THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INTERNAL BRANDING AND BRAND CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOUR AMONG EMPLOYEES OF PKT LOGISTICS GROUP SDN. BHD.

Edmund Edward; Vanaja Paramasivam; Prakash Nadarajah

doi:10.46754/jml.2024.12.004

Authors

Edmund Edward School of Logistics & Maritime, Peninsula College
Vanaja Paramasivam School of Business, Peninsula College
Prakash Nadarajah School of Business, Peninsula College https://orcid.org/0009-0007-4189-5137

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46754/jml.2024.12.004

Keywords:

Internal branding, internal brand communication, brand culture, brand rewards, citizenship behaviour, Social Exchange Theory, Employee engagement, PKT Logistics Group Sdn. Bhd.

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between internal branding practices and Brand Citizenship Behaviour (BCB) among PKT Logistics Group Sdn. Bhd. employees. This study hypothesises that internal branding (comprising brand communication, culture, and rewards) will positively affect the employees’ citizenship behaviour toward organisational success. Setting the research in Social Exchange Theory (SET), this study uses data from 263 employees collected through a quantitative survey and tests hypothesis with SmartPLS. All the internal branding practices are statistically significant for impacting BCB, emphasising why ensuring a resilient work identity is critical to elevate employee commitment and increase organisational performance. The study’s findings contribute to
management practices for making internal branding work, which can be used to develop a committed and brand-aligned workforce.

References

Adamu, L., Ghani, N. H. A., & Rahman, M. A. (2019). The internal branding practices and employee brand citizenship behavior: The mediating effect of employee brand fit. Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques, 8(1), 99-106. http://www.jett. dormaj.com

Adeoye, A., & Hope, O. (2020). Organizational culture, employee retention and employee loyalty: Empirical evidence from Nigeria. Academic Journal of Economic Studies, 6(3), 139-145. https://link.gale.com/apps/ doc/A639544352/AONE?u=anon~a3691a4 3&sid=googleScholar&xid=7a97bc8e

Ardiza, F., Nawangsari, L. C., & Sutawidjaya, A. H. (2021). The influence of green performance appraisal and green compensation to improve employee performance through OCBE. International Review of Management and Marketing, 11(4), 13-22. https://doi.org/10.32479/ irmm.11632

Arrieta, D., & García-Cali, E. (2021). Internal branding: Conceptualization from a literature review and opportunities for future research. Journal of Brand Management, 28(2), 133-151. https://doi.org/10.1057/ s41262-020-00219-1

Baker, A. M., & Naveen, N. (2018). Word-of-mouth processes in marketing new products: Recent research and future opportunities. Handbook of Research on New Product Development, 313-335. https://doi.org/10.4 337/9781784718152.00026

Blau, P. M. (1968). Social exchange. International Encyclopaedia of the Social Sciences, 7(4), 452-457. https://doi. org/10.1016/B978-0-08-097086-8.32056-6

Bougie, R., & Sekaran, U. (2020). Research methods for business: A skill building approach. John Wiley & Sons.

Bravo, R., Buil, I., de Chernatony, L., & Martínez, E. (2017). Managing brand identity: Effects on the employees. International Journal of Bank Marketing, 35(1), 2-23. https://doi. org/10.1108/IJBM-10-2015-0148

Buil, I., Martínez, E., & Matute, J. (2016). From internal brand management to organizational citizenship behaviours: Evidence from frontline employees in the hotel industry. Tourism Management, 57, 256-271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. tourman.2016.06.009

Burmann, C., & Zeplin, S. (2005). Building brand commitment: A behavioural approach to internal brand management. Journal of Brand Management, 12(4), 279-300. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave. bm.2540223

Burmann, C., Zeplin, S., & Riley, N. (2009). Key determinants of internal brand management success: An exploratory empirical analysis. Journal of Brand Management, 16(4), 264-284. https://doi. org/10.1057/bm.2008.6

Cherian, J., Gaikar, V., Paul, R., & Pech, R. (2021). Corporate culture and its impact on employees’ attitude, performance, productivity, and behavior: An investigative analysis from selected organizations of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), 45. https://www.mdpi. com/2199-8531/7/1/45

Cole, M. S., Schaninger Jr, W. S., & Harris, S. G. (2002). The workplace social exchange network: A multilevel, conceptual examination. Group & Organization Management, 27(1), 142-167. https://doi. rg/10.1177/1059601102027001008

Davlembayeva, D., & Alamanos, E. (2023). Social exchange theory: A review. In S. Papagiannidis (Ed.), TheoryHub book. Available at https://open.ncl.ac.uk

de Chernatony, L., & Cottam, S. (2009). Interacting contributions of different departments to brand success. Journal of Business Research, 62(3), 297-304. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2007.12.005

Dechawatanapaisal, D. (2018). Employee retention: The effects of internal branding and brand attitudes in sales organizations. Personnel Review, 47(3). https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-06-2017-0193

