Background:

Social media has been a potent tool for recruiting, branding, and communication with the introduction of digital technology, which has completely changed how businesses engage with their stakeholders. Once largely concerned with student involvement and academic achievement, higher education institutions (HEIs) are now using social media tactics to improve their employer brands and draw in top-notch academics, researchers, and administrative personnel. HEIs have a unique opportunity to showcase their institutional culture, communicate with prospective workers, and portray their values through platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X. Employer branding via social media has emerged as a strategic imperative for establishing exposure, reputation, and long-term sustainability in today's cutthroat academic environment.

Problem Statement:

Social media has enormous potential for attracting people and building employer brands, but its strategic use in higher education is still restricted and dispersed. Many HEIs either don't use these channels enough or don't match their digital strategy to more general branding and recruitment objectives. This makes it difficult to draw in and keep highly skilled workers by separating the institution's reputation as an employer from its academic standing. Thus, the main challenge is figuring out how HEIs may use social media tactics to improve talent acquisition and impact employer branding in the digital age.

Research Objective:

The primary goals of this study are:

1. To investigate how social media tactics affect employer branding in postsecondary educational establishments
   To examine how social media helps draw in and keep administrative and academic talent.
   To determine the potential and difficulties HEIs have when using social media into their hiring procedures.         
   To provide practical methods for maximizing talent acquisition and employer branding on social media in the digital age

Research Questions:

The following research questions are the focus of this investigation:     
1. What effects do social media tactics have on employer branding in universities?           
2. How do these tactics support the recruitment and retention of talent?
3. What opportunities and problems result from HEIs using social media for hiring?        
4. In the digital era, how can universities use their social media tactics to improve their employer branding?            

Significance of Study:

This study is important because it adds to the expanding fields of employer branding and digital recruiting, especially in the higher education industry. This study provides insightful information for administrators, legislators, and human resources experts by examining how social media tactics impact talent acquisition and institutional identity. In an increasingly digitized and globalized world, the results should help HEIs strengthen their competitive edge, encourage employee engagement, and guarantee sustainable growth. Additionally, the study fills a research gap in the field of higher education, where the relationship between social media, branding, and recruiting has received little attention.

Structure of paper:

There are five sections in this study. A overview of the literature on social media tactics, employer branding, and luring talent to universities is given in the first section. The research methodology, including design, sample, and data collection techniques, is described in the second part. The study's findings and analysis are shown in the third part. Key implications and problems are highlighted when the findings are discussed in connection to the body of current research in the fourth part. The work is finally concluded in the fifth part, which offers policy implications, practice recommendations, and future research prospects.

With a number of theories offering the groundwork for comprehending this relationship, the expanding corpus of research emphasizes the growing significance of social media as a tool for employer branding and talent acquisition. Higher education institutions (HEIs) can position themselves as employers of choice by strategically communicating their values, culture, and career opportunities. This goes beyond academic rankings to include research culture, inclusivity, diversity, and employee development opportunities, according to the Employer Branding Theory (Backhaus & Tikoo, 2004). According to the Social Exchange Theory (Blau, 1964), potential workers assess organizations according to perceived reciprocity and rewards, which may be successfully conveyed via social media platforms that encourage two-way interaction. Similarly, social media serves as a signaling mechanism wherein institutional postings, campaigns, and employee experiences project credibility, culture, and quality, so influencing applicants' decisions, according to Spence's (1973) Signaling Theory. Previous research also identifies Social Media Recruitment Models that emphasize openness, genuineness, and communication. Sivertzen et al. (2013) show that companies become more appealing to employers when they have active and reliable online profiles, and Ambler and Barrow (1996) emphasize the significance of promoting the Employee Value Proposition (EVP) through online interaction. Scholars like Ghosh (2019) observe that while colleges are increasingly embracing social media to recruit students and establish their reputations, little is known about how these platforms may be used to draw in and keep academic and administrative talent. Despite these revelations, a number of gaps remain: the majority of research focuses on corporate settings rather than higher education; few studies examine developing nations like India, where digital adoption is increasing; and few examine employer branding for faculty hiring rather than student enrollment. Furthermore, there are few useful frameworks available for HEIs to assess how well social media tactics draw in talent. In order to fill in these gaps, this study suggests a conceptual framework that integrates Employer Branding Theory, Social Exchange Theory, and Signaling Theory. Candidate demographics and digital literacy serve as moderating variables that influence how potential employees interpret and react to social media messages, while social media strategies (independent variable) like content marketing, engagement, transparency, and EVP communication positively influence employer branding (mediating variable), which in turn enhances talent attraction (dependent variable) in HEIs.

