HR brand success factors in global environments

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Introduction

Nowadays, the success of any company depends largely on the labor force. Human capital determines the progress of the company and society because people produce products or services. Therefore companies, which are looking to the future, pay attention to hiring talented workers, developing them and keeping them. The company will be able to save the valuable employee if it creates conditions due to which the employee receives internal satisfaction from the work. HR-branding creates economic, professional and psychological benefits for employees. New employees often do not care where or how they work. Their loyalty is low, they do not aim to work for the same company all the life, so they are flexible for leaving. Consequently, internal HR branding is relevant for formation of an employee loyalty to the company as an employer. In the process of adaptation, it is important to explain and show the advantages of the company as an employer, to help him/her understand the values, to be proud and translate them into reality. Therefore, nowadays, companies pay more and more attention to their Human Recourse Management strategy (Novicevic& Harvey, 2001; Scullion & Starkey, 2000). Companies aim to create new competitive advantages in order to be stable in the market. The main advantage nowadays is HR brand.

The concept of an HR brand was developed in the USA under the name "employer brand". The first definition was given by S. Barrow and T. Ambler as “a set of functional, economic and psychological advantages provided by company management and identified with the employing company” (Ambler & Barrow, 2011).The prerequisites for the beginning of the development of this area were a sharp increase in competition for qualified workforce. A competitive advantage was the model of the employer brand developed by Simon Barrow (Ambler & Barrow, 2011). This model includes all aspects that the candidate takes into account when choosing a job. Among these factors: politics and values, justice and cooperation, corporate image, external reputation, communication, development, etc. This model identifies the weaknesses and strengths of the organization.

HR brand development includes the presence of two components: external and internal (Tiku and Buckhous, 2004). An internal HR brand is determined as an idea of the organization and the level of loyalty among already working employees. Since the employees are the main holder of information in the external environment about this organization, their opinion will largely influence the decisions of potential applicants. External HR-brand is considered as the perception of the company in the external environment. Its main task is to attract new specialists. For applicants, the employer that is known outside its market is more attractive.

In many business sectors, primarily high-tech, investment in the development of young professionals is the only effective way to provide the company with qualified workforce. Companies that build their HR policy by training their own employees strengthen their image on the labor market, as they have the opportunity to attract specialists with fresh knowledge and high professional ambitions.Building a strong HR brand requires a systematic approach and coordination of processes at all stages: from positioning a company in the labor market to interviews with employees leaving the company.

Relevance of the topic is determined by the importance of creating an HR brand in the company, especially in the global environment. Therefore, it is important to understand what factors a successful HR brand includes and whether there is a correlation between them.

The paper is a research that proposes analysis of the HR brand strategies in global companies. The research question can be stated in a main interest point and two sub points.

Research question: How internal and external factors affect the HR brand of the company?

Sub questions:

· Which common success factors are considered in HR brands of global companies?

· What is the relationship between external and internal factors in the HR brand?

The main research goal of the following thesis is to determine and investigate HR brand success factors and study HR brands of the global companies in IT industry.

The research objectives of the following master thesis are the following:

· to identify important HR brand factors based on the literature review;

· to develop HR brand model based on the literature analysis;

· to test hypotheses about the relationship between HR-brand and the success of the company based on ananalysis of HR-brands of successful IT companies;

· to develop recommendations for developing a successful HR-brand for IT companies based on the research results.

In the theoretical part of the work definitions and main components of HR brand will be considered and the general HR brand model will be developed. In the practical part, the data analysis of HR brands of global IT companies (with most successful HR brands) will be done, the relationship between internal and external factors will be determined.

1. Theoretical aspects of HR branding

1.1 HR branding: definitions and main components

Development of market economy is accompanied by the emergence of a large number of commercial organizations and increased competition between them. The creation of new companies has led to the creation of new jobs. Thus, the demand for a labor power has increased. HR branding is becoming one of the most important components of an international company's strategy.

Nowadays, the problem of talent management is becoming more and more relevant. It could be explained by a large number of pensioners and job offers, an open labor market and a competing work environment. “Talents” are well informed and often flexible for job changing. Therefore, the attraction and retention of highly qualified personnel has become one of the most important strategies of a modern company. For a company to be competitive as an employer, it is necessary to have a well-developed HR brand.

The notion of the term “employer brand", applied to the human resources management function, was first used in the article by Ambler and Barrow (1996). Until that moment the concept of employee branding has been mentioned only in the marketing literature. According to the research (Ambler & Barrow, 1996) “employee branding” can be designated as “a humanistic approach to marketing”. It has become one of the main aspects in management theory that applies marketing technologies for effective HR management of a company.