Eid, R., Al Zaabi, A., Alzahmi, R., & Elsantil, Y. (2019). Integrating internal branding antecedents, customer, and job satisfaction in the public sector. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 27(5). https:// doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-09-2018-1548

Eriksson, T., Näppä, A., & Robertson, J. (2022). Crafting a paying-it-forward mindset in business: Five principles for a competitive employer branding advantage. Business Horizons, 66(1), 51-64. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.bushor.2022.01.001

Fernando, Y., Tseng, M. L., Aziz, N., Ikhsan, R. B., & Wahyuni-TD, I. S. (2022). Waste-to-energy supply chain management on circular economy capability: An empirical study. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 31, 26-38. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.spc.2022.01.032

Foa, E. B., & Foa, U. G. (1980). Resource theory of social exchange. In Törnblom, K., & Kazemi, A. (Eds.), Handbook of social resource theory. Critical issues in social justice. Springer. https://doi. org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4175-5_2

Garas, A., Kyriakou, A., & Lapatinas, A. (2021). Economic complexity and environmental performance: Evidence from a world sample. Environmental Modeling & Assessment, 26(3), 251-270. https://doi. org/10.1007/s10666-021-09750-0

Graham, J. W. (1991) An essay on organizational citizenship behavior. Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, 4, 249-270. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01385031

Hair Jr, J. F., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Gudergan, S. P. (2017). Advanced issues in partial least squares structural equation modeling. SAGE Publications.

Hapsari, D., Riyanto, S., & Endri, E. (2021). The role of transformational leadership in building organizational citizenship: The civil servants of Indonesia. The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business, 8(2), 595-604. https://doi.org/10.13106/ JAFEB.2021.VOL8.NO2.0595

Hayes, J. R. (2013). The complete problem solver. Routledge.

Hoang, U. T. T. (2022). Brand, culture, and employee engagement: The study of Bosch Group. Organizational Behaviour and Leadership Theory in Practice, 33.

Ibrahim, I., Sundram, V. P. K., Omar, E. N., Yusoff, N., & Amer, A. (2019). The determinant factors of green practices adoption for logistics companies in Malaysia. A case study of PKT logistics group Sdn. Bhd. Journal of Emerging Economies & Islamic Research, 7(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.24191/jeeir.v7i1.6023

Ikram, A., Fiaz, M., Mahmood, A., Ahmad, A., & Ashfaq, R. (2021). Internal corporate responsibility as a legitimacy strategy for branding and employee retention: A perspective of higher education institutions. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), 52. https:// doi.org/10.3390/joitmc7010052

Ind, N. (2007). Living the brand: How to transform every member of your organization into a brand champion. Kogan Page Publishers.

Indiyati, D. (2018). The role of organisational culture, intellectual capital and competitive advantage in supporting the government policies in education. International Journal of Economic Policy in Emerging Economies, 11(1/2), 68-82.

Kaur, P., & Kaur, G. (2021). Internal branding and intention to stay: An empirical study of Indian business process outsourcing sector. South Asian Journal of Management, 28(2), 30-55.

Kaur, P., Malhotra, K., & Sharma, S. K. (2020). Moderation-mediation framework connecting internal branding, affective commitment, employee engagement and job satisfaction: An empirical study of BPO employees in Indian context. Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Administration. https:// doi.org/10.1108/APJBA-10-2019-0217

Khalid, A., Pan, F., Li, P., Wang, W., & Ghaffari, A. S. (2020). The impact of occupational stress on job burnout among bank employees in Pakistan, with psychological capital as a mediator. Frontiers in Public Health, 7, Article 410. https://doi.org/10.3389/ fpubh.2019.00410

Khdour, N., Shaban, E. A., Alkhazali, Z., & Al Raoush, A. T. (2022). The impact of sustainable human resource practices on employee behaviour: The case of pharmaceutical sector in Jordan. Academy of Entrepreneurship Journal, 28, 1-15.

King, C., & Grace, D. (2008). Internal branding: Exploring the employee’s perspective. Journal of Brand Management, 15(5), 358-372. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave. bm.2550136

King, C., & Grace, D. (2010). Building and measuring employee‐based brand equity. European Journal of Marketing. https://doi. org/10.1108/03090561011047472

Krejcie, R., & Morgan, S. (1970). Sample size determination. Business Research Methods, 4(5), 34-36.

