Employee Commitment Matters for CSR Practice, Reputation and Corporate Brand Performance—European Model

Abstract

So far, there have been no studies that explore how employee brand commitment moderates CSR practice outcomes. Employee brand commitment is often claimed as a focal input and output of the CSR. So, it means that it shapes CSR conditions. Then, it is a moderator. This study aims to verify it. Besides, commitment exists in many forms and can be achieved in many ways. Hence the question, if employees are committed to the brand, then how does it affect the outcomes of social responsibility practices such as corporate reputation or brand performance? This study analyzed a sample of 282 cases from the construction industry in Europe, using SPSS Amos and the PROCESS macro, to reveal the strong alignment of an excellent level of all three: CSR practice, corporate brand reputation, employee brand commitment. Still, it also shows that the high level of CSR practice may leverage corporate brand reputation even though employees are not brand committed. It exposes how meaningful the excellent level of CSR practice is. Moreover, the study also reveals that the lack of employee brand commitment may jeopardize reputation. So, the simplest way to achieve sustainability of brand performance is to keep employee brand commitment and CSR practice at the highest possible level to secure corporate brand reputation, which is a strong mediator between CSR practice and brand performance. The people are the company. So, in light of the study findings, it is clear that the future of corporate brands is in employees’ hands. Thus, companies should focus on improving employee commitment to achieve better corporate social responsibility practice outcomes. Moreover, the findings in this study present evidence supporting the importance of internal branding. This is the first study that has explored how employee brand commitment moderates CSR outcomes in a national context.

The Linkage of Perceived CSR, Corporate Reputation, Organizational Commitment, and Purchase Intention

“…Organizations that develop strategies, policies, and practices related to social responsibility have higher levels of perceived reputation (Verčič & Orić, 2018). Javed et al (2020); Aksak et al, (2016); Vishwanathan et al (2020); Rehman et al (2020); and Kucharska (2020) found empirical evidence that CSR disclosure will be able to have a positive impact on the corporate reputation. Meanwhile, Pham & Tran (2020) found that company reputation was able to mediate the relationship between CSR and company performance.…”

How does corporate social responsibility transform brand reputation into brand equity? Economic and noneconomic perspectives of CSR

“…31 A company may charge premium if it possesses competitive advantage in terms of superior brand reputation. 32 A well-reputed company attracts more qualified personnel and that, in turn, brings about valuable transactions from customers. 31 Corporate reputation plays a vital role in the success and in being a profitable brand in almost every industry and business.…”

“…In this way, firms can develop true and sustainable presence including the sustainable bionetwork for the organization. 32 However, the image of a company is consolidated only if the identity is well founded. Moreover, it is not easy to build image of a brand in the market.…”

CSR as a Driver of Corporate Reputation: Family Firms in the Italian Luxury Industry

“…Stakeholders, in particular consumers (Lee & Marshall, 2013) and workers (Kucharska, 2020;Mella & Gazzola, 2015, Gazzola, 2018, consider reputation as a central element for evaluating companies (Tetrault Sirsly & Lvina, 2019;Gray & Ballmer, 2006;Rhee & Haunschild, 2006). According to Fombrun (1996) -corporate reputation is a perceptual representation of a company's past actions and future prospects that describe the firm's overall appeal to all of its key constituents when compared with other leading rivals‖.…”