Making a comparison with marketing, it could be said that in the HR branding, the product is the experience of the employee; the market is the workforce (potential and existing employees).HR branding strategy is a complex mechanism, as the company has to build an employment relationship with a person. Product branding creates an image of a product that people want to buy. The employer brand is built in the same way. It is a product which provides an opportunity to find a job for the most talented employees in a company with a high HR-branding strategy. Based on this theory, the employee brand is defined as “the sum of a company's efforts to communicate to existing and prospective employees what makes it a desirable place to work and the active management of a company's image as seen through the eyes of its associates and potential hires” (Mukesh K. Biswas, 2012).

The analysis of the literature shows the following definitions of the term “employer branding”:

- a complex of the companies' efforts to inform the current and potential employees about the fact that the company is an attractive place to work (Berthon, Ewing, Hah, 2005, p. 153);

- a process of building a recognizable and unique identity of the employer and a concept that allows the firm to differentiate from its competitors (Backhaus &Tikoo, 2004, p. 502)

- the term includes internal and external promotion of firm characteristics that make the firm perfect and desirable as an employer (Lievens, 2007, p. 51);

- an image of the organization associated with its uniqueness as an employer (Knox & Freeman, 2006, p. 697);

- a strategy (long-term and targeted) to manage the awareness of existing and potential employees about a particular organization (Sullivan, 2004);

- a process that led to a strong company's appeal for current and future ideal employees (Van Dam & Marcus, 2012);

- an ability to keep employees through the image and reputation of the company (Roper et all., 2013)

Based on the analysis of the definitions above, it can be concluded that the HR-brand is a purposefully created image of the company in the labor market, based on its general image as an employer. High economic effect is shown only by high-quality developed strong HR-brands.

American researches Tiku and Buckhous developed the basic model of HR-branding (Figure 1). It consists of two main blocks: employer brand associations and employer brand loyalty (includes organizational identity and culture).

Figure 1 - HR branding model. Sourse: Backhaus and Tikoo (2004)

Indirect knowledge about the employer's brand forms certain associations with the potential employee's brand, both positive and negative. Positive image is formed as a result of the company's active activity in the labor market and its positioning as an attractive employer. As a result, it is easier for an organization to attract more candidates for further recruitment. Therefore, the primary objective of the employer branding is to attract candidates from the labor market. The employer's brand affects the corporate culture and organizational identity of the company. In the first case, it brings corporate values to the system (economic, psychological, functional) elements related to the employee's work in the company. In the second, it reinforces the internal cohesion, emotional commitment of employees to the organization.

HR policy forms a system of employer brand values, which are transferred to potential and existing employees through the communication tools. In addition to economic, psychological and functional values, there are also corporate attributes that influence the perception of the employer's brand. These attributes include company's position on the labor market, its consumer and corporate brands, stability of the company, results of its operational activities, personal image of top management. As a result, HR brand supports and increases organizational identity, creating an emotional connection inside the company and motivating employees to work for a common goal and be part of the team.

With a strong HR brand, organizations can acquire talented and competent employees. It is a tool to show how a company is different from its competitors(Ito, Brotheridge & McFarland, 2013). It also helps to increase the company's efficiency in the field of HR management (on the stage of recruiting, engaging and retaining the workforce) (Russell & Brannan, 2016). Moreover, employer branding enhances the company's culture, thereby increasing the morale and satisfaction of employees. In some companies, employees who consciously like the company become its ambassadors (Holbeche & Matthews, 2012).These practices also improve its image in the market.

As noted in the literature, there are some common benefits for the companies that have an employer's brand:

- reduce costs for attraction and recruitment employees (Barrow & Mosley, 2011, p. 70; Berthon, Ewing, Hah, 2005, p. 154; Knox & Freeman, 2006, p. 695);

- improve employment relationship (Berthon, Ewing, Hah, 2005, p. 154);

- reduce staff turnover (Barrow & Mosley, 2011, p. 695; Knox & Freeman, 2006, p. 695; Backhaus &Tikoo, 2004, p. 501);

- can offer lower wages for similar positions compared to companies that do not have an employer's brand (Berthon, Ewing, Hah, 2005, p. 154);

- improve and change the organizational culture (Backhaus &Tikoo, 2004, p. 509).

According to Barrow & Mosley (2011), due to changes in motivation and behavior of employees, in companies with the employer's brand there can be seen an increase in:

- degree of consumers' satisfaction (Barrow & Mosley, 2006, p. 71-72);

- financial indicators (profit, sales, shareholders' income, stock value) (Barrow & Mosley, 2011, p. 72-74).

