Recent analyses of creativity in the North American economy have underscored the importance of city-regions in the generation of economic dynamism. These studies have been concerned with at least two principal assertions. The first assertion is that the social dynamics of city-regions constitute the foundations of economic success. The second assertion is that the distribution of human capital (talent) is a crucial element in regional economic prosperity; yet the distribution of human capital across cities is uneven. Therefore, the question emerges: what factors influence the locational choices of talented individuals? In recent years, this question has received considerable scholarly attention. This thesis has identified two existing gaps within this field of inquiry. Conspicuously absent from studies in this area are theoretical insights offered by cultural geographers in the field of whiteness and race. Economic geographers have created an essentialized reading of racial diversity in the economic performance of city-regions. Moreover, work in this area has been constrained by a quantitative focus and a lack of empirical evidence. Accordingly, the purpose of this thesis is to develop a more nuanced understanding of how social processes and institutions underlie and are shaped by the economic performance of city-regions. This is achieved by drawing on insights from an empirical study of 44 semi-structured interviews with academic talent in the City of Kingston, Ontario and 12 interviews with community insiders. The results on the one hand reveal complex dynamics linked to why academics live in particular places, but on the other hand point to one overriding explanation for why academics locate where they do: namely, academics are attracted to Kingston, first and foremost, because of academic jobs, not urban amenities or other characteristics of place. / Thesis (Master, Geography) -- Queen's University, 2009-07-22 11:33:21.839

The purpose of this field study is to gain an increased knowledge and understanding regarding how Western Cape-based companies work with Employer Branding towards black students by describing, analyzing and concluding the included processes. To reach this purpose a qualitative method was used by interviewing three different representatives from Western Cape companies and one consultant agency working with the concept of employer branding as well as focus group discussions with students from universities in Western Cape. The theoretical framework involves an own-designed model including the different concepts relevant for our study: Talent Management, Diversity Management and Employer Branding in which the latter has been given the most focus. The empirical data includes how the participants perceive the Employer Branding work towards students in a Western Cape context: the black talent challenge. The analysis chapter follows the structure of the theory chapter and the empirical data is compared and analyzed from to the different concepts in the theoretical framework. The analysis demonstrates that companies in Western Cape tend to overestimate their Employer Branding efforts in terms of resources and variety. Our findings show that the black students in our study felt dissatisfaction with the Employer Branding efforts from Western Cape companies. The analysis show clear patterns that Employer Branding in the Western Cape area have a strong ethnicity diversity focus and especially around fulfilling legal requirements. The collaboration between companies and universities in Western Cape could improve drastically according to our empirical findings. Finally this thesis provides a few recommendations for further research as well as for the Western Cape companies.

Lärarbristen är ett utbrett problem i Sverige. Vikten av att kunna attrahera samt behålla lärarnas kompetens är därför stor. Syftet med denna studie är att få en förståelse för hinder som påverkar möjligheten att attrahera samt behålla lärare. Studien bygger på lärare vid grund- samt gymnasieskolor i Borlänge och deras uppfattningar kring vad som är attraktiv respektive oattraktivt i yrket. Detta genom mer djupgående intervjuer för att komma åt bakomliggande motiv och tankemönster. Resultatet visar att det lärarna främst uppfattar som attraktivt i sitt arbete är att yrket upplevs som viktigt och meningsfullt, är varierat och ombytligt, innehåller mycket social kontakt samt goda relationer och ger dem en erkänsla genom att vara eftertraktad. De faktorer som lärarna främst lyfter fram som oattraktiva är att lönerna i kommunen är för låga, arbetsbördan och stressen är stor, ledarskapet och kommunikationen brister samt konflikter med elevernas föräldrar som ställer orimliga krav och lägger sig i undervisningen. / The lack of teachers is a widespread problem in Sweden. The importance of being able to attract and retain their expertise is therefore great. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of obstacles that affect the ability to attract and retain teachers. The study is based on teachers at elementary- and upper secondary schools in Borlänge and their views on what is attractive and unattractive in the profession. This through more in-depth interviews to access underlying motives and thought patterns. The result shows that what the teachers perceive as attractive in their work is that the profession is deemed as important and meaningful, is varied and changeable, contains a lot of social contact and good relations and gives them a recognition by being sought after. The factors that teachers mainly emphasize as unattractive are low salaries, heavy workload and great stress in combination with lacking leadership and poor communication, as well as conflicts with the students’ parents who place unreasonable demands and interferes in the teaching in a disturbing way.

