Organizational attractiveness: Targeting prospective employers on social networking sites

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

Many business organizations have integrated the use of professional social networking sites into their HR practices in order to communicate with and attract qualified candidates as part of their talent acquisition strategy.

OBJECTIVE:

The aim of this research is to explore some social and behavioral signals on social networking sites that enhance organizational attractiveness. Grounded in the signaling theory, this paper fills the research gap by investigating new types of signals on public professional social networking sites that can affect organizational attractiveness as an employer.

METHODS:

In this research, a quantitative research methodology was used. The sample consists of 288 job applicants using social networking sites in Canada.

RESULTS:

The results highlighted the importance of social and behavioral factors that play a significant role in enhancing organizational attractiveness on professional social networking sites.

CONCLUSIONS:

The results provide insights and practical suggestions for managers who decide to integrate social networking sites into their practices. Additionally, the findings of this research help the managers to better understand the factors that have an impact on job applicants’ choices of their future job and employer.

Keywords

Social networking information quality talent acquisition signaling theory organizational attractiveness

Benjamin Kakavand is a Professor of International Business at Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Canada. He holds a Ph.D. in Human Resource Management. Prior to joining Conestoga College, he was Assistant Professor of Human Resource Management at the University of Picardie Jules Verne in Amiens, France. His research interests include Human Resource Management, HR Analytics and workplace deviance.

Aria Teimourzadeh is an Assistant Professor of Information Systems and Business Analytics at the University of Western Ontario (Huron at Western), Canada. He holds a Ph.D. in Management Information Systems. Prior to joining Huron at Western, he was Assistant Professor of Information Systems in the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University, Canada. His main research interests include Management Information Systems, Big Data Analytics and the adoption of IT in education.

Samaneh Kakavand is a Professor of International Business at Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Canada. She holds a Ph.D. in Management Information Systems. Prior to joining Conestoga College, she was Assistant Professor of Management Information Systems at the University of Picardie Jules Verne in Amiens, France. Her research focuses on the adoption and appropriation of technology in higher education.

1 Introduction

In today’s world, online users generate a considerable amount of data on social networking sites (SNS) that tend to decrease the uncertainty to identify job seekers and potential employers. Simultaneously, the technological revolution has changed the way job applicants target the potential employers. Specifically, many job seekers on LinkedIn have the possibility to generate different contents related to their personal skills and qualifications. This feature allows the users to categorize themselves and enables prospective employers to seek relevant information about potential job seekers [1].

The increasing number of individuals on social networking sites and integration of these platforms into daily activities make resources like LinkedIn as an important recruitment-related information source at a relatively low cost. Since the emergence of LinkedIn as a professional social networking site, the number of members signed up on this platform has reached over 590 million worldwide [2]. High qualified candidates can now be reached by a single method of advertising which is better in terms of efficiency and cost-effectiveness [3]. LinkedIn is known as most used social networking site for recruitment that connects users with employers and fellow employees to exchange information, ideas, and opportunities. As indicated by recruitment experts, 60% of recruiters have successfully attracted a potential candidate through this platform [4].

Employees within the organizations use social networking sites for internal and external communication [5]. This phenomenon creates implications for how companies can benefit using these platforms and it raises concerns among employers to the extent that some employers consider social networking sites as a threat [6]. For instance, [7] argues that the use of social networking sites can have a positive impact, but they can also reduce the employees’ efficiency. Hence, HR managers should focus on the opportunities and transform them into a source of value creation for recruitment activities. Given the rapid globalization of online recruitment, an understanding of the factors which have a significant impact on the attractiveness of organization as an employer is crucial. Additionally, examining the generated data through social networking activities has gained high attention in order to achieve recruitment objectives.

Social networking sites as extensive personal networks enable users to seek the information of employers, employees and job openings [8]. Other than career websites which are directly managed by the organization, current employees share their experiences on independent websites. Normally, career websites publish contents about work conditions and the organization itself. Subsequently, the contents are used by current job seekers to better target the employers of their interest. In fact, there is a lack of empirical research on the importance of external sources of signals on social networking sites which can influence job applicant’s intentions. To date, many scholars and practitioners have concentrated on the technical features of social networking platforms in order to understand behavioral intentions for decision making [9 –11]. However, the social and behavioral factors that affect the choice of job seekers on independent social networking platforms have not been considered enough in previous research.

