Employer brand and its unexplored impact on intent to join

Purpose: The purpose for this paper is to determine the various dimensions of employer brand in the IT sector of India and analyse their impact on the final intent of the candidates to join an organisation. A five-factor employer brand (EB) model and three-factor intent to join (ITJ) model have been tested for reliability and validity through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). A structural model is empirically tested with EB as independent variable and ITJ as dependent variable through structured equation modelling. Design/methodology/approach: The items for the independent variable EB are generated with the help of literature and semi-structured interviews with final-year student placement coordinators of B.Tech and MCA, studying in central, state and deemed universities of India. For ITJ, the variables are adopted from the literature and confirmed through CFA in the Indian context. Structured equation modelling has been used to analyse the relationship between EB and ITJ. Findings: Five dimensions of EB were explored as growth and development opportunity, company’s reputation, acceptance and belongingness, work–life balance and ethics and CSR. ITJ was found to be composed of intent to pursue, employer’s attractiveness and employer’s reputation. EB has been found to be an effective contributor to ITJ. Research limitations/implications: The current study has been conducted in the IT sector, and other sectors have not been included. The universities considered for the study were limited to central, state and deemed universities of India. Apart from intention to join, there are other attitudinal and behavioural aspects that have not been included in the current study. Originality/value: This study gives empirical evidence on EB to be an important antecedent of ITJ from the perspective of prospective employees of a developing nation.