B-School Branding and Its Role in Entrepreneurial Capability and Sustainable Education in Emerging Markets: A Multi-Stakeholder Perspective
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66635/7ccky337Keywords:
B-School branding, entrepreneurship, innovation, sustainability, higher education, stakeholder satisfaction, entrepreneurial ecosystemsAbstract
In India’s competitive management education sector, with over 6,800 institutes, Business Schools (B-Schools) must differentiate through effective branding. Beyond reputation-building, B-School branding increasingly reflects an institution’s capacity to foster entrepreneurial capability, innovation orientation, employability, and sustainable management education. This study examines how students and faculty perceive brand equity across Post-Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM), Private Universities (PU), and University Departments (UD) in Karnataka, integrating Stakeholder Theory and Brand Equity Theory. Surveying 703 students and 416 faculty, we identify placement support and faculty quality as key drivers of student satisfaction, while recognition and teaching resources shape faculty perceptions. The institutional type moderates these relationships, revealing tailored branding priorities. The findings further suggest that these branding attributes are closely linked to the development of entrepreneurial mindset, startup readiness, innovation culture, and industry engagement within B-Schools. By extending branding analysis beyond stakeholder satisfaction to include entrepreneurial outcomes and sustainability considerations, this study proposes a multi-stakeholder framework linking branding, stakeholder expectations, and institutional contributions to innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems. Extending prior single-stakeholder research, this work offers a multi-stakeholder framework and actionable strategies for enhancing B-School competitiveness in emerging markets.
References
1.Aaker, D.A. (1991) Managing brand equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name. New York: Free Press.
2.AICTE (2020) All India Council for Technical Education Approval Process Handbook 2020-21. New Delhi: AICTE.
3.Aliedan, M. M., Elshaer, I. A., Alyahya, M. A., & Sobaih, A. E. E. (2022). Influences of university education support on entrepreneurship orientation and entrepreneurship intention: application of theory of planned behavior. Sustainability, 14(20), 13097.
4.Argenti, P.A. (2000) ‘Branding B-schools: Reputation management for MBA programs’, Corporate Reputation Review, 3(2), pp. 171–178.
5.Azoury, N., Daou, L. & Sleiaty, F. (2012) ‘University image and its relationship to student satisfaction - Case of the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK)’, European Scientific Journal, 8(28),
pp. 25–46.
6.Bastos, M. F. L., Gomes, C. M., Perlin, A. P., & Kneipp, J. M. (2025). The influence of sustainable governance and innovation on socio-environmental performance: a multivariate analysis of companies listed on the Brazilian Corporate Sustainability Index. Revista Brasileira de Gestão de Negócios, 27(2), e20250011.
7.Bennett, R. & Ali-Choudhury, R. (2009) ‘Prospective students’ perceptions of university brands: An empirical study’, Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 19(1), pp. 85–107.
8.Bhoyar, P. K., Chitrao, P. V., & Divekar, B. R. R. (2025). Long-term outcomes and resilience in entrepreneurship education 2024: Evaluating career success and adaptability. Cogent Education, 12(1), 2479399.
9.Brogi, S., Calabrese, A., Campisi, D., Capece, G., Costa, R. & Di Pillo, F. (2013) ‘The effects of online brand communities on brand equity in the luxury fashion industry’, Journal of Global Fashion Marketing, 4(3), pp. 210–222.
10.Brown, R.M. & Mazzarol, T. (2009) ‘The importance of institutional image to student satisfaction and loyalty within higher education’, Higher Education, 58(1), pp. 81–95.
11.Bunzel, D. (2007) ‘Universities sell their brands’, Journal of Product & Brand Management, 16(2),
pp. 152–153.
12.Chapleo, C. (2015) ‘Brands in higher education: Challenges and potential strategies’, International Studies of Management & Organization, 45(2), pp. 150–163.
13.Cronbach, L.J. (1951) ‘Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests’, Psychometrika, 16(3),
pp. 297–334.
14.
Dwivedi, Y.K., Ismagilova, E., Hughes, D.L., Carlson, J., Filieri, R., Jacobson, J. et al. (2021) ‘Setting the future of digital and social media marketing research: Perspectives and research propositions’, International Journal of Information Management, 59, p. 102168.
15.Eron, M., et al. (2015) ‘Branding dimensions for Indian B-schools – A student perspective’, Parikalpana: KIIT Journal of Management, 11(1),
pp. 1–15.
16.Field, A. (2018) Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics. 5th edn. London: Sage Publications.
17.Foroudi, P., Dinnie, K., Kitchen, P.J., Melewar, T.C. & Foroudi, M.M. (2018) ‘Exploring the role of corporate reputation, corporate volunteering, and corporate-community partnerships in higher education enhancement’, Journal of Business Research, 86, pp. 366–379.
18.Freeman, R.E. (1984) Strategic management: A stakeholder approach. Boston, MA: Pitman.
19.Hair, J.F., Black, W.C., Babin, B.J. & Anderson, R.E. (2010) Multivariate data analysis. 7th edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.
20.Hazelkorn, E. (2015) Rankings and the reshaping of higher education: The battle for world-class excellence. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
21.Hemsley-Brown, J. & Goonawardana, S. (2007) ‘Brand harmonization in the international higher education market’, Journal of Business Research, 60(9), pp. 942–948.