The value of the company is created when the company competently operates with work experience (Edwards, 2010). The process of HR-brand formation includes series of actions aimed at creation of the company's reputation in the labor market and differentiation of the company from its competitor, and also at development of effective mechanisms for keeping the employees valuable to the company.

Employer branding is the process of developing the employer's brand, applies the basic branding rules in the company's HR policy (Figurska & Matuska, 2013).This is a complex structure that includes different components. As any brand, the employer's brand has its values and attributes. They can be material (e.g. salary) and non-material (e.g. culture). In the study about employer branding by Ambler and Barrow (1996) values and attributes were divided into three clusters: economic, functional and psychological. Economic attributes can be presented as salaries and bonuses, functional ones as development of the employee and opportunity for training within the company, psychological ones as recognition, affiliation, and personality of the employee. These factors were later expanded in the study by Binaiuto et al. (2013). This study highlights five main aspects of employer brand: interest value, social value, economic value, development value, application value. Interest value represents the employee's involvement through innovation, high quality product and creative and interesting responsibilities. Social value is created by the right organizational culture and relationship between employees. Economic value consists of salary and bonuses. Development value involves training for employees. Application value assumes compliance with competences and balancing work and life. Therefore, it should be said that the employer's brand represents the connection of many components. It is a complex structure based on the external and internal reputation of the organization.

As is shown in the research by Moroko & Uncles (2008), there are two key aspects of successful/unsuccessful employer brands:

- Attractiveness aspect. Defines the level of brand attractiveness (unattractiveness). Includes three characteristics: popularity, visibility, compliance/difference from competitors.

- Accuracy aspect. Depends on the fulfillment / non-performance of obligations given by the employer.

Therefore, potential employees will be interested in the brand having positive associations, and the fulfillment of their promises by the company management will lead to the employee's retention and efficiency. Otherwise, if the company failed to create the right image, the talents will not be attracted to the company. Moreover, if a psychological contract is broken, then long-term relations between the employee and the employer become impossible. Graphical interpretation of the interaction of these aspects is shown on the Figure 2.

Figure 2 - Dimensions of employer brand success and following implications

According to the Figure 2, there can be highlighted four employer branding strategy states: communication breakdown, strategy mismatch, long-term disconnect, sustained success.

- Communication breakdown. The company is ready to fulfill all the obligations as an employer, but the brand of the company is unknown, therefore it is not attractive.

- Strategy mismatch. The company has a recognizable employer brand, it attracts talents. At the same time, the employer does not fulfill its promises, so the organization has very low employee retention.

- Long-term disconnect. It represents an employer negative brand. In this case, the employer must change HR brand inside and outside the company.

- Sustained success. It means a successful employer brand. Employees respect the values of the company, while the company has the image of a successful and sustainable workplace. To stay in this position, a company must be able to adapt to a dynamic market environment.

HR branding is not only about working with the company's reputation as an employer, but also about the target long-term strategy of managing the awareness and perception of the company by its own employees, potential candidates and all other interested persons (stakeholders). Employer branding becomes a tool to increase an organization's competitiveness not only in the labor market, but also as an indicator of business efficiency and sustainability.

For the heads of modern companies it becomes especially important at the stage of sustainable development. At this stage of a life cycle, the company needs to improve efficiency of the employer's image and employee motivation. Many researches in this area indicate the existence of a direct link between the image of the company, the level of its competitiveness, the increase in the market value of the company and the results of its financial activities.

Synthesis of the basic model of HR-branding by Tiku and Buckhous (2004)is presented on Figure 3. There are core elements of an effective employer branding: Employee Value Proposition, external and internal branding (Figure 3).



Figure 3 - Employer branding framework

It can be seen from the Figure 3 that EVP is a central element of effective employer branding. It represents the overall employment offer, including tangible and intangible items. External branding refers to potential employees and other stakeholders. Internal branding relates to the existing labor force. The components of the framework will be discussed in more detail in the next sections of this chapter.

a) EVP (Employer Value Proposition)

The majority of HR branding practitioners and authors of publications on this topic argue that the effectiveness of the employer's brand management requires a clear offer of the employer's brand (Barrow & Mosley, 2011). Experts point out that the companies should pay special attention to an Employer Value Proposition (EVP).This term is used to indicate the balance of rewards and benefits provided by employers in exchange for employee effectiveness at the workplace. Brett Minchington, one of the world's leading authorities on employer branding, defines an employer value proposition as “a set of associations and offers provided by an organization in exchange for the skills, abilities and experience that employees give to it” (Minchington, 2010).

