Editorial Board

A Refereed Monthly International Journal of Management

Internal Marketing and its Effect on Intention to Stay: Mediating Role of Happiness and Affective Commitment

 

Simran Kaur
Senior Research Fellow
University School of Financial Studies
Guru Nanak Dev University, Punjab, India
Email ID: simranrsh.usfs@gndu.ac.in

Mandeep Kaur
Professor
University School of Financial Studies
Guru Nanak Dev University, Punjab, India
Email ID:mandeep.usfs@gndu.ac.in
Corresponding author

 

Abstract

The focus of this research is to investigate the impact of Internal Marketing (IM) dimensions, i.e., Internal Marketing Research, Training, and Internal Communication, on employees' intentions to stay with the private banking sector in Punjab. It also investigates the functions of happiness and affective commitment as mediators in this connection. Data comprises of 644 frontline employees employed in top five banks of India taken from 5 cities of Punjab. The study discovers that Internal Communication has an insignificant association with affective commitment, implying that good communication alone may not be sufficient to establish emotional links among employees and their organisations. Similarly, Internal Marketing Research has an insignificant impact on workers' intention to stay, demonstrating that research-driven IM may not have a substantial impact on their commitment to the organisation on its own.Furