Lasting footprints of the employer brand: can sustainable HRM lead to brand commitment?

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether both perceived sustainable organizational and supervisor support, which represent a sustainable human resource management (HRM) approach, can induce commitment to the employer brand. Design/methodology/approach – This study includes a diverse sample of 3,016 employees drawn from various German organizations. To test the developed hypotheses, a structural model that included all the hypothesized effects was built, using Mplus 7. Findings – Perceived sustainable supervisor support (PSSS) has a direct effect on brand commitment, whereas perceived sustainable organizational support (PSOS) only generates brand commitment indirectly, mediated by brand prestige, brand distinctiveness, and brand trust. The findings further underline that, compared with PSOS, PSSS has a stronger impact on trust in respect of the employer brand. Originality/value – By considering current employees and their commitment to the employer brand, this study takes an insider view and sheds new light on how an employer brand based on sustainable HRM can achieve commitment, as well as how several mediators affect this link.