The EVP must be unique, relevant and compelling for being a key driver in attracting, engaging and retaining talent employees. Moreover, it is important also for top and line managers, employees, because they create organizational culture and working atmosphere.

According to study by Branham (2012), the components of the EVP can be divided in four groups. The author's classification of EVP elements is presented on Table 1. It includes both tangible and intangible bonuses.

Table 1. Two-dimensional classification of EVP elements

	SHORT-TERM	LONG-TERM
TANGIBLES	- Basic payments - Annual benefits - Health insurance	- Stock options - Profit-sharing plans - Pension
INTANGIBLES	- Work-life benefits - Recruitment policy - Newcomers engagement	- Organizational culture - Managers behavior - Work climate

Tangible components are standard for all companies. They do not increase the attractiveness of the employer's brand, but at the same time their absence can negatively affect the perception of the company's employer brand. Intangible elements make an employer's brand unique, as they are different for all companies. Short-term intangible assets provide a necessary psychological climate in the team. Interaction with and between employees affects the perception of the employer's brand. The most complex are long-term intangible elements. They depend on organizational culture and management behavior. They can promote competitive advantage because they are hard to copy.

In the research by Hill and Tande, the founders of “Tandehill Human Capital”, is highlighted the connection between HR branding and an employer value proposition. The authors emphasize that employers should develop and justify a personal competitive advantage, showing why experience in their company is more meaningful and beneficial than in the other organizations (Hill, Tande, 2006).EVP is a people-centric approach, which is implemented in accordance with existing strategic plans for HR management. The content of the employee value proposition should include programs and processes that demonstrate the organization's commitment to the professional and career development of its employees, financial and social aspects of policy company fees, etc. Such a document is the basis for the recruiting department or external recruitment agencies working with the particular company. The main statements of EPV are reflected in job offers and other sources of the employee's recruitment process.

According to study by Robertson (2013) an effectiveness of EVP can be affected by some factors:

- top management behaviour;

- an organizational structure that respects the needs of all departments and employees; human capital economic employer

- capacity to make a mutually beneficial psychological contract (employee-employer);

- an effective organizational culture and employee interaction;

- market uniqueness.

The EVP must be consistent with the company's general strategy and be included in the company's day-to-day operations. Therefore, it requires special attention from the management side. The product must be attractive, so the job offer must satisfy all employees' needs. The “employment product” must meet all wishes, goals and expectations of potential and existing employees. It has to be common, but it should be able to adapt to different groups of people.

A properly formed EVP gives the company an undoubted competitive advantage in attracting and retaining talented employees. Worldwide lack of qualified employees leads to more intense competition for qualified and talented employees. In the next decade this competition is supposed to be more intense. Companies with a good reputation will find it easier to attract the best people. Nowadays, the talent is the main factor determining the success of companies.Therefore, the company's ability to attract, develop and retain talents will be the main competitive advantage for many years to come (Michaels et al., 2001). As additional benefits there are could be noted assistance in setting the right priorities in the HR policy of the company, easier secondary involvement of retired employees and reduced recruitment costs in general due to lower recruitment costs.

b) External branding

External branding is the second element of the HR branding system. It is designed to attract the target audience, but at the same time can support and strengthen the brand of the company. A mandatory requirement in the development of an employer's brand is its compliance with all other brand building activities in acompany (Sullivan, 2004). The external branding promotes the company as the best place to work. Therefore, it helps attract the best employees. It is assumed that a clear brand message enables a company to attract the right people. The candidates, who respond to the brand offer, develop a set of expectations about working for the company, thereby supporting the firm's values and increasing commitment.

In the research by Bonaiuto et al. (2013) was made a comparison between an ideal and real employer. The results of the study show that the ideal employer should have the following characteristics that affect potential employee:

- innovativeness;

- diversity and inclusion;

- reputation;

- skills assessment;

- different career opportunities;

- employee support;

- organizational culture (especially, motivation and creative atmosphere).

Less important components are:

- awards;

- flexible working hours.

Research shows that these characteristics are not always found in real companies, but are important for attracting talent. The authors suggest that companies should incorporate the missing elements into their employer's brand strategy to be more competitive and attractive.