Given the expansion of online applicant pool, many prospective employers have decided to invest in relevant virtual platforms such as external social networking sites in order to enhance their online organizational attractiveness. The utilization of appropriate media or tool such as LinkedIn to share organizational information can develop positive image beliefs in the mind of job seekers [12]. Therefore, job applicants are able to extract information through independent websites where employees share the comments and opinions regarding their professional experiences. As job applicants increasingly rely on the information published on social networking sites, such platforms can have a big influence with the current and prospective employees [13]. While previous research works have primarily studied the impact of social networking sites on talent acquisition performance from an organizational perspective, there have not been many studies that highlight the social and behavioral factors that can affect job seekers’ choice on these virtual platforms. Although there are a few studies that analyze this subject from a job seeker’s perspective [14] but, the majority have focused mainly on the technical and visual aspect of the platforms rather than the human aspect. As a result, the role of online social activities and behavioral factors in shaping organizational attractiveness have been quite ignored.

This study tends to fill this gap by exploring social and behavioral factors that affect job seeker’s choice. This ultimately helps the companies to understand some part of the job seeking process followed by job applicants. Given the strategic importance of professional social networking sites as an important platform for identification of recruitment-related signals, it is important to identify various social sources of signals that contribute to organizational attractiveness as an employer. Thus, the aim of this study is to discover the role of new sources of signals generated on public social networking sites in order to reduce uncertainty in job applicants’ decisions. In this research, a review of literature has been conducted in order to better understand the role of social networking sites in boosting organizational attractiveness from job seekers’ perspective.

1.1 Literature review

Signaling Theory has been widely explained in the literature [16 –18]. According to Fiske and Taylor [19], one of the main emphasis of signaling is to increase informational signals or the salience of stimuli in the professional environment. The key elements of signaling theory include signalers, signals, and receivers [20]. Generally, the signaling process begins with the employers or individuals currently working in the organization who are also known as “signalers”. The first goal of signalers is to obtain private information about potential job applicants [16]. “Signals” are considered as the information assets that can be transmitted from one entity to another entity [20]. Once the information extraction process about individual characteristics is over, signalers decide on the amount of information that should be disclosed about the organization. Based on this theory, the organizations focus on the positive signals in order to decrease information asymmetry. This process will help them to positively affect the job applicant’s intention and reduce uncertainty in decision making. To complete the signaling process, the existence of a receiver of the signal is required. External job applicants are the receivers who possess limited signals regarding the organization, and they search for these signals as an input for their decisions [18]. The ultimate goal of the signals is to decrease the uncertainty of stakeholders such as employers and job applicants and support them in decision making process.

According to Spence [16], signaling theory is used in the field of HR to highlight the importance of signals that shape an employer’s attractiveness from a job seeker perspective. Particularly, this theory can be used in the recruitment situations where the available information is vague and incomplete. In this case, organizations need to shape their communication strategy in order persuade the potential job applicants and attract them towards the organization. In the extant literature, there are a few relevant studies on the application of signaling theory in the context of recruitment. For instance, signaling theory has been used to examine the impact of recruiter friendliness, verifiable job attributes and non-verifiable job attributes on attraction to the organization as a potential employer [21]. It is important to note that psychological dimensions are considered as strong predictors related to intentions to apply for a job [22]. As a matter of fact, job seekers’ subjective perception about the extensive use of social networking sites as a source of recruitment can influence the overall employer attractiveness [23]. From a technical point of view, research suggested that the perceived quality of the website as well as the perceived credibility of e-recruitment have an impact on organizational attractiveness [24]. Additionally, some recent studies have examined how different types of signals such as diversity, job information, job training and selection can affect the applicant’s choice or perceived fit [25, 26].

Despite the signals generated by the employers on the corporate website and the employer’s social media account, there are other sources that affect the signaling process effectiveness. In the field of management science, there have been limited studies that empirically focus on the behavioral and social signals on social networking sites. As online recruitment efforts continue to evolve and become important for strategic recruitment, it is crucial to study the significance of behavioral sources of signals generated on social networking sites that may affect the job applicant’s perception and choice. In this research, the proposed research model highlights the possible mechanism whereby social networking and social networking site attractiveness may influence organizational attractiveness through testing the mediating role of information quality on these relationships.