Researchers and practitioners have both acknowledged the importance of attracting the right employees. The study aims to explore and analyze how Swedish gaming start-ups attract talent. The authors investigated eight gaming companies based in Sweden, conducting semi-structured interviews with founding team or management team that were responsible for talent attraction in their respective companies. Study draws on theory of employer brand and examines how game development start-ups overcome their challenges in employee attraction context. Results of the research show that most gaming companies offer variety of employment benefits described in employment brand theory, but for them to have a competitive advantage, they should incorporate innovative new ideas in talent attraction. We propose an ‘employer innovation matrix model’ that can be a strategic talent attraction planning tool for companies.

M. Tech. (Business Administration, Faculty of Management Sciences): Vaal University of Technology / The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of employee rewards on talent attraction and talent retention. Furthermore, the study intends to unearth the influence of rewards on employee attraction and retention and to suggest strategies that could be employed by FET colleges in Gauteng in the Sedibeng district of Gauteng. The attraction and retention of employees continues to be a key priority not only of human resource professionals but also of FET colleges generally in South Africa and in the Gauteng province in particular. The most valuable asset available to an organisation is its people, and consequently, retaining employees in their jobs is crucial for any organization. In South Africa, the retention of highly skilled employees is critical, particularly because of the need to contribute to economic growth, innovation and poverty eradication. Owing to the competition for scarce skills, the attraction and retention of quality employees has emerged as the biggest challenge in human capital management and this phenomenon has also arisen in FET colleges. To attract and retain employee, organisations need novel reward systems that satisfy employees. This study employs a quantitative research paradigm and a survey method was used to investigate a sample of 154 academic employees at Sedibeng FET College, Gauteng. A personal method was used to collect data using semi-structured questionnaire and the results of the correlations shows that employee rewards are significantly positively related to talent attraction and talent retention. Findings and recommendations of this study are important to employers as they are supposed to design a remuneration package that attract and retain the best candidates and satisfies their employee’s expectations, in that it is fair, equitable and free of bias. A remuneration package is one of the most important factors that influence people to take up employment and stay with the organization.

<p>Bakgrund: Vikten av att attrahera rätt personal är stor då företag söker långsiktiga konkurrensfördelar och stora resurser läggs idag på arbetet med denna viktiga uppgift. För att attrahera potentiella arbetstagare använder sig företag idag framförallt av direkt och riktad information till de individer och formella grupper av individer som bedöms som intressanta. Denna typ av kommunikation kan ses utelämna stora delar av den omgivning som inom socialpsykologin anses ha stor påverkan på individens val och agerande. </p><p>Syfte: Att söka förståelse för och vidareutveckla teorin kring hur talent attraction kan ske genom att tilltala individen emotionellt, via den sociala omgivningen och genom att se till individens identitetsskapande. Metod: Genom ett expert- och snöbollsurval har 8 experter inom det valda ämnesområdet identifierats och intervjuats. Formen för intervjuerna har varit av diskussionskaraktär. </p><p>Resultat: Vi har i uppsatsen presenterat stöd för att omgivningen påverkar individens val av arbetsgivare, att val av arbetsgivare har en påverkan på individens identitet och att även emotionella faktorer har inverkan vid individens val av arbetsgivare. Dessa resultat menar vi innebär att potentiella arbetstagare bör ingå som en intressent till varumärket. Detta medför en förändrad syn på hur arbetsgivare kan arbeta med talent attraction då emotionella och symboliska faktorer utgör ett komplement till de rationella och kompensatoriska faktorer som vi sett dominera dagens teoribildning.</p>