The offline communication channels for promoting HR brand are mass media and various events (industry, business and specialized in HR).HR-brand can be implemented through the active use of various HR-projects, which are implemented in the company and actively promoted externally. It should be noted that original, interesting projects in the field of HR, traditionally arouse great interest among professional audience and experts. Nowadays, an interaction with the audience is online through such channels as corporate website or social networks. The content of the message is devoted to the issues of HR-policy of the company. Moreover, the company should pay attention to the reviews that its employees write on the public sources. The Employer Brand Research (2019) by Randstadstated that 91% of candidates consider online and offline ratings and evaluations of the company before applying for a job. Also, 55% of potential employees cancel their job application after they read negative feedback.

To sum up, an external HR brand is built for external customers, for potential job seekers. It is closely linked to the corporate and product brand of the company. Due to the external HR-brand applicants forms the idea of corporate culture, mission and philosophy of the company. Thus, the company manages to get employees whose values coincide with those of the organization, and the process of association with the company takes place quickly and without difficulties. Combination of external characteristics, such as uses latest technologies, diversity and inclusion, quality products, good training and strong management, increases reputation and attractiveness of the company.

c) Internal branding

The internal branding is the third element of the employer's brand. The objective of internal branding is to develop commitment to organizational values and goals among all the employees. At the same time, it allows creating a culture and working conditions in the company that will be difficult to duplicate for competitors. By systematically addressing the message of the employer's brand, the company creates a special culture focused on the goals of the organization that allows the firm to work in its unique style.

According to study by Raj and Jyothi (2011). there are two primary goals of managing an employer's internal brand:

1. to reduce staff turnover (increase employee loyalty and retention);

2. to maintain the involvement of employees (satisfied and motivated) and encourage them to be part of the brand.

To achieve the organization's goals, there are a number of factors that facilitate the involvement and interest of employees in the employer's brand (Punjaisri & Wilson, 2011). These factors include: communication, training, leadership, information about the market and customers, empowerment, reward system, perceived congruence of values, involvement in the work (Burmann& Zeplin, 2005; Punjaisri & Wilson, 2011; Du Preez & Bendixen, 2015).Many authors have identified a number of characteristics that measure the concept of internal marketing. In the research by Sahoo and Mohanty (2019), based on analysis of a large number of studies, were identified 14 dimensions of internal branding:

- inter-functional coordination and integration (all departments of the company work in concert and have effective communication);

- customer orientation (the client base of the company may also support the employee's interest in the company's employer brand);

- marketing-like approach (motivation of employees to service and customer orientation can also ensure a dynamic marketing approach);

- job satisfaction (the employee's attitude towards the work environment and the full performance of his/her duties);

- empowerment (empowering employeesleading to making decisions faster and increasing productivity);

- quality of service (high quality services will form the internal brand of the employer, because employees know how to define how to sell their product to the target client.);

- employee training and development (Staff training helps employees gain the necessary knowledge and skills to increase productivity and create a positive atmosphere within the team. Training is one of the most important practices for building a successful employer brand within a company);

- employee motivation(Differentiation is important in the organization so that each employee understands his or her importance to the company and performs his or her professional tasks at the maximum level);

- organization's vision(It is important that each employee understands the organizational culture and is part of it. Through the right organizational vision, the employee understands his or her tasks and role in the firm and meets the expectations of the clients.);

- strategic rewards (helps increase employee satisfaction and motivation);

- internal and external communication (Internal communication creates a sense of responsibility and ownership of the company among employees. External communication affects the perception of the employer's brand outside the company);

- leadership (the leader has the primary responsibility to ensure that the company's work is efficient and consistent with its values);

- HR involvement(by involving employees in the brand concept, the employer ensures employee retention and satisfaction);

- perceived value congruence(relationship between individual (employee) values and organizational values).

Therefore, internal branding helps to build a strong link between a company's human resources and its values.It can be achieved through different factors. It is necessary that all employees understand and follow the main purpose and mission of the company, share the values of corporate culture. Leadership must be developed in the company and the tasks must be measurable and clearly defined for each employee. It is also important that internal branding is correlated with external branding. It must be linked by a single mission, to which the employees of the company are also committed. The best way to analyze the internal brand is to give feedback. It can help to understand the strengths and weaknesses according to which to change the internal brand positioning strategy.

1.2 HR-brand model development

Based on the theoretical basis presented in the first paragraph, the goal was set: to create a model that would reflect the main factors affecting the success of HR brand. The presented model of company's HR brand is developed on the basis of theoretical base of employer brand components (EVP, internal factors, and external factors). These factors have been studied and described in the first paragraph.