1.2 Organizational attractiveness

In the context of recruitment, employer branding is a term that is used to better describe the concept of organizational attractiveness [27]. For many firms, employer branding is considered as a long-term strategy for managing the reputation of an organization and promoting its identity. These strategies have an impact on the identity and culture of the organization and the purpose is to transform the workplace into a desirable environment for all employees. In other words, employer branding highlights the value proposition of an organization to employees in exchange for their experience, talents, contacts, or skills with the aim of demonstrating these values both internally and externally. Hence, it plays a key role in finding and retaining qualified employees. Organizational attractiveness refers to the degree to which an individual would personally seek a company and would recommend the company as an employer [28]. The concept of organizational attractiveness is also related to favorable beliefs of the organization and intentions to act towards the organization [29]. The more positive beliefs of people’s idea of the organization, the more likely they can be affected by these organizations and want to apply for job vacancies in there [30].

The concept of organizational attractiveness is a key factor to bring the qualified candidates toward an organization. As the majority of potential job seekers are looking for new opportunities in new virtual environments, one of the main challenges of HR department is to enhance organizational attractiveness as a potential employer in both online and offline environment [31]. Additionally, employer options for talent acquisition keep increasing and the companies focus more on the utilization of online tools to better attract high-qualified candidates toward the organization. Furthermore, the goal of social networking tools which have been adopted by human resource managers is to improve the performance of human resource practices [32]. Organizational attractiveness is influenced by usefulness and relevance of available information on the career websites [33]. The attraction of applicants depends on the relevance of available information on these websites. It means that the more information is relevant, the more job seekers are attracted toward the organization. In fact, the amount of information and specificity of provided information also affect the level of organizational attractiveness [34].

There are several factors that contribute to make an organization attractive for job seekers in an online social network. These factors include mutual trust [35], social identity [36], virtual word of mouth [37, 38], social media website attractiveness [39, 40], generalized norms [41], togetherness [42], etc. Following the research aim to understand how social networking activities and user-generated content are used in developing organizational attractiveness, we suggest studying social identity, social trust, virtual word of mouth, information quality and social network attractiveness in the context of organizational attractiveness.

1.3 Hypothesis development

The literature review section develops the argument for relationships specified in the research purpose.

1.4 Social Networking

Social networking is defined as the online interactions between users that helps them to connect to others [43]. It includes sharing information between individuals that provides enough value in order to maintain the relationship. According to Wirtz, Piehler [44], social networking is composed of several dimensions. These dimensions include social identity, social trust and virtual word of mouth.

Social identity is defined as “that part of an individual’s self-concept, which derives from his knowledge of his membership of a social group (or groups) together with the value and emotional significance attached to that membership” [44 –46]. The definition of social identity improved by categorizing its components into cognitive, affective, and evaluative which encourages behavior that reinforces identity maintenance. The traces left on social networking platforms have always played a role in the construction of identity in allowing oneself to think and to imagine the eyes of others (role of a photo album or preserved letters). However, they are now produced through user activities. By leaving traces in digital platforms, the individual multiplies the opportunities for self-actualization. The recruitment-related content generated on social networking sites tend to shape the identity of the organization in order to make the signals more effective in the eyes of job seekers. Therefore, social identity plays a key role in driving the intention of online users toward an organization [47, 48].

Trust is defined as “accepted vulnerability to another person’s lack of good will.” [49]. Online trust has been one of the key challenges for organizations to attract users through the internet. Online trust is defined as “a psychological state comprising the intention to accept vulnerability based on positive expectations of the intentions or behaviors of another” [50]. Initial trust in web vendors influences online behavior intentions as one of the important part of organizational attractiveness [51, 52]. It is important to note that trust as a social behavior is an important source of signal that allows job seekers to feel more secure in their decision to apply for a position.

Electronic Word of Mouth is defined as “any positive or negative statement made by potential, actual, or former customers about a product or company, which is made available to a multitude of people and institutions via the online platforms” [52]. In this research, we mainly refer to the positive word of mouth that can come from many different sources such as friends, family, job incumbents and university personnel through different social networks. Therefore, the characteristics of these sources are likely to influence organizational attractiveness [15]. In the context of online recruitment, word of mouth can be considered as a signal of an organization’s characteristics, such as its work environment, which is likely to influence attraction towards the organization as a potential employer [54].

Recent studies highlighted that social factors such as social presence and word of mouth play a vital role in improving organizational attractiveness though social media pages [55]. In addition to that, organizational personality and social identity can influence the recruitment outcomes [56]. We thus formulate the following hypothesis:

H1: Social Networking being a latent construct that consists of social identity, social trust and virtual word of mouth, affects organizational attractiveness positively.

