Internal Branding in Multinational Firms : A gap analysis of internal stakeholder perceptions

Sammanfattning: Authors: JoAnna Caster & Dana Linnes Tutor: Setayesh Sattari Title: Internal Branding in Multinational Firms- A Gap Analysis of Internal Stakeholder Perceptions Background: As globalization increases, the topic of internal branding has grown in popularity, particularly as a way for firms to secure a competitive advantage in the global marketplace. The topic is quite new however, and there are many aspects that have not been fully explored, including the influence of internal stakeholder perceptions on a firm’s internal brand and related support activities. Purpose: The purpose of this research study is to 1) identify whether a gap exists between employee and manager perceptions of a firm’s internal brand and internal branding activities and 2) investigate the influence of a firm’s country of origin on those perceptions. Delimitations: The study was limited to only medium and large sized firms that have international operations. Additionally, only internal stakeholders were included in the study and the research was limited to respondent’s perceptions, and not necessarily the actual internal brand and related supporting processes or structures. Method: The research was qualitative and data was collected via 24 in-depth interviews of managerial and non-managerial employees at 10 medium and large sized firms. The data was then analyzed using a pattern-matching technique. Conclusions: Perceptions of both managerial and non-managerial employees did not indicate significant gaps, however there seemed to be an unclear understanding of what an internal brand is and what respondent’s firm’s internal brand represents. Also, the country of origin did not have a significant influence on those perceptions, as most respondents indicated that they perceived their firm’s internal brand as primarily “global.” Keywords: internal branding, internal brand, international marketing, marketing strategy, stakeholder perceptions, internal marketing orientation, human resource management, country of origin