The concept of “employer brand” refers to attracting and retaining qualified human resources in an organization (Mukesh K. Biswas, 2012; Berthon, Ewing, Hah, 2005; Backhaus &Tikoo, 2004;Lievens, 2007; Sullivan, 2004; Van Dam & Marcus, 2012; Roper et all., 2013). This term combines the areas of marketing and human resource management (Ambler & Barrow, 1996). There is a huge demand for qualified personnel and the competition of companies for the best personnel. Thus, organizations need to differentiate themselves among competitors. Under such conditions, creating an employer brand model becomes the main tool for attracting and retaining qualified labor.

In order to build a model of the employer's brand, a literature analysis, presented in the previous paragraph, was made. According to the basic model of HR-branding by Tiku and Buckhous(2004) the employer's brand has three aspects:

· EVP - the main idea and values that the brand presents;

· internal - all communications that are aimed at employees;

· external - all communications aimed at potential employees, former employees (alumni), partners and other target audiences.

As the basic internal factors was taken 14 dimensions by Sahoo and Mohanty (2019) that were identified by analyzing relevant literature, researches and articles. An aggregation of these factors is shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Internal Brand Factors

Culture & Values	- Organization's vision - Perceived value congruence
Motivation system	- Employee motivation - Job satisfaction - Employee training and development - Strategic rewards and benefits
Strong management	- Leadership - HR involvement - Internal and external communication
Career opportunities	- Inter-functional coordination and integration - Empowerment
Customer focus	- Customer orientation - Quality of service - Marketing-like approach

1. Culture & Values

The employer's brand must be targeted at a specific audience in order to remain competitive on the labor market. Brand positioning is a brand message. In order to be attractive, most brands need to emphasize what makes them different from others and how they are better at meeting the needs of the target audience. First of all, there is an idea that the brand represents, its mission or vision (Foreman and Money, 1995). Secondly, it's a set of values that all employees share within the company that should be consistent with personal values(Punjaisri and Wilson, 2011).Team climate, corporate events, real-life principles of attitude towards employees are key factors that make them proud of their work in the company (Vijayalakshmi & Uthayasuriyan, 2015). As a result, the employees will not only have confidence in the future, but also recommend their colleagues and friends to work in the company.

2. Motivation system

A good motivation system increases employee satisfaction. As an internal factor, it should encourage an employee to do something by offering benefits (Punjaisri and Wilson, 2011). In different companies it can include different components such as salary, bonus and compensation package, training and development opportunities, assistant programs and etc. (Rusu & Avasilca 2013). Employee Benefits Package is a system of additional motivation through which companies create more attractive working conditions for employees and keep their people in place. It includes all bonuses and opportunities that the employee receives from the company in addition to his or her salary. In large companies, whose reputation can be undermined by one employee's mistake, the social package is always more interesting because the employer tries to attract the best people to its firm and keep them firmly in the workplace. The package may include any kind of insurance, pension guarantees, vacation, company shares, tuition fees, etc. Some companies also have employee assistance programs. Moreover, in today's environment, the professional skills of any employee may not be sufficient to perform the company's current tasks. Competitive market environment constantly dictates new requirements, so business success largely depends on training and development opportunities for staff (Punjaisri and Wilson, 2007). Training measures are aimed at creating a professional, dedicated team. It helps to solve the problem of personnel "flow", to save on training of new employees. The company's productivity grows and, with it, the company's profit.

3. Strong management

The top management of the company is responsible for an efficiency of the company. The workforce is supported by the HR department, but should be considered by the leader as one of the important parts of the company. The company's leader is its main ambassadorship, which enhances the company's reputation (Figurska&Matuska, 2013). Due to the good leadership in the company, all company divisions will be connected and work together (Punjaisri and Wilson, 2011). Good company management can be measured by employee feedback, assessment and attitude towards management style. Also with good leadership, all of the company's indicators will be high, including financial ones.

4. Career opportunities

The development of an employee also can take place through the use of career development, which is implemented in the framework of the organization's career policy and career management regulations. The empowerment and its extension enable the staff member to demonstrate responsibility for decision-making. This component helps an employee to develop career(Murari, 2015).The company's management should remember that career incentives for employees should be comprehensive, i.e. they should combine both material and social forms of incentives. Using an integrated approach, the enterprise will employ highly qualified employees who will contribute to the achievement of the enterprise's strategic goals (De Chernatony et al., 2008).

