The Influence of Employer Brand Dimensions on the Affective Organizational Commitment of Employees in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

Abstract

Employer branding is becoming a crucial talent management and communications strategy in many organizations today, given the importance of human resources as the most significant intangible asset of the company. In order to attract, recruit, and retain skilled employees, many companies systematically and proactively implement employer branding programs aimed at their existing and potential future employees. This can be challenging for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) since their HR and marketing departments lack well-established processes, which can affect the commitment of employees. Thus, the aim of this research was to investigate the impact of five employer brand dimensions on affective organizational commitment, as the strongest type of organizational commitment. Data for the study was collected from 104 respondents employed in SMEs in Croatia and was empirically analyzed by applying the PLS-SEM method. The findings of the study showed that application and interest values positively influence affective organizational commitment, outlying the importance of knowledge transfer, workplace creativity, and innovation in a customer and humanitarian-oriented environment, as crucial elements for achieving affective organizational commitment. The research contributes to the existing literature on employer branding for SMEs operating in developing countries and provides guidance to owners and managers when building successful employer brands within their organizations.