Employer Branding In The Healthcare Industry – A Quantitative Study Among Nursing Trainees In Germany
Lisa Dühring, Kim Ebeling
Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Purpose – This research explores the preferences and expectations of nursing students/trainees with regard to employer branding in the healthcare sector. It was undertaken in order to gain insights into an important sector of the labor market und give recommendations for improving employer branding activities.
Design/methodology – A representative online survey was conducted among current nursing students/trainees in Germany. The first part of the study contains an EBA factor analysis; the second part assesses the media use and EB communication preferences of the target group.
Findings – The research revealed that development opportunities, working conditions as well as compensation and benefits are the most important employer brand attractiveness factors for nursing trainees. When it comes to the usage of media and communication platforms, social media, especially Instagram, YouTube & TikTok, are the preferred channels. The target group looks for authentic and transparent content, preferably from current employees themselves.
Practical implications – The research is particularly valuable for employers in the healthcare industry. The findings, however, can also to a certain extent be transferred to other sectors, as they give representative insights into the preferences of the certain age group and their employer branding and media preferences.
Originality/value – Although there exist a broad range of studies on employer branding from different fields of research, there are hardly any studies that address the healthcare sector. However, the Covid-19 pandemic has revealed how essential this sector is and how important it is to obtain qualified and motivated personnel here.
One Size Fits All? The Use of Employer Branding in Different Contexts
Antonia Hein1,2, Wim J.L. Elving1, Sierdjan Koster2, Arjen Edzes1,2
1Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Netherlands, The; 2University of Groningen, the Netherlands
Purpose: With Employer Branding (EB) businesses aim to align their organizational norms with the norms of their current and prospective employees. This process is context-dependent since communication carries different meanings depending on the context one operates in. Also, the organizational norms themselves may vary depending on the context, i.e., industry, different national cultures, geographical context in which a firm operates. As such, the process of EB may be context-dependent too. This study explores if and how EB is applied differently in different country and industry contexts.
Design/methodology/approach: For this, we carried out a quantitative content analysis of 113 Dutch job vacancies targeting highly-educated graduates and professionals in IT, energy and healthcare and 113 vacancies from comparable regions from Germany and Bulgaria.
Findings: We find that firms present themselves differently in different contexts. Preliminary results show little adaption of employer branding in IT, energy and healthcare. Administrative information and candidate requirements are with the highest frequency among all industries and countries. Of the codes we used, “distinctive characteristics” were coded the least and “culture” the most.
Practical implications: The practical intent of this research is to provide managers with a guide on how to be more successful in recruiting and how to compose the EB message with care including essential and relevant information in their vacancies.
Keywords: employer branding, employer image, job vacancies, context, content analysis
What Is Published About Employee Communication Regarding LGBT+: A Scoping Review of Quantitative Research
Ingrid Wahl, Magdalena Siegel, Sabine Einwiller
University of Vienna, Austria
Purpose
This paper aims to provide an overview of and identify research gaps in quantitative research on employee communication (i.e., communication from employees inside and outside the organization and organizations addressing employees) regarding LGBT+.
Design/methodology/approach
We conducted a scoping review in line with PRISMA guidelines. A systematic literature search in Communication and Mass Media Complete, Communication Abstracts, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Scopus databases yielded 3,055 records. A total of 430 full texts that initially met the inclusion criteria (i.e., examined organizations' employee communications related to LGBT+) were assessed. Information regarding publication details (i.e., authors, year of publication, title, publication type), the content of the record (i.e., country of data collection, addressed non-heterosexual orientation or gender identity, form of employee communication, methodological approach, variables, theoretical framework), and the sample (e.g., sample size, participants’ age, gender, sexual orientation, organizational information) was extracted from eligible records. Our final sample included 164 publications reporting on 178 quantitative studies (207,181 participants and 3,740 organizations).
Findings
Quantitative research on employee communication and LGBT+ has increased in recent years and can therefore be considered a "hot topic." However, we have identified research gaps in terms of countries researched, publication outlets, differentiation of LGBT+ and intersectionality, lacking variety of communication forms, variety of methodological approaches, variety of predictor and outcome variables, and communication theories.
Originality
Our paper highlights research gaps in employee communication regarding LGBT+. Addressing these gaps could advance scholarly knowledge and hence help HR and communication practitioners to adequately meet the needs of LGBT+ employees.
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