Brands and HR
Niraj Dawar
March 9, 2007
Page 2
The Many Functions of HR…
• Administration Strategic Planning, organizational evaluation, policy
recommendations, Staff Benefit, retirement benefits, vacation, sick leave, paid
holidays, section 125 plan, donor program, educational incentive, uniform allowance, and
others.CompensationSalary and benefit surveys, Job evaluation, job
descriptions.Employee relations Disciplinary processes, incident investigations,
complaint/grievance procedures, labor-management relations.Employee services
Enrollment in benefits, employee discounts for recreational spots, resolution of problems,
employee newsletter, educational assistance, employee service awards.Fiscal Staffing
budgets, departmental budget, accounts payable, insurance receivables, insurance fund
management, total package costing.Health and safety Employee assistance,
Compensation, compliance, safety compliance and training.Labor relations
Contract administration, collective bargaining, grievances.Leaves of absence, Family and
Medical Leave rights, duty assignments. Payroll administration Performance appraisal
evaluation systems, Training and talent development,.Record-keeping,
litigation,.Recruitment, Job posting, advertising, testing administration, employment
interviews, background investigations, post-offer employment testing. Separations and
terminations, severance benefits, unemployment compensation, exit interviews,
Organization Design, Team and Project Management,
Copyright© 2007
Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 3
The Role of HR…
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 4
Underlying Issue…
FIT?
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 5
The Time, Effort, Resource Sinks
• Exception management
• The right candidate for the job
• Current employees that do not fit
• Unmotivated individuals
• Dysfunctional teams
• …
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 6
Markets are fraught with ‘fit’ risk
In markets characterized by:
• Many Buyers
• Many Sellers
• Imperfect information
– Fit will always be a challenge
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 7
Marketing’s Take on the issue
In one-to-many markets, the role of BRANDS is
to facilitate FIT
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 8
Brands
• What is a brand?
• What does it do?
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 9
Brands
Are an efficient way to:
• Reduce risk
• Reduce search effort
• Result in buyers and sellers finding each
other
• Result in a match at low cost
• Minimize problems of lack of ‘fit’
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Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 10
The role of Brands in HR…
Copyright© 2007
Richard Ivey School of Business
Page 11
Further Reading…
• Dawar, Niraj, and
Charles Boulakia
(1999), “Brands as
Mental Real Estate,”
Ivey Business Journal,
Vol. 64 (1), September-
October, 71-75.
• Dawar, Niraj (2004),
“What Are Brands Good
For?,” M.I.T. Sloan
Management Review,
Fall.Vol 36(1), 31-37
Copyright© 2007
Richard Ivey School of Business
