Attracting Talent in North of Sweden : A qualitative study on the extent of Person-Organization Fit and Employer Branding for the purpose of talent attraction

Abstract: Companies in the North of Sweden are expressing big difficulties to acquire the right competency and the right people to fill voids in their organization. The purpose of this research paper was to gain an understanding of how companies in the north work with selected contributing factors, affecting their ability to attract talent. Starting off we gained perspective on how companies define talent and which talent management approach they implement. From there we learned to which extent they prioritize people fitting into the company’s identity/values and work with communicating with talents by displaying themselves as an attractive employer. Our attempt was to uncover any underlying behavior or beliefs within this region contributing to why this region, in particular, is experiencing difficulties in attracting talent. To reach these understandings, we conducted a case study holding six in-depth interviews with different companies in various locations within the region “Norrland”. By using the thematic analysis method, we concluded that businesses have attitudes regarding the nature of talent and how it should be managed which limits their view of who is considered as a competent potential employee. Moreover, we found that the majority of businesses operating the north to a relatively high extent prioritize their relationship with their employees. However, they do not work to a high extent with the creation of a strong employer brand, possibly contributing to the situation as it is perceived in the north.