How Managers Build Employability: A Qualitative Study of Networking Competence and Personal Brand

Purpose: The purpose is to explain and assess the connections between phenomena such as manager’s networking competence, personal brand, and employability. Methodology: A qualitative study (IDI) was conducted using semi-structured interviews. The interviews were carried out using ICT tools among managers in Polish enterprises (N=13) and analysed using MAXQDA software. The data were complemented by literature review. Inductive reasoning was used. Findings: Professional networks are used to reach new job offers or allow to skip some stages of recruitment. Competences, knowledge and experience turned out to be more important for keeping employment. Personal brand was more often assessed as helpful in finding employment than in keeping it. Thanks to the professional brand, the interest of recruiters remains high (3–5 job offers per week). Research limitations/implications: The article points out the limitations resulting from the homogeneity of the research sample, as well as the form of conducting the research, i.e., remotely, and the formal structure of the interviews. The need to develop a model describing the relationships between employability, networking competence and personal brand of managers was identified. Originality/value: Despite the key role assigned to managers in organizations – incl. shaping the employability of employees, research taking into account the specificity of this group requires supplementation. Meanwhile, they can successfully use their informal contacts to achieve organizational benefits, and their personal brands have a strong impact on the employer’s brand (co-branding).