ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 1 Running Head: ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY Assessment of brand values delivery by employees to customers: an internal perspective. A qualitative case study on the example of Norwegian Coastal Express “Hurtigruten ASA” Master’s Thesis by Lilia K. Murtazina International Hotel and Tourism Leadership Master of Science Program University of Stavanger July, 2012 ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 2 FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, NORWEGIAN SCHOOL OF HOTEL MANAGEMENT MASTER’S THESIS STUDY PROGRAM: THESIS IS WRITTEN IN THE FOLLOWING SPECIALIZATION/SUBJECT: Master in International Hotel and Tourism Leadership Internal Branding IS THE ASSIGNMENT CONFIDENTIAL? Yes TITLE: Assessment of brand values delivery by employees to customers: an internal perspective. A qualitative case study on the example of Norwegian Coastal Express “Hurtigruten ASA”. AUTHOR: ADVISOR: Student number: Name: Judi Brownell, Ph.D. 206023………… Lilia K. Murtazina.………………… ……………………………. ………………… …………………………………….. Tone Therese Linge, Dr. Philol Candidate……… ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT OF 2 BOUND COPIES OF THESIS Stavanger, ……/…… 2012 Signature administration:…………………………… ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 3 Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor during the initial stages in the development of this study, Prof. Judi Brownell from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. I am very thankful for her time, assistance and unending patience. Special thanks for allowing me to try and go my own way with the project. I owe my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Philol. Candidate Tone Therese Linge from the University of Stavanger for giving me valuable feedback and guidance. This research would not have been possible without her help in taking contact with Communication and PR Department of Hurtigruten ASA and inviting this organization to take part in the present study. I would also like to thank the Management team of Hurtigruten ASA for providing me with extraordinary opportunities for accessing key respondents and extensive support, while I was conducting this study. I would like to especially thank all Representatives of Management of on-land based organization for taking the time to participate in interviews and do proof-reading of interview transcripts. I am very grateful to all employees of sea-based part of organization for meeting with me in Bergen or talking to me over the phone, so that I could conduct interviews. Finally, I am grateful to my husband and parents for their support and confidence in me. ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 4 Abstract This research paper explores an internal perspective on employee awareness of company’s brand values and attempts to establish how employees that have direct customer contact deliver on these brand values to customers. A case study research strategy was applied to collect and analyze qualitative data. This research was conducted with participation of Norwegian Coastal Express Hurtigruten ASA. Participants of the study included Representatives of Management of on-land organization responsible for marketing and sales, product development, hotel operations, and internal branding as well as employees of sea-based organization taking different positions. The study was aimed at assessing employees’ awareness of their company’s brand values and exploring its reflection in the employees’ delivery of company’s brand promise to customers. ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 5 Table of contents Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 8 The importance of the study ........................................................................................................ 8 The research study ....................................................................................................................... 9 Research background and motivation ....................................................................................... 11 Literature review ........................................................................................................................... 12 The construct of brand............................................................................................................... 12 The concept of brand values...................................................................................................... 16 The customer perspective on brand values ............................................................................ 16 The organizational perspective on brand values .................................................................... 17 Building the brand ..................................................................................................................... 19 Core values as a link between the internal and external brand components ......................... 19 The role of corporate culture in brand creation ..................................................................... 21 Informing employees about the brand promise ......................................................................... 23 Definition of internal branding .............................................................................................. 23 The main stages and mechanisms in internal branding ......................................................... 24 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................. 26 Methods......................................................................................................................................... 27 Research design ......................................................................................................................... 27 Sample ....................................................................................................................................... 31 Data collection........................................................................................................................... 32 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................ 43 Results ........................................................................................................................................... 47 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 95 Employees’ awareness of brand................................................................................................. 95 Defining the concept of brand................................................................................................... 95 Employee perspective on the company’s brand........................................................................ 96 Employees’ perspective on Hurtigruten’s vision ...................................................................... 98 Employees’ perspective on Hurtigruten’s core values ............................................................ 100 Employee perspective on internal branding practices ........................................................... 103 Channels of internal branding ................................................................................................. 104 ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 6 Delivery of brand values embedded in the brand promise“Real experiences in unique waters”… .................................................................................................................................... 105 Limitations .............................................................................................................................. 106 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................. 107 References ................................................................................................................................... 108 Appendices .................................................................................................................................. 118 Appendix A.......................................................................................................................... 118 Appendix B .......................................................................................................................... 119 Appendix C .......................................................................................................................... 120 Appendix D.......................................................................................................................... 122 Appendix E .......................................................................................................................... 124 Appendix F .......................................................................................................................... 125 Appendix J ........................................................................................................................... 170 ASSESSMENT OF BRAND DELIVERY 7 List of Tables and Figures Table 1: Gender frequency…………………………………………………………………….…51 Table 2: Nationality frequency…………………………………………………………………..52 Table 3: Frequency of years employed at the organization…………………………………...…53 Table 4: Frequency of current positions…………………………………………………………55 Table 5: Categories and sub-categories derived from