Research Design:

At order to examine the impact of social media tactics on employer branding and talent acquisition at higher education institutions (HEIs), this study uses a descriptive and exploratory research approach. While the exploratory component aids in identifying new practices and difficulties unique to the higher education industry in the digital age, the descriptive design makes it possible to identify trends and connections between social media use and employer branding results. To guarantee a thorough grasp of the phenomena, a mixed-methods approach integrating both quantitative and qualitative data is used.

Data Collection Methods:

There will be two main approaches used to acquire data:

1. Survey Questionnaires: To collect quantitative data on opinions on employer branding, social media involvement, and recruiting procedures, structured questionnaires will be sent to professors, administrative staff, and HR/recruitment officials in HEIs.

2. Interviews/Focus Groups: HR managers and academic leaders will participate in semi-structured interviews to get qualitative insights into the tactics, difficulties, and best practices of using social media to recruit talent and build employer brands. To support main findings, secondary data from official social media pages, recruiting portals, and institutional websites will also be examined.

Sample and Population:

Faculty, administrative staff, and human resources workers from higher education institutions in comprise the study population. In order to guarantee representation from various HEI types (public, private, and deemed institutions), a stratified random selection approach will be employed. In order to ensure both breadth and depth of viewpoints, the goal sample size is anticipated to fall between 200 and 300 survey respondents (HEIs) and 10 to 15 interview participants for qualitative data.

Data analysis techniques:

To ascertain the connection between social media tactics, employer branding, and talent acquisition, quantitative data gathered from surveys will be examined using descriptive statistics (mean, frequency, percentage) and inferential statistics (correlation and regression analysis). For analysis, statistical tools like SPSS would be utilized. Thematic analysis will be used to examine qualitative data from interviews in order to find recurrent themes and patterns that clarify how HEIs strategically use social media for employer branding. To improve validity and reliability, the results from both approaches will be triangulated.

Ethical consideration:

Strict ethical rules are followed in this study to safeguard the anonymity and rights of participants. Informed consent will be sought before any data is collected, and participation will be entirely optional. The identity of respondents will be kept anonymous, and the information will only be utilized for research. All records, whether digital and physical, will be safely kept, guaranteeing adherence to research ethical guidelines. Additionally, prior to conducting surveys and interviews within HEIs, institutional authorities will be consulted for authorization.

The results of this study show that social media tactics have a significant and favourable impact on higher education institutions' ability to attract talent and build their employer brands. According to an analysis of survey data, most HEIs actively use Facebook and LinkedIn for professional hiring, while Instagram is becoming more and more popular as a platform for promoting institutional values, workplace culture, and employee experiences. With a beta value of β = 0.62, p < 0.01, regression analysis demonstrated the strength of the association between social media techniques and employer branding perceptions.

Additional findings demonstrate the mediating effect of corporate branding on the results of talent attraction. Effective employer branding was shown to have a substantial positive correlation (r = 0.71, p < 0.01) with an institution's capacity to draw in and keep talented academics and staff. Compared to universities with weak or erratic digital strategy, those that had an open and interesting online presence had greater success luring top academic talent.

The results also show that the effectiveness of employer branding initiatives has a substantial impact on talent acquisition results. Institutions with higher branding ratings and those with lower online presences had statistically significant differences in recruiting performance, according to a chi-square test (p < 0.05). These findings show that increasing higher education institutions' visibility and appeal as employers of choice depends heavily on their employer branding.

