Employer Branding as a Strategic Corporate Reputation Management Tool

In order for organisations to benefit from a strong corporate reputation, corporate reputation management as a strategy is often utilised. For many organisations, a demonstration of the attractiveness of an employer becomes a vital corporate reputation tool. This article conceptualises the effective use of employer branding as corporate reputation management tool based on primary data collected from 312 respondents, representing eight different industries from the Top500 company list in South Africa. Exploratory research design was used and a computer-aided, self-administered and web-based survey was utilised as data collection method. The exploratory factor analysis indicates that employer branding consists of three factors: organisational attractiveness, website communication; and recruitment tools. Statistical differences (p<0.05 and p<0.10) levels were established between the various industries and organisational attractiveness and recruitment tools as factors of employer branding. The results of the study indicate that a well-executed employee branding process improves the profile of the organisation internally as well as externally, enhancing the competitive advantage of, and ultimately the corporate brand and reputation of an organisation. The study concludes that employer branding as a variable has a strong influence (0.60) on corporate reputation and should therefore be used as a corporate reputation management strategy. Respondents were drawn only from large, well established organisations which could be seen as a limitation of the study. Outcomes may differ in smaller organisations and other industries.