Bakgrund: Vikten av att attrahera rätt personal är stor då företag söker långsiktiga konkurrensfördelar och stora resurser läggs idag på arbetet med denna viktiga uppgift. För att attrahera potentiella arbetstagare använder sig företag idag framförallt av direkt och riktad information till de individer och formella grupper av individer som bedöms som intressanta. Denna typ av kommunikation kan ses utelämna stora delar av den omgivning som inom socialpsykologin anses ha stor påverkan på individens val och agerande. Syfte: Att söka förståelse för och vidareutveckla teorin kring hur talent attraction kan ske genom att tilltala individen emotionellt, via den sociala omgivningen och genom att se till individens identitetsskapande. Metod: Genom ett expert- och snöbollsurval har 8 experter inom det valda ämnesområdet identifierats och intervjuats. Formen för intervjuerna har varit av diskussionskaraktär. Resultat: Vi har i uppsatsen presenterat stöd för att omgivningen påverkar individens val av arbetsgivare, att val av arbetsgivare har en påverkan på individens identitet och att även emotionella faktorer har inverkan vid individens val av arbetsgivare. Dessa resultat menar vi innebär att potentiella arbetstagare bör ingå som en intressent till varumärket. Detta medför en förändrad syn på hur arbetsgivare kan arbeta med talent attraction då emotionella och symboliska faktorer utgör ett komplement till de rationella och kompensatoriska faktorer som vi sett dominera dagens teoribildning.

Background. Human capital, often referred to as talent, has become a key source of competitive advantage. Due to the scarcity and competition for such talent scholars and practitioners are constantly trying to find new ways to attract, engage and retain highly soughtafter employees. The recent recession and economic slow-down has, however, led to diminished financial resources which has meant that talent management strategies have had to shift with greater focus being placed on non-financially centred offers to attract talent. Such non-financial offers include employer branding (EB) and corporate social responsibility (CSR). Research Purpose. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of perceived corporate social responsibility (CSR) on employer brand and organisational attractiveness perceptions. To achieve this aim, two research objectives were set. The first objective was to establish whether statistically significant positive causal relationships exist between perceptions of CSR, employer brand and organisational attractiveness (OA). The second objective was to estimate the relative importance of CSR and employer brand amongst other typical financial and non-financial reward elements or factors, i.e. when trade-offs need to be made. Research Design and Methodological approaches. An experimental research design was utilised and primary quantitative data was collected by means of convenience, i.e. nonprobability sampling. A realised sample of n=137 was obtained. To address the objectives stated above, a two method approach was utilised. Firstly, a 22 or 2 (CSR present or not present) x 2 (employer branding present or not present) full-factorial experiment was utilised to investigate the causal relationships with organisational attractiveness (the dependant variable). Participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions and perceived level of attractiveness measured after being exposed to one of four fictitious recruitment posters in which the CSR and employer brand were manipulated. The validity and reliability of the organisational attractiveness scale was assessed using Principle Components Analysis (PCA) and calculating Cronbach α coefficients, respectively The data were then analysed using descriptive statistics and a 22 within-subjects Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). To address the second objective, a fractional experiment was used to estimate the relative importance of CSR when randomly manipulating several typical financial and non-financial total reward factors or elements, i.e. those typically offered to prospective employees to attract them, including remuneration, benefits, work-life balance, performance and recognition, and development and career opportunities. This was done by utilising Choice-based modelling (CBM) or choice-based conjoint analysis. The Preference Lab software was used to conduct this experiment and collect the data. Part-utility worths were then calculated to assess the relative importance of each of the six attributes. Finally, the conjoint utilities were then used to identify distinct cohorts of respondents using two-step cluster analysis. Results. The results of the 22 within-subjects or full factorial Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) revealed statistically significant main effects, as well as statistically significant interaction effects. Moreover, the CBM revealed that, in relation to the other four attributes (i.e. renumeration, work-life balance, career development and advancement and, performance management and recognition) CSR and employer branding were ranked as the third and fifth most important attributes, respectively. When identifying distinct cohorts of respondents, using cluster analysis, a 2-cluster and a 3-cluster solution was found. Findings. It was determined that when CSR is present there is an increase in organisational attractiveness and, when a desirable employer brand is present there is an increase in organisational attractiveness. Additionally, renumeration and work-life balance were ranked as relatively more important than CSR and, renumeration, work-life balance, CSR and, career development and advancement were ranked as relatively more important than employer branding. Contribution of the study. The present study hopefully contributes to a better understanding of the role of CSR and employer branding in talent attraction and so adds to the available literature in this field of study, as well as provides further theoretical perspectives on the importance of CSR in the field of reward- and talent-management. Practically, the insights gleaned from the data could be used by organisations to inform talent attraction strategies, practices and policies which may assist in attracting highly sought-after human capital and subsequently positively impact on organisational performance and sustainable organisational success. By better understanding the positive causal effect of CSR on employer brand perceptions and desirable organisational outcomes such as organisational attractiveness, this knowledge can be used to make a compelling business case for CSR. Augmenting the argument that CSR “..is the right thing to do” on the one hand, with evidence that CSR makes good business sense, makes for a compelling win-win argument for organisations to make greater social investments with obvious benefits for communities and society at large.