1.5 Social network attractiveness

The concept of attractiveness is defined as positive attitude or orientation towards other social networking platforms. In fact, this concept is based on expectations of users and is also subject to social trends [57]. The attractiveness of recruitment websites was previously examined by focusing on several dimensions, such as content, colors, fonts and layouts. According to Cober, Brown [58], potential job seekers’ evaluations of characteristics such as color of two organizational websites had a positive relation with their willingness to recommend the recruiters to their network. There are other studies that explain regarding individual preference for job application that is based on the usability and attractiveness of career websites [59]. Therefore, we formulate the following hypothesis:

H2: Social Network attractiveness affects organizational attractiveness positively.

1.6 Information quality

In general, information quality can be defined as the accuracy, completeness, clarity, comprehensibility, usefulness, and reliability of information system data [60]. Another study that is relevant to the context of social networking sites defines information quality as “user perception of usefulness and quality of website content” [61]. Additionally, information quality is concerned as the fitness to use the provided information. On social networking platforms, information sharing and exchange of opinions require accurate, complete, and current information. In fact, perceived usefulness of users is improved by the presence of website that provide high quality information [62].

The quality of information allows decision makers to use data in a more efficient way [63]. Additionally, there is a significant effect between perceived usefulness of social networking platform and information quality [64]. Thus, accurate, informative and current information will be more considered by the job applicants on social networking sites [65]. Communication features explain the most variance in individuals’ organization-directed attitudes and job pursuit intentions [66]. Communication features are considered as one of the important parts of social networking. Consequently, social networking activities contribute to the quality of information which in result influences the intentions of individuals to apply for jobs. Thus, we formulate the following hypothesis:

H3: Information quality mediates the positive effect of social networking on organizational attractiveness.

This study proposes an interaction-based model of social networking platforms in the context of e-recruitment that explores three main hypotheses.

Fig. 1

Proposed research model.

2 Methodology

2.1 Procedure and sample

In this research, a self-administrated electronic questionnaire was sent to 685 professional social network users (LinkedIn, Viadeo etc). Subjects were thoroughly briefed and re-assured about confidentiality issues. Specifically, that questionnaires and results were the sole property of independent researchers, with no obligations. The final sample was 288, a return rate of 42.2%. Majority of respondents (53%) are female. The respondents’ age ranged from 20 to 61 years, with a mean age of 30 (SD = 8.9). Participants were selected on each social networking site and the responses were filtered based on their activities such as frequency of use, content creation activity, comments as well as interactions with other users. It is worth noting that the participants were chosen randomly, however, the first couple of questions in our survey asked about the participant’s experience using social networking sites such as LinkedIn. For instance, there are individuals who have created a profile on LinkedIn, but they do not use the platform for job seeking purposes. To collect appropriate and relevant responses, we decided to filter the responses from randomly selected individuals who target prospective employers using professional social networking sites.

The final sample covered a range of employment situation, including employed (56%), unemployed (1%) and students (43%). Most of the participants (93%) have more than 1 year of experience using professional social networking sites (31% more than 1 year, 35% more than 2 years, 27% more than 4 years and 7% less than 6 month experiences). Individuals by different using frequency of social networking sites participated in this survey, 52% of individuals more than 2 times, 18% more than 3 times, 10% more than 6 times and 20% more than 10 times used social networking sites during the past 6 months.

As Self-report data collected from one source at one point in time, Common-method variance (CMV) bias may be a concern [67]. To fend-off this potential bias, we have controlled results in both procedural and statistical ways [68]. Depending on the variable studied, this research simultaneously adopted a 5 point Likert scale and a 7 point Likert scale in the measures in order to reduce method biases [68]. This method helps to reduce method biases caused by commonalities in scale endpoints and anchor effects. Second, we counterbalanced the order of questions to make CMV less likely [69]. Third, post-hoc statistical Harman’s single factor test yielded a 27% variance of first factor of unrotated principal component factor analysis, well below the 50% -cap defined by the literature [70].

2.2 Measures

Social networking scale adopted by Wirtz, Piehler [44]. This scale consists of three dimensions (social identity, social trust and virtual word of mouth) and fifteen items. Measurement is using seven-point scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The alpha for this scale is 0.89.

Additionally, the creator of this scale [44] adopted each dimension of this scale from different studies. The scale of social identity (first dimension) concerns the perceived membership or one’s conception of self in terms of the relationship to another person or group on social networking sites. This scale is created by Bagozzi and Lee [71]. It consists of six items. Sample items are “I behave like a typical social media user” and “when the social media community succeeds, then I succeed as well”.