Digital literacy and candidate demographics also showed up as significant moderating factors. According to an ANOVA test, opinions on social media efficacy and employer branding vary by age group and degree of digital competency (F = 4.32, p < 0.05). While mid-career and senior academics tended to rely on LinkedIn for assessing institutional reputation and career chances, younger faculty members and early-career professionals were more impacted by visual and interactive material on platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

Overall, the findings support the notion that social media strategy has a favourable impact on employer branding, which in turn improves HEIs' ability to attract talent. The efficacy and interpretation of these methods are influenced by the demographics of the candidates.

Table no. 1: - Research Results on the Influence of Social Media Strategies on Employer Branding and Talent Attraction in HEIs: -

Table no.1.1 Social Media Platforms Used by HEIs for Employer Branding (Survey, n=250 HEIs)

Fig 1.1.1 Percentage of Social Media Platform Used By HEIs For Employer Branding

Table 1.2: Key Themes Identified from Interviews with HEI Administrators (n=12)

Table 1.3: Relationship between Employer Branding Score and Talent Attraction Success

According to the survey data, LinkedIn (85%) and Facebook (70%) are the most popular platforms, mainly because of their professional networking and broad outreach capabilities, while Instagram (55%) is becoming more popular for showcasing institutional culture and student engagement. Twitter (30%) is still less used, indicating its limited influence in long-term branding strategies for HEIs. These results are consistent with previous research that highlights LinkedIn as the dominant platform for professional branding and recruitment, while also indicating a shift toward more visually driven platforms like Instagram for appealing to younger demographics.

The survey results were further supported by the qualitative information gleaned from the interviews. With almost all respondents highlighting its function in improving institutional visibility and reputation, employer branding was often noted as a significant result of social media efforts. Attracting talent was also seen as a major advantage, especially when it comes to attracting top-notch researchers, staff, and students in a cutthroat educational environment. However, a sizable portion of respondents pointed up difficulties with digital adoption, such as a lack of technical know-how, insufficient funding, and opposition to change. These difficulties imply that, despite the enormous potential that social media offers, organizations must make investments in staff training, digital literacy, and policy frameworks in order to take full use of it.

Employer branding scores and talent attraction performance were shown to be positively correlated, suggesting that organizations with more robust branding initiatives had a higher chance of luring top personnel. This finding not only supports current theoretical viewpoints on the relationship between branding and recruiting, but it also offers concrete data unique to the digital higher education industry. It implies that for organizations hoping to stay competitive, digital branding is now required rather than discretionary.

All things considered, the results demonstrate how social media is revolutionizing higher education's employer branding and recruitment tactics. By presenting a comprehensive perspective through the integration of quantitative survey data, qualitative insights, and relational analysis, the research adds to the body of literature. However, the issues raised necessitate more research on long-term effects on institutional performance, policy integration, and sustainable social media practices.

According to the study's findings, social media tactics are now a crucial part of employer branding and luring talent to higher education institutions in the digital age. According to the findings, social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn are essential for increasing institutional awareness, establishing legitimacy, and drawing in academic talent and potential students. The claim that digital presence has a direct influence on institutional competitiveness is supported by the high positive connection found between employer branding initiatives and recruiting results. However, the survey also notes that HEIs are unable to effectively utilize these platforms due to issues like unequal adoption, a lack of digital skills, and insufficient resources. Overall, the study confirms that social media branding is essential to the expansion and long-term viability of educational institutions in the knowledge-driven world of today.

RECOMMENDATION:

The study's conclusions suggest that HEIs take a more methodical and strategic approach to social media interaction by coordinating digital branding initiatives with their talent acquisition plans and institutional objectives. Institutions should invest in professional teams tasked with maintaining online branding and give priority to capacity building by educating staff and professors in digital literacy. To optimize effect across a variety of audiences, a multi-platform approach should be used, including Instagram to showcase institutional culture, Facebook for outreach, and LinkedIn for professional networks. Furthermore, HEIs must address difficulties by defining clear digital rules, providing adequate resources, and supporting innovation in online interaction. To broaden the body of knowledge in this area, future studies may examine the long-term effects of social media branding on student happiness, staff retention, and institutional reputation.

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