22.Hemsley-Brown, J. & Oplatka, I. (2006) ‘Universities in a competitive global marketplace: A systematic review of the literature on higher education marketing’, International Journal of Public Sector Management, 19(4), pp. 316–338.
23.Hemsley-Brown, J., Melewar, T.C. & Nguyen, B. (2016) ‘Exploring brand identity, meaning, image, and reputation in higher education’, Journal of Business Research, 69(8), pp. 3019–3026.
24.Iglesias, O., Markovic, S. & Rialp, J. (2020) ‘How to build a brand that customers will love: A study on the drivers of brand resonance in the context of higher education’, Journal of Business Research, 112, pp. 218–231.
25.Islam, M. R., & Mehdi, A. A. (2024). Bridging climate awareness and sustainable entrepreneurship: A conceptual framework based on the theory of planned behavior. arXiv preprint arXiv:2407.16838.
26.Leal Filho, W., Kirby, D. A., Sigahi, T. F., Bella, R. L., Anholon, R., & Quelhas, O. L. (2025). Higher education and sustainable entrepreneurship: The state of the art and a look to the future. Sustainable Development, 33(1), 957-969.
27.Mourad, M., Ennew, C. & Kortam, W. (2011) ‘Brand equity in higher education’, Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 29(4), pp. 403–420.
28.Naidoo, V. & Wu, T. (2011) ‘Marketing strategy implementation in higher education: A
stakeholder perspective’, Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 21(1), pp. 1–11.
29.Naidoo, V. (2016) ‘The role of marketing in higher education’, International Journal of Educational Management, 30(5), pp. 765–779.
30.Nunnally, J.C. (1978) Psychometric theory. 2nd edn. New York: McGraw-Hill.
31.Palmer, A. & Koenig-Lewis, N. (2014) ‘The effects of pre-enrolment emotions and peer group interaction on students’ satisfaction’, Journal of Marketing Management, 30(13–14), pp. 1332–
1352.
32.Pinar, M., Trapp, P., Girard, T. & Boyt, T.E. (2014) ‘University brand equity: An empirical investigation of its dimensions’, International Journal of Educational Management, 28(6), pp. 616–634.
33.Prentice, C., Dominique Lopes, S. & Wang, X. (2020) ‘The impact of artificial intelligence and employee service quality on customer satisfaction and loyalty’, Journal of Hospitality Marketing & Management, 29(7), pp. 739–756.
34.Ramsey, W.J., Barbier, D.M. & Weinrauch, J.D. (2016) ‘Building brand equity in higher education: A case study approach’, Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 20(2), pp. 67–79.
35.Razali, N.M. & Wah, Y.B. (2011) ‘Power comparisons of Shapiro-Wilk, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Lilliefors and Anderson-Darling tests’, Journal of Statistical Modeling and Analytics, 2(1), pp. 21–33.
36.Redler, E. (2016) ‘Emerging trends in data analysis in enhancing brand resonance in private universities: The role of university-specific servitization experiences and asset specificity’, International Journal of Data Science, 1(1), pp. 1–17.
37.Reimers, F. M. (2024). Entrepreneurship education to improve the world: The role of the sustainable development goals to stimulate innovation in higher education. Entrepreneurship Education, 7(3), 203-217.
38.Saeed, R. & Ehsan, A. (2010) ‘Brand management in higher education sector’, Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business, 2(8), pp. 1–10.
39.Sevilla-Bernardo, J., Herrador-Alcaide, T. C., & Sanchez-Robles, B. (2024). Successful entrepreneurship, higher education and society: from business practice to academia. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 11(1), 1-20.
40.Shahaida, P., Lokhande, M. & Kaushik, M. (2009) ‘Alumni engagement as a brand-building strategy in higher education’, Journal of Marketing and Communication, 5(1), pp. 33–40.
41.Sicilia, M. & Palazón, M. (2008) ‘Brand communities on the internet: A case study of Coca-Cola's Spanish virtual community’,
Corporate Communications: An International Journal, 13(3), pp. 255–270.
42.Siegel, S. & Castellan, N.J. (1988) Nonparametric statistics for the behavioral sciences. 2nd edn. New York: McGraw-Hill.
43.Sinha, R. (2015) ‘A study of factors affecting the branding of management institutions’, Researchers World, 6(1), pp. 86–95.
44.Stojanovic, I., Andreu, L. & Curras-Perez, R. (2021) ‘Effects of brand authenticity on consumer–brand relationships in higher education’, Journal of Marketing for Higher Education, 31(1), pp. 105–125.
45.Stubbs, W. & Cocklin, C. (2008) ‘Teaching sustainability to business students: Shifting mindsets’, International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 9(3), pp. 206–221.
46.Tengku Aroal, T. (2012) ‘The role of faculty perceptions in shaping brand identity in higher education’, International Journal of Educational Research, 56(2), pp. 78–92. (Note: Full author name still needed.)
47.Tigga, A.E., Pathak, D.S. & Dubey, R. (2014) ‘Branding higher education institutions: A study of select business schools in India’, Review of Research, 3(8), pp. 1–10.
48.Vidaver-Cohen, D. (2007) ‘Reputation beyond the rankings: A conceptual framework for business school research’, Corporate Reputation Review, 10(4), pp. 278–304.