5. Customer focus

Customer focus and quality service helps maintain employee interest in the product and work with it more successfully. The high quality of service affects the company's key performance indicators. It can be ensured by a good employer brand, as employees will know and be proud of their product (Broady-Preston & Steel, 2002).Customer orientation can be shown in the company's culture or its main purpose. Any company's goal is profit, and to get it, you need a client. Thus, customer focus is one of the links between the company and its success in the market (Naude, Desai, & Murphy,2003).

Therefore, it can be concluded, that internal factors determine characteristics that could affect company's employees and help keep them in the company. After summing up the theoretical information, five factors of the employer's internal brand were identified: Culture&Values, Motivation system, Strong management, Career opportunities and Customer focus.It should be noted that “Culture & Values” includes company's mission as a component. Thus, EVP is included in internal factors and will not be presented as a separate element of the model.

External factors of HR brand were identified by Bonaiuto et al. (2013). A good HR brand cannot be created without consideration of external factors that reflect the attitude of potential employees to the company. Classification includes nine factors. The external factors have been identified as the ones that are not overlapping with the internal factors:

1. Innovativeness

Globalization has led to technology in all areas of our lives. Company's innovativeness is one of the criteria for choosing a job. Potential job seekers see whether technology is used in the company's work, whether it changes according to external conditions or not. In companies that follow the principle of total innovation, a special type of corporate culture is formed that stimulates innovation: the process of evaluating new ideas and proposals is well established, the project portfolio is balanced, representatives of different functional areas cooperate effectively in working groups and use new tools and processes to ensure the optimal combination of creative energy and discipline (Ostojic Mihic, Umihanic, &Fazlovic, 2015).Also, the innovative atmosphere inside the company contributes to increased employee satisfaction and their readiness to recommend the company to potential employees.

2. Diversity& Inclusion

Diversity & Inclusion means accepting and respecting the individuality of each employee and being able to benefit from the fact that everyone is different (Sabharwal, 2014). The rejection of prejudices (gender, race, religion, well, you understand everything) has become important for business. Employees want to be part of a multicultural team and the company's mission is to recognize the right to identity for everyone. Diversity management is particularly relevant due to the growing competition of companies for qualified and efficient employees, as well as companies' entry into international markets. Each person has a different life experience, which distinguishes them from other people. This experience allows people to see a problem from different points of view and search for its solution most effectively, working in a team. Besides, it is more comfortable for clients to work with people who speak the same language, have similar life experience, similar views. Therefore, the diversified staff of the company allows the most effective expansion of the client base.

3. Reputation

A positive image of the employer is formed by the success of the category in which the company works; company positions in ratings; activity in industry and non-core events; feedback from employees, clients and partners (Heim, 2011). The reputation of the employer can also be formed by promoting the brand with SMM. The reputation of the firm depends on two factors: on the client/ non-employee side and on the employee side. On the employee side, this is measured in the employee's desire to recommend the firm for employment with the firm. The reputation of clients is based on the external image of the company, whether a potential client or employee wants to be involved in the company's activities.

Based on the factors highlighted above, HR brand model was developed (Figure 4). The model combines three external and five internal evaluation factors.

Figure 4 - HR brand model

The internal factors include - Culture & Values, Motivation System, Strong Management, Career Opportunities, and Customer Focus. The external factors are - Innovativeness, Diversity & Inclusion, and Reputation. The model was created based on the synthesis of theoretical research on the employer's brand. Internal factors were mainly based on the research by Sahoo and Mohanty (2019), external factors - on the research by Bonaiuto et al. (2013). Internal and external components of the employer's brand are interconnected (Tiku and Buckhous, 2004).

To sum up, it can be concluded that the concept of HR branding is multidisciplinary. First of all, a creation of the employer's brand is a marketing strategy. The company “sells itself” as an employer, takes a certain place in the labor market and forms a valuable offer for the future employees. On the other hand, the brand of the organization concerns the area of human resources management in regard to offer formation. This refers to the concept of “psychological contact” (Hendry, 1997). According to this concept, an employee has to be loyal to his or her employer, and the company guarantees him or her permanent employment. Nowadays, the employer provides training and career development in exchange for the employee's active and effective work in the organization (Backhaus &Tikoo, 2004). Moreover, it is important to control the psychological climate, as well as the overall people condition (future employees) on the labor market. It will help company to identify the employee's needs and to collect the feedback after an introduction of each HR management innovation. Employer branding gives more than profit gain, because it is also connected with the social responsibility of the company. Employees are not only resources for the company, but also its internal clients. Companies must go beyond the economic priority (maximizing profits). The company's human resources must be given as much attention as its economic goals.

