Attracting talent from Indian B-schools through employer branding: a mediation model

Campus recruiting is strategically important for attracting talent in a competitive market. This paper develops a mediating model to explore the role employer brand image and social networks play in this talent acquisition process. Analysis of data from 124 students of premier business schools in India suggests that the relationship between media presence/publicity and application intentions is mediated by employer brand image. In particular, publicity/media presence is significantly and positively related to application intentions through the two dimensions of employer brand image (perceived job attributes and attitudes). In addition, word-of-mouth endorsements mediate the relationship between publicity and employer brand. To attract the best talent, organisations should work towards increasing their visibility in the media as it helps build the employer brand image due to the influence of social networks.