically the effect of the organizations’EB on processes linked to talent retention
in the Spanish healthcare sector. Specifically, our research delves into examining the impact
of EB on the commitment of current employees. This focus is driven by the understanding
that as these employees strengthen their bonds with the organization, they naturally evolve
into influential ambassadors for the employer’s brand (Kanwal and Van Hoye, 2023). This, in
turn, not only enhances their commitment but also significantly contributes to attracting new
talent to the organization.
Additionally, recovering the investment in recruiting, training and cultivating top talents
is contingent upon their sustained tenure within the organization, allowing for a meaningful
return on the initial investment (Ambler and Barrow, 1996). In this context, employees’
commitment is understood in equivalent terms to what is considered “customer loyalty”in
marketing.
Theoretical background
From the brand to the employer branding
The brand is one of the most valuable assets of a company, and its management has become a
fundamental activity in many organizations. Kotler et al. (2023) define brand as
a name, term, sign, symbol, or design or a combination of these that identifies the maker or seller of a
product or service. Consumers view a brand as an important part of a product, and branding can add
value to a consumer’s purchase. Customers attach meanings to brands and develop brand
relationships. As a result, brands have meaning well beyond a product’s physical attributes (p. 255).
Although organizations usually focus their brand building efforts on the development of
products and services, branding can also be applied to the employees, given to the term EB.
Ambler and Barrow (1996) coined the term EB, as a process of identifying and creating the
company brand message and applying traditional marketing principles to the condition itself
of being an employer of choice, thereby attracting and retaining the most highly qualified
employees (Kanwal and Van Hoye, 2023;Sutherland et al., 2002).
As stated by Theurer et al. (2018), there are four limitations in the study of EB: (1) a lack of
distinction between the employer brand and the process of employer branding; (2)
terminological dispersion (vg. employer brand equity, brand identity, employer brand or
brand image, among others); and (3) a lack of agreement regarding the specific target
audience for EB (potential vs current employees).
These limitations are reflected in the EB models that have been developed. In the following
section, we analyze the main models and their contributions. Subsequently, the EB Mix model
(Ray
on et al., 2022) is introduced and justified, serving as the conceptual foundation for the
current research. This model examines the process of generating EB, utilizes marketing mix
concepts to conceptualize the model’s components and focuses on the study of current
employees.
Employer branding models. One of the seminal works on EB is the one of Ambler and
Barrow (1996). In their qualitative study based on employer interviews, they highlighted that,
although the concept of EB existed implicitly in some organizations, its definition was fuzzy.
Furthermore, they emphasized that the value of this concept laid in bridging the discipline
and theory of marketing with the Human Resources function.
From the initial work of Ambler and Barrow (1996), different models have been proposed
to establish an organizational value proposition (the product or employer brand) that impacts
both current and potential employees. One of the first models was described by Miles and
Mangold (2008). It aims to generate a sense of brand image among the employees so that they
Evaluating the
employer
branding mix
model
433
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