The employer branding has three key aspects: Employee Value Proposition (EVP), External and Internal branding. EVP represents the core idea of the brand and the values offered to employees. External branding shows the positioning of the company in the labor market. It includes strategy and tools of attracting employees, identifies target audience connected with company's EVP. Internal branding considers employee commitment and unique organizational culture. It combines all characteristics that are necessary to build confidential and cooperative organizational culture.

Employer brand theory can be successfully incorporated into a company strategy in the form of an employer brand model. Based on theoretical findings, the HR brand model was built (Figure 4). In the next chapter it will be used as a tool for researching the employer's brand in global companies. According to the theoretical material and the developed model, and in order to answer the purpose of the study, the following hypotheses were formulated:

H1: HR brand success depends on external and internal factors included in the research model.

H2: The absence and deficiency of external factors has an effect on internal factors, and vice versa.

In order to confirm or disprove hypotheses, HR brands of global companies is to be analyzed and described in the next chapter using the developed model.

2. Analysis of HR branding in global companies

2.1 Research design

Previous studies describing the role of the HR brand in the company have used a descriptive and exploratory approach. The following master's thesis approach can be defined as descriptive. The research is concentrated on identifying and describing factors for successful HR brands and their presence in global companies. In order to accomplish the mail goal of the following master thesis the methods of qualitative research were used. To study HR brands of global companies, an analysis of secondary data was conducted.

Based on the main goal and hypothesis, the study was divided into the following stages:

- IT sector analysis and a selection of companies;

- analysis of companies based on factors presented in the model (Figure 4);

- processing the results obtained.

In order to be able to examine the HR brand, its use and importance, it must be analyzed in its context. In order to make comparisons and analytical generalizations concerning HR-brands of global companies, the research sample includes thirteen companies. Since the purpose of this master thesis is to find out what factors of the employer's brand influence the success of the company, companies from the same field were chosen. The sphere of activity of the companies was determined by comparative analysis of the sphere attractiveness for the employees. Analysis of IT sector was made based on the Randstad Employer Brand Research (2019), which presents a summary of a survey conducted in 6,136 companies around the world. Moreover, the rating by Glassdoor “Best Places to Work 2020 Employee's Choice Awards” (2019) and the rating “The World's Best Employers” by Forbes (2019) were taken into account. A simple random sampling of companies was done using the rating by Forbes (2019).

As can be seen from the theoretical base, to examine employer brand of the company external and internal factors should be considered. The model (Figure 4) developed in the previous chapter was used as a research tool. Hypotheses have been made based on this model. Each factor of the presented model was analyzed in each company. The data was collected on company websites and on popular websites for employees as “Glass door” and “Comparably”. The information was summarized for each factor and each company.

Based on the data collected, the factors in each company were assessed on a 4-point scale: 0 -factor is absent, 1 - there are specific elements, but weaker than the industry average, 2 - average level of the industry, 3 - is much better than the industry average. The graphs were created for the analysis of each factor individually, internal factors, external factors and the overall research.

2.2 Data Selection

The sphere of IT technologies is a rapidly developing area of modern science and technology. Nowadays, new inventions, technologies and design solutions appear every hour. More and more new progressive thinking companies are launched, which boldly look into the future and believe that they can change the world. In this industry, not only gross figures are rapidly growing, but also demand on the labor market. Many people are attracted by good wages, comfortable working conditions and the opportunity to go abroad. This leads to a competition for human resources, especially young talents. In a situation when the level of salaries in different companies is approximately the same, there is a need to create additional factors to ensure staff retention. Organizations began to work more actively with educational institutions, to sponsor events dedicated to the IT sphere, to offer such social bonuses as free gym, medical care, language training.

Figure 5 - Sector Attractiveness Global. Randstad Employer Brand Research

According to the Randstad Employer Brand Research (2019),IT industry is the most attractive, with 55% of those surveyed ranking it on the first place (Figure 5). The report also emphasizes that IT companies are the most preferred, as technological innovations are interesting to a large number of people. The sector is attractive not only for clients, but also for talents who want to receive a job and to stay in the industry for a long time. However, there is also a disadvantage, as now all spheres are actively introducing IT technologies, competition for talents arise. Technology specialists are among the most demanded in the labor market. Therefore, in order to get good personnel, companies need to have a good employer brand.

According to the rating by Glassdoor “Best Places to Work 2020 Employee's Choice Awards”, 31 out of 100 companies belong to tech industry. It is more than one third of the whole list. The companies was valued by the following criteria: (overall company rating, career opportunities, compensation and benefits, culture and values, senior management, work-life balance, recommend to a friend and six-month business outlook).

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