Does Internal Brand Management really drive Brand Commitment in Shared-Service Call Centers?

TLDR: In this paper, the authors present a holistic model for the analysis of brand commitment in shared-service call centers as a central tool of internal brand management and show that the majority of brand levers create a brandoriented atmosphere through a more human and social brand-oriented communication by managers of a client's brand and the shared service call centers.

Abstract: It is widely acknowledged that brand commitment of employees, which is defined as the extent of employee's psychological attachment to a brand, is an important factor for the effectiveness of brand management. However, while shared-service call centers are increasingly involved in the process of brand building, little is known about internal brand management within call centers. This is surprising because shared-service call center agents often deal with multiple brands, and the working environment is emotionally stressful. Furthermore, the influence of the representatives of a client's brand on the internal brand management in shared-service call centers is limited. This raises the question of whether and how shared-service call center agents can develop a brand commitment (BC) under such conditions. This article presents the conceptualization and testing of a holistic model for the analysis of BC in shared-service call centers as a central tool of internal brand management. The model provides a quantitative assessment of internal brand management within call centers working for a German media company. An empirical analysis reveals that levers in the field of brand-oriented communication significantly influence BC. They are more important than empowerment and promotional prospects. The majority of brand levers create a brand-oriented atmosphere through a more ‘human and social’ brand-oriented communication by managers of a client's brand and the shared-service call centers. This suggests that internal brand management in shared-service call centers does not always mean higher costs.