Löhndorf, B., & Diamantopoulos, A. (2014). Internal branding: Social identity and social exchange perspectives on turning employees into brand champions. Journal of Service Research, 17(3), 310-325. https:// doi.org/10.1177/1094670514522098

Lunderen, S. M., Nordholm, L., & Segesten, K. (2005). Job satisfaction in relation to change to all RN staffing. Journal of Nurse Management, 13, 322-328. http://dx.doi. org/10.1111/j.1365-2934.2005.00565.x

Markovic, L. (2023, August 14). The case for internal brands, and how to manage them. Brandingmag. https://www.brandingmag. com/lana-markovic/the-case-for-internal-brands-and-how-to-manage-them/

Miles, S. J., & Mangold, G. (2004). A conceptualization of the employee branding process. Journal of Relationship Marketing, 3(2-3), 65-87. https://doi.org/10.1300/ J366v03n02_05

Miraz, M. H., Hassan, M. G., & Hasan, M. T. (2020). Factors affecting e-logistics in Malaysia: The mediating role of trust. Journal of Advanced Research in Dynamical and Control Systems, 12(SP3), 111-120. http://doi.org/10.5373/JARDCS/ V12SP3/20201244

Morhart, F. M., Herzog, W., & Tomczak, T. (2009). Brand-specific leadership: Turning employees into brand champions. Journal of Marketing, 73(5), 122-142. https://doi. org/10.1509/jmkg.73.5.122

Nirmali, K.A.A., Khathibi, A., & Azam, S.M.F. (2018). Exploring employees brand knowledge in Sri Lankan banking sector. European Journal of Social Sciences Studies, 3(1). https://doi.org/10.5281/ zenodo.1283767

Nordin, N., Zaidi, M. F. A., Yaacob, N. A., Kosaka, M., Tio, M., & Yeoh, S. L. (2021). Value co-creation between stakeholders in Malaysia’s automotive aftermarket e-commerce industry: A case study of Sparke Autoparts. In Kosaka, M., Wu, J., Xing, K., & Zhang, S. (Eds.), Business innovation with new ICT in the Asia- Pacific: Case studies. Springer. https://doi. org/10.1007/978-981-15-7658-4_13

Organ, D. W. (1988). Organizational citizenship behavior: The good soldier syndrome. Lexington Books.

Organ, D. W., Podsakoff, P. M., & MacKenzie, S. B. (2006). Organizational citizenship behavior: Its nature, antecedents, and consequences. SAGE Publications.

Piehler, R. (2018). Employees’ brand understanding, brand commitment, and brand citizenship behaviour: A closer look at the relationships among construct dimensions. Journal of Brand Management, 25(3), 217-234. https://doi.org/10.1057/ s41262-018-0099-z

PKT. (2011, September 11). PKT into total logistics. https://pktgroup.com/pkt-into-total-logistics

PKT. (2022). CSR. https://pktgroup.com/csr/

PKT. (2022). Press release. https://pktgroup. com/about/press-release/

PKT. (2022). Sustainability. https://pktgroup. com/sustainability/

PKT. (2024). 5H culture. https://pktgroup.com/ culture

Pritchard, A. (1969). Statistical bibliography or bibliometrics? Journal of Documentation, 25(4), 348-349.

Punjaisri, K., Evanschitzky, H., & Wilson, A. (2009). Internal branding: An enabler of employees’ brand-supporting behaviors, Journal of Service Management, 20(2), 209-226. https://doi. org/10.1108/09564230910952780

Settoon, R. P., Bennett, N., & Liden, R. C. (1996). Social exchange in organizations: Perceived organizational support, leader–member exchange, and employee reciprocity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81(3), Article 219. https://psycnet.apa.org/ doi/10.1037/0021-9010.81.3.219

Sinaga, S. A., & Nawangsari, L. C. (2019). The effect of green recruitment, green training on employee performance in PT TRU using organization citizenship for environment as mediation variable. Dinasti International Journal of Management Science, 1(2), 204-216. https://doi.org/10.31933/dijms. v1i2.57

Soetjipto, B. E., Handayati, P., Hanurawan, F., & Bidin, R. (2021, June). The effects of corporate identity management, internal brand, and corporate culture on employee brand support behavior. In 2nd Annual Conference on blended learning, educational technology, and Innovation, 446-453. Atlantis Press.

Suomi, K., Saraniemi, S., Vähätalo, M., Kallio, TH. J., & Tevameri, T. (2021). Employee engagement and internal branding: two sides of the same coin? Corporate Reputation Review, 24(1), 48-63. https:// doi.org/10.1057/s41299-019-00090-0

Suvaci, B. (2018). The impact of organizational culture on employees’ protean and boundaryless career attitudes: An empirical study of the banking sector in Turkey. Journal of Business Management, 24, 1-25.

Wayne, S. J., Shore, L. M., Bommer, W. H., & Tetrick, L. E. (2002). The role of fair treatment and rewards in perceptions of organizational support and leader-member exchange. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(3), Article 590. https://doi. org/10.1037/0021-9010.87.3.590

Xie, L. S., Peng, J. M., & Huan, T. C. (2014). Crafting and testing a central precept in service-dominant logic: Hotel employees’ brand-citizenship behavior and customers’ brand trust. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 42, 1-8. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2014.05.011

Xiong, L., & King, C. (2015). Motivational drivers that fuel employees to champion the hospitality brand. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 44, 58-69. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2014.10.009

Zhang, H., & Xu, H. (2021). Improving internal branding outcomes through employees’ self-leadership. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 46, 257-266. https:// doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2020.12.013