Conclusion
Summary and research implications
The authors believe to their best knowledge that this research paper is the first that empirically analyses the concept of BAPs in a business context. The derived success factor model makes a significant impact on internal brand management literature. Most importantly, it brings to our attention that instruments of internal branding are rarely successful when used in an isolated context. On the contrary, background factors such as the support of the C-level, the brand orientation of the company, as well as a professional brand management, strongly influence the effectiveness of BAPs. A further contribution to research on internal brand management is the emphasis on a phaseoriented view.
On the basis of the general insight that the success of brand management partly depends on the internal anchorage of the brand inside the company, this paper discussed the BAP as a concrete tool. The findings show some new insights: firstly, a BAP is not an isolated instrument of internal brand management, but its impact depends on background factors such as brand orientation, brand management, as well as the C-level support. Secondly, the success of a BAP is based on a combination of the specific characteristics of the coordinator, the program design, the BAs, as well as the target groups. Thirdly, BAP is not a static program, but a dynamic and phase-oriented approach. The derived BAP model, with 31 potential success factors, supports the planning and implementation of BAPs, as well as the monitoring of ongoing and the reflection of completed BAPs.
