Brand Personification Continuum : A Growth-Sensitive Diagnostic Stage Model for Organizational Growth and Representational Complexity

Sammanfattning

Background While previous research has examined brand personality and personification and how it manifests in start-ups, SMEs, and corporations, limited attention has been given to how brand personification changes as organizations grow. Existing literature also lacks conceptual clarity regarding how different organizational actors and stakeholders contribute to brand personification across growth stages. Purpose The purpose of this study is to reconceptualize brand personification as a dynamic and evolving process shaped by organizational growth. More specifically, the study aims to develop a diagnostic brand personification continuum that explains how the sources, coordination, and complexity of brand personification change as organizations expand and involve a broader range of internal and external stakeholders. Method To fulfil the exploratory purpose of this thesis, a qualitative research design was applied. Data were collected through 12 purposefully selected semi-structured interviews with industry professionals covering all three conceptual stages. The data were thematically analysed and coded through five literature-informed constructs in an iterative process. This movement between theory and empirical material was grounded in a deductive research approach, within a social constructivist ontological stance. Conclusion The study concludes that brand personification changes in type, source, and governance logic as organizations grow. In the Concentration stage, brand personification is mainly founder-driven and expressed through the founder’s identity, communication, and direct interactions. In the Distribution stage, personification becomes increasingly shared across employees and internal systems, requiring clearer alignment, codification, and repeatable brand narratives. In the Dispersion stage, personification extends across representatives, characters, users, communities, and external stakeholders, many of whom operate beyond the organization’s direct control. Therefore, brand personification should be understood as a stage-sensitive and diagnostic process rather than a fixed personality profile or isolated communication tactic. The Brand Personification Continuum offers a practical framework for identifying where personification is located, how it is coordinated, and what forms of governance are needed as representational complexity increases.