Evaluating the Impact of Coronavirus Disease-2019 Pandemic on Employer Branding, Employee Engagement and Employee Performance: A Moderation Study of Indian Information Technology Firms

Abstract

Anchored in job demands–resources (JDR) theory and event system theory, this research investigates the impact of employer branding on employee engagement and employee performance in the backdrop of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. COVID-19 caused unprecedented changes in the workplace dynamics of the information technology (IT) firms in India, affecting employee engagement levels. Therefore, the moderating role of COVID-19 event strength is examined on the relationship between employer branding and employee engagement. The proposed hypotheses were examined by performing structural equation modelling on the data gathered from 791 employees of IT firms in India. Data were collected through a self-report survey using a questionnaire instrument consisting of measuring items adapted from the existing literature. The research findings suggest that significant affirmative relationships exist among employer branding, employee engagement and employee performance. Organizational commitment demonstrated a partial mediating effect on the relationship between employer branding and employee engagement. Further, the COVID-19 event strength positively moderated the relationship between employer branding and employee engagement, suggesting that employer branding practices are more crucial in organizations, which were heavily affected by the pandemic. This research offers significant insights for academic and human resource (HR) practitioners regarding the role of employer branding in enhancing employee engagement and employee performance during times of crisis.

Examining the Temporal Effects of Employer Branding on Employee Engagement and Employee Retention: A Longitudinal Study in the Indian IT Sector

“…Conversely, the linkage between employee engagement and employee retention strengthens as time progresses, highlighting the significance of effectively managing employee engagement. From the standpoint of HRM, these findings bolster the argument that employee engagement is a pertinent element, deeming it a "crucial mediating factor" (Agarwal et al, 2023). While existing studies illustrate that employee engagement is more likely to influence the level of employee retention (Easa & Bazzi, 2020;Houssein et al, 2020;Kundu & Lata, 2017), regrettably, the literature has not previously delved into the temporal effects.…”

Addressing employee turnover in retail through CSR and transformational leadership

“…Taking EB as a job resource following past instances (e.g. Agarwal et al, 2022;Khan et al, 2021), our research serves as an extension of the celebrated job demands-resources (JD-R) model (Bakker and Demerouti, 2007). We propose EB as a job resource as it could reduce physiological or psychological costs (like high work pressure and emotionally demanding client interactions) typically associated with retail jobs.…”

“…Khan et al, 2021) consider EB as a job resource. Agarwal et al (2022) recommend organizations use EB as a crucial job resource to help employees overcome challenges posed by crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. Kashyap and Verma (2018) posit EB as an organization's capital resource as per the resourced-based perspective of a firm by Barney (2001).…”

“…, 2021) consider EB as a job resource. Agarwal et al. (2022) recommend organizations use EB as a crucial job resource to help employees overcome challenges posed by crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

Prioritizing the antecedents of employer branding using fuzzy AHP: an extent analysis approach

“…Thus, IT serves to be the best research setting to evaluate the attributes which the potential job applicants perceive in their employer which can title them as “employer of choice”. Hence, this challenge largely hampers the firms operating in this sector with attrition and a lack of employee retention strategies (Agarwal et al , 2022). High turnover is one of the most significant difficulties that all global IT firms face, and it is tremendously destructive and unprofitable for them (Gamble and Huang, 2008).…”