Social trust of individuals with 3 items as the second dimension refers to the image that is built between the users of social networking sites, this scale was originally created by Mathwick, Wiertz [72]. Sample items include “the more a social media user publishes or contributes to a project (e.g. LinkedIn), the more trustworthy he is” and “a strong willingness to become active for the community on social media makes the user trustworthy”.

Virtual word of mouth (third dimension) with six items concerns the perceived relevance of social networking information for transferring between different parties via electronic means (e.g. social networking sites). This scale developed by Riegner [73]. Sample items are “social media allows to make the right decisions by relying on user comments” and “social media allows to solve problems regarding job seekers faster through the experiences of others”.

Organizational attractiveness refers to individuals’ affective and attitudinal thoughts about some organizations as potential places to work with [75]. This variable is measured by using fifteen items scale developed by Highhouse, Lievens [75] ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Sample items are “I am very interested in pursuing my application with this company if offered one” or “I would be very willing to accept a job with this company if offered one”. The alpha for this scale is 0.88.

Social network attractiveness scale is referred to “perceived individual preference to use social media offers”. This comprised a four-item measure of Sutcliffe [39] on a seven-point scale from1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The respondents were asked about the perception related to the interaction possibilities and capabilities offered to the users by the websites. Sample items are “I find websites (LinkedIn) that allow users to interact with each other or with the companies that provide the service very attractive” and “I find websites that allow users to connect with other users or companies in the form of networks very attractive”. The alpha for this scale is 0.93.

Information quality scale is related to the usefulness of information about the company [76]. The 4 items for information quality mainly related to accuracy, objectivity, understandability and timeliness, which are adapted from the measurement scale of Kahn, Strong [76]. They are ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Sample items are” In general, the information on Social networking site (e.i LinkedIn) was accurate” and “In general, the information on Social networking site was easy to understand”. The Alpha of this scale is 0.73.

3 Results

3.1 Preliminary statistics

Means, reliability, and correlation coefficients are presented in Table 1. Cronbach’s alphas validate the internal reliability of all measurement scales, all scales show acceptable levels of internal reliability. Significant correlations include organizational attractiveness with social networking (0.41), social network attractiveness (0.33) and information quality (0.39).

Table 1
Descriptive statistics and correlations

Variables Mean SD 1 2 3 4

Age 29.5 8.88

Gender 0.47 0.50

1. Social networking 4.48 0.85 (0.89)

2. Organizational attractiveness 3.36 0.56 0.414^ (0.88)

3. SN attractiveness 5.43 1.04 0.518^ 0.331^ (0.93)

4. Information quality 4.36 1.14 0.591^ 0.399^ 0.549^ (0.73)

Variables	Mean	SD	1	2	3	4
Age	29.5	8.88
Gender	0.47	0.50
1. Social networking	4.48	0.85	(0.89)
2. Organizational attractiveness	3.36	0.56	0.414^**	(0.88)
3. SN attractiveness	5.43	1.04	0.518^**	0.331^**	(0.93)
4. Information quality	4.36	1.14	0.591^**	0.399^**	0.549^**	(0.73)

3.2 Hypotheses testing

We conducted confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to test the measurement model. Reliability and validity of study constructs were tested using Analysis of Moment Structures, on AMOS 21 [77]. AMOS Structural Estimates for Proposed Structural Equation Model (Maximum Likelihood), Factor Loadings, and Relationship Coefficients of Proposed Structural Equation, all show statistically significant relationships for each variable with respect to latent construct (Table 2). Maximum likelihood method was adapted for estimation. The Goodness of fit Statistics of Proposed Structural Equation Model are as follow; Chi square/df (df = 239, χ² = 448,60), Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA = 0.065), Goodness of fit Index (GFI = 0.91), Adjust Goodness of fit Index (AGFI = 0.90) and Comparative Fit Index (CFI = 0.91). The relatively high level of the Goodness of fit Statistics Indices indicates that relationships among variables are statistically significant. Composite reliability values were also calculated that showed good reliability coefficients of between 0.70 and 0.90 [78].

Table 2
Model fit and standardized hierarchical regression results with organizational attractiveness

Model df χ² GFI AGFI CFI RMSEA β CR SE

Measurement model 236 443.27 0.90 0.89 0.90 0.055

Structural model 239 448.60 0.91 0.90 0.91 0.065

R² = 0.24

Regression results with organizational attractiveness

H1 social networking 0.340^*** 3.22 0.07

H2 social network attractiveness 0.195^* 2.13 0.03

Model	df	χ²	GFI	AGFI	CFI	RMSEA	β	CR	SE
Measurement model	236	443.27	0.90	0.89	0.90	0.055
Structural model	239	448.60	0.91	0.90	0.91	0.065
R² = 0.24
Regression results with organizational attractiveness
H1 social networking							0.340^***	3.22	0.07
H2 social network attractiveness							0.195^*	2.13	0.03

Table 2 presents results for Hypotheses 1 to 2. Two nested models were examined. First model illustrates direct effects of social networking and social network attractiveness on organizational attractiveness. Supporting hypotheses 1 and 2, both social networking and social network attractiveness relate positively to organizational attractiveness, as indicated by their respective standardized regression coefficient (ß=0.340, p < 0.001, for social networking; ß=0.195, p < 0.05, for social network attractiveness).

Table 3 presents result of Hypothesis 3 that predicted the mediating effect of information quality in the relationship between social networking and organizational attractiveness. Second model tests the mediation using bootstrapping procedure that validates Hypothesis 3. Specifically, and with regard to social networking, there is a significant effect to information quality (0.660, p = 0.001). Similarly, results show a significant direct effect of information quality to organizational attractiveness (0.493, p = 0.001). Results, however, indicate partial mediations, as social networking paths to organizational attractiveness remain significant. Specifically, partial mediation is suggested because social networking impacts directly on organizational attractiveness while also social networking also impacts on organizational attractiveness through information quality.

Table 3

Mediation results for organizational attractiveness

Variables	Information quality			Organizational attractiveness
	β	CR	SE	β	CR	SE
Social networking	0.660^***	5.577	0.155	–	–	–
Information quality	–	–	–	0.493^***	6.160	0.039
Model R2
Information quality	0.62
Organizational attractiveness	0.24
Bootstrap BC (95%)		SIE	SE	LB	UB	P
Social networking		0.325	0.78	0.215	0.475	001

^*p < 0.05; ^**p < 0.01; ^***p < 0.001.

Further analysis runs bootstrapping in order to confirm the mediation effect of information quality. According to [79], bootstrap analysis is “particularly useful in studying indirect effects in mediation models” (p. 440). [80] strongly recommend bootstrapping for mediation analysis as it provides the most powerful and reasonable method of obtaining confidence limits for specific indirect effects under most conditions. Based on results in Table 3, it is found that the Standardized Indirect Effects (SIE) value for social networking [(0.32, p = 0.001) with confidence internal CL 95% (0.21,0.47)] is between Lower Bounds (LB) and Upper Bounds (UB), with significant p values inferior to 0.05. This confirms a significant mediating effect of information quality between social networking and organizational attractiveness. Results, however, suggest mediation of information quality between social networking paths to organizational attractiveness remain significant.

4 Discussion

The statistical results of this study highlight that social networking and social network website attractiveness are positively related to organizational attractiveness as a potential employer. Additionally, we examined an integrated mediation model highlighting that information quality positively mediates the effect between social networking and organizational attractiveness.

The evidence suggests that social networking activities on social networking sites influence positively online behavior intentions for employment. In other words, the user-generated signals outside the organizational boundaries can ultimately enhance organizational attractiveness as a potential employer. In other words, the more the signals are observable and adequate, the better the organizational attractiveness will be.

This study has highlighted that social identity, social trust and virtual word of mouth as the three dimensions of social networking are the results of user activities on social networking platforms that leads to organizational attractiveness enhancement. Social trust as the first dimension of social networking influences positively online behavior intentions to pursue job offers. A lack of trust is likely to discourage online users from participating in an online interaction between job seekers and potential employers. While members of a social community have confidence in each other, their willingness to engage in corporative activities will increase [81 –83]. Thus, organizations by creating useful contents on social media can motivate and attract more users including internal and external to interact with each other virtually. Consequently, more interactions help to exchange more credible information which will lead to creation of trust among the members who have the same group interest.

Social identity as the second dimension of social networking focuses on the importance of socializing among users. Actually, social networking connects individuals who did not previously know each other. Social networking enhances identity over the whole community and improves reciprocity as well as norms among communities [71]. This study highlights that users identify themselves in relation to other users based on their characteristics and common skills [84]. Therefore, organizations are becoming more attractive for job seekers when the individuals have the possibility to find common interests and characteristics with the prospective employers.

Virtual word of mouth as the third dimension of social networking represents the comments or opinions as resources that are accessible by all the potential job seekers. As job options continue to increase and the competition is fierce, positive virtual word of mouth help job seekers to take a better decision for choosing their future employers. Basically, virtual word of mouth has higher influential ability by providing a better accessibility to the information compared to the offline word of mouth [38, 85]. However, in certain situations, virtual word of mouth is considered as more personal. Thus, it might not provide the relevant information for the users that are interested in a particular field [86].

This study shows the reliable source of information will affect organizational attractiveness from a job seeker’s perspective. In fact, job seekers begin to assess the organizations’ image before they start to interact with the targeted organizations on virtual platforms. Generally, employee testimonials or word of mouth as an independent reliable source of information motivates job seekers to interact with organizations virtually. Therefore, organizations by supporting their own members to create content including images, videos, articles etc. on social media about their own workplace will be able to provide employee testimonials as an independent source. Consequently, it will lead to improve or modify the image perceptions about the organization in order to attract more talented employees.

Concerning e-commerce websites, the users sometimes make their decision based on the physical appearance of the website including pictures and descriptions of products that are published on the website [87]. In the context of online recruitment, the relevant content and physical appearance both make the website more attractive. This study recommends that managers need to focus more on website design and functionality related to the presentation and accessibility of job offers in order to attract talented job seekers.

According to the findings of this research, there is a significant mediating effect of information quality in the relationship of social networking and organizational attractiveness. Most of the users on professional social networking sites (i.e. LinkedIn) contribute to content creation about professional issues or job offers. The lack of accessibility to high quality contents is often an issue for many users because the decisions of job seekers are based on the accuracy and completeness of the social networking sites’ content. In other words, providing the sufficient and relevant information on these platforms will allow job seekers to obtain detailed information about their future employer. This information could be about company’s culture, available jobs, the current and previous experiences of employees in the targeted organizations of job seekers.

As the content about the workplace as well as other updates increase on professional social networking sites, potential job seekers will have access to detailed information about the organizations’ activity. The access to credible and high quality content of social networking sites for job seekers and organizations leads to a faster and appropriate decision making for both of them [12]. Thus, the credible, relevant and accurate information on virtual platforms will increase the chances of pursuing job offers by talented individuals on social networking sites [12]. This study shows that an increase information quality will lead to the organizational attractiveness. Managers by supporting and motivating employees to share their non-confidential information related to workplace environment with external individuals on social networking sites, can increase interactions among users. As a result, due to the enhancement of user’s interactions through exchanging their opinions and comments on social networking sites, organizational information will be more accurate and relevant to talented job seeker needs.

4.1 Theoretical implications

Given the evolution and popularity of online recruitment in many organizations, this research shed light on the application of signaling theory in the context of online recruitment through social networking sites. A complementary purpose of this study was to better understand the application of signaling theory in understanding the job applicant’s intentions towards the potential employers. Grounded in signaling theory, this study validates a research model that considers some social and behavioral factors as a major portion of the variation in organizational attractiveness from a job seeker’s perspective in the context of online recruitment.

In extant research, the concept of organizational attractiveness has been widely discussed from social identity theory [88] and social capital theory [82 , 89–93], but there are a few studies that focused on the application of signaling theory in the context of strategic recruitment through online platforms. Most studies have primarily focused on corporate websites on which the information is fully controlled by the organization. As such, another contribution of this research encompasses extending the recruitment literature by highlighting the importance of social and behavioral signals as predictors of organizational attractiveness on social networking sites. Therefore, this research fills the gap by building a research model that explains the variations in the organizational attractiveness by taking into account some external sources of signals that contributes to HR talent acquisition goals.

In management and organizational studies, signaling theory is used to explain how informational signals and their adequacy can generate a positive outcome for the organization [16]. In this study, we have presented organizational attractiveness as the positive job outcome for online recruitment activities which contributes to HR talent acquisition practices. This research has highlighted several social and behavioral factors such as social identity, positive electronic word of mouth, trust and social network attractiveness that can be considered as new types of signals. The aim of these signals is to improve employer’s reputation and increase its performance in the context of online recruitment. Based on signaling theory, the uncertainty and information asymmetry can be reduced with the availability and adequacy of information to generate positive outcomes for a firm [16]. Therefore, this research emphasizes that information quality can be considered as an important factor to reduce uncertainty that leads to generating positive outcomes for a firm. In addition to social and behavioral factors, information quality can play a significant role in boosting the performance of a firm.

4.2 Practical implications

In this paper, we contribute to the understanding of online social and behavioral factors in the context of HR practices. Despite the popularity of social networking sites for recruitment purposes, many small and medium size firms still face challenges for the integration of such platform in their talent acquisition strategies. In fact, many firms appear to still be facing a learning stage in terms of the potential benefits of integrating such platforms in hiring practices.

This research suggests several lessons for HR managers and talent acquisition specialists in various organizational environments. Despite the self-learning algorithms on social networking sites, HR managers should understand the importance of social and behavioral signals that can enhance hiring performance. Therefore, this can guide the HR department in framing online social activities that can provide a better idea about the organization’s environment.

Second, these results have direct implications for other organizational environments that provide corporate training to their employees about content creation on professional social networking sites. In other words, the main contribution of this paper is related to the importance of information quality produced by the influencers or the current employees which can lead the potential candidates towards the organization. Additionally, both risks and advantages of content creation by the current employees should be analyzed.

Third, it is worth noting that job seekers are looking for detailed information about their future workplace and activities. HR managers should decide to what type of information and to which extent the information should be disclosed. The purpose is to protect the sensitive internal information and the privacy of the current members of the organization. Sometimes, employees of an organization post company-related content on social networking sites. For many job seekers, such content can be of considered as unbiased information of firm attractiveness. Hence, content creation mechanism are crucial elements of many HR managers’ activities.

Finally, it is important to highlight that previous research mainly focused on the organizations’ criteria for attracting talents, this research emphasizes on the important factors that help job seekers to better target their potential employers and thus, this paper analyzes the situation from job seekers’ perspective.

4.3 Research limits and perspectives

The first limitation of this research is related to the lack of consideration in multicultural aspect of participants. In order to better understand the role and impact of culture in shaping the organizational attractiveness, a complementary research has to study the cultural impact of each nation on the behavior of individuals on social networking platforms for job seeking purposes.

The second limitation is related to the number of participants who are actively looking for jobs on social networking sites. Many individuals have already created user accounts on these platforms, but we cannot be confident if all users’ activities are completely related to job seeking purposes. Future research has to focus on the candidates who have more experience of using these platforms with the purpose of finding a job.

The third limitation is related to the internet access. Actually, Internet penetration rate in North America by geographic region is at 94.6% which is the highest compared to other continents. This research mainly focuses on North American hiring practices which are carried out online, then the finding of this research is not applicable to the countries in which internet access is limited.

5 Conclusion

The purpose of the present research was to contribute to a better understanding of social networking platforms in order to improve organizational attractiveness. To answer the main research question, this paper has identified a few sources of signals such as social identity social trust and positive virtual word of mouth that can enhance organizational attractiveness as an employer. This work examines how social networking activities influences the choices of job seeker’s for selecting their future employer on virtual platforms. In other words, this study shows the positive impact of certain social and behavioral factors such as social networking (social identity, social trust and virtual word of mouth) and website attractiveness in shaping organizational attractiveness. Furthermore, this study has highlighted the mediation effect of information quality between social networking and organizational attractiveness.

This research explores that individuals engage in social networking sites for professional purposes and the goal is to find the appropriate jobs based on their motivations and the accessible resources. As the number of users and contents on these platforms are increasing, the strategy to target the right organization has become a challenge for talented job applicants. Additionally, this research proposed to view organizational attractiveness as an outcome of social interactions. The quality of created contents through the social interactions plays a vital role to target the published job offers of organizations on social networking sites. Therefore, an increase in an organizational attractiveness on social networking site will lead to the acquisition of suitable job applicants.

Footnotes

Acknowledgments

The authors have no acknowledgments.

Author contributions

CONCEPTION: Benjamin Kakavand and Aria Teimourzadeh

METHODOLOGY: Aria Teimourzadeh and Sama-neh Kakavand

DATA COLLECTION: Aria Teimourzadeh

INTERPRETATION OR ANALYSIS OF DATA: Benjamin Kakavand and Aria Teimourzadeh

PREPARATION OF THE MANUSCRIPT: Samaneh Kakavand and Aria Teimourzadeh

REVISION FOR IMPORTANT INTELLECTUAL CONTENT: Samaneh Kakavand and Benjamin Kakavand

SUPERVISION: Benjamin Kakavand and Aria Teimourzadeh

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