A sophisticated customer market calls for greater collaboration and alignment between the external brand promise and internal capability of organizations. Employees in this process become key players. A credible brand must be based on both the external market forces and `internal reality' of employee culture and values. Branding today is everything. More than building, sustaining and retaining the brand are of paramount importance. From the time a brand is envisaged to the time it virtually becomes extinct, the common thread that links the entire process are the employees who strive to make the brand a reality. As to what extent the brand thrives depends above all on the people in the organizations. Employees who live the brand in their emotions and spirits are the key to building sustaining brands. This article tries to throw some light on this vital HR connection in brand building.

A brand is nothing but a collection of perceptions in the mind of the consumer. A strong brand stands on the four pillars namely differentiation, relevance, esteem and knowledge. The process of branding has evolved over time. Initially, a brand functioned solely to differentiate a product from its direct competitors. At this stage, the objective was to capture as large a share of consumer's wallets. At the second stage, brands started to detach from and overshadow the products and services it represents. Advertising became a powerful force. Line extensions abound. Consumers bought brands for status value and identity. The objective at this stage was to capture as large a share of consumers' minds as possible. In this third age, brands are becoming increasingly autonomous providing a device by which corporations are shaping the very ideology of the world. Millennial brands begin to evolve through an amalgam of information, entertainment, experiences, images and feelings. Advertising grows in volume and importance. The objective here is to capture the largest possible share of consumers' lives and even their souls.