Purpose - This study aims at exploring how companies within the industrial sector in Dalarna tailor their employer brand strategy to improve in attracting and retaining competent workforce. Focusing on exploring employer brand strategies that companies in the industrial sector used to improve their attraction and retention of competent workforce and the challenges that companies face in attracting and retaining competent workforce. Methodology – This study adapted a qualitative design strategy and a multi-case study approach using four companies within the industrial sector in Dalarna as case companies. This study conducted four semi-structured interviews with respondents that are familiar with their company’s branding strategy as well as reviewing companies’ organizational materials from online websites. Findings – This study’s findings shows that the case companies use different strategies to tailor their employer brand to attract and retain competent workforce. Even though they are in different branches of the industry and of varying sizes they have one common challenge, the geographical location of their sites. Practical Implications – This study on attracting and retaining the right competence can add valuable insights to researchers especially within similar fields of study as well as companies operating in geographical locations similar to Dalarna County. Limitations – This study focuses on companies within the industrial sector in Dalarna, and due to a limited sample, the transferability of this study could not be ensured. Other limitations like language biases due to non-native speaking English could also be noticed.

In the face of intensifying competition for skilled talent across industries, organizations are increasingly recognizing the strategic imperative of employer branding to attract, engage, and retain top talent. This study aimed to elucidate optimal employer branding strategies and processes that enhance talent outcomes throughout the employee lifecycle. Through an exploratory comparative case study approach, semi-structured interviews were conducted with talent management professionals from renowned organizations in the automobile and consulting industries. The findings revealed that organizations employ diverse approaches to designing and implementing employer branding strategies, ranging from centralized and data-driven models to decentralized and business unit-driven approaches. However, a common theme emerged regarding the criticality of aligning the employer brand with the organization's culture, reputation, and employee value proposition (EVP) to resonate with target talent segments. Additionally, the study underscored the significance of ensuring alignment between employer branding promises and the actual employment experiences through strategies such as fostering an engaging organizational culture, crafting a compelling EVP, managing psychological contracts, and implementing continuous monitoring and feedback mechanisms. Furthermore, the research highlighted the importance of employing a multi-faceted approach to measuring and evaluating the effectiveness of employer branding initiatives, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods, while acknowledging the challenges associated with comprehensive tracking systems and infrequent external perception surveys. The influence of cross-cultural factors on the design, implementation, and perception of effective employer branding strategies was also explored, emphasizing the need for tailored approaches while maintaining brand coherence. The study confirmed the significant impact of employer branding on talent attraction and retention across both industries, including attracting competent talent, fostering brand awareness, and enhancing retention. Overall, this research contributes to advancing the theoretical and practical understanding of employer branding strategies and their implications for talent management outcomes, while acknowledging limitations and providing recommendations for organizations, practitioners, and future research endeavors.   Keywords: employer branding, talent attraction, retention, employee value proposition (EVP), organizational culture, cross-cultural factors, talent management.