Designing an Employee-Based Brand Equity (Human Resources) Model in the Hotel Industry of Iraq

This study was conducted with the aim of identifying and analyzing the dimensions and relationships influencing employee-based brand equity in the Iraqi hotel industry. The research adopted a mixed-methods, sequential design comprising qualitative and quantitative phases. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 experts, including senior managers, human resource specialists, and university faculty members, resulting in the extraction of 37 sub-concepts organized into seven main dimensions: internal organizational branding, brand citizenship behavior, employee satisfaction, organizational culture, employee-based brand equity, brand performance, and organizational performance. Data analysis was carried out using thematic analysis with MAXQDA software. In the quantitative phase, data obtained from 200 valid questionnaires were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results indicated that internal organizational branding had the strongest effect on organizational culture and employee-based brand equity, while employee satisfaction and organizational culture were the most powerful predictors of brand equity. Employee-based brand equity also exerted a direct and significant effect on brand performance and organizational performance. Model fit indices (GOF = 0.704, along with the R² and Q² values of the constructs) demonstrated the model’s high explanatory and predictive power. The findings emphasize the importance of investing in internal branding, strengthening organizational culture, and enhancing employee satisfaction and brand citizenship behavior to create brand equity, and they offer significant practical implications for human resource and brand management in Iraqi hotels. The study is subject to limitations such as geographical concentration and a specific sample, and future research is recommended to consider longitudinal and cross-national designs as well as the examination of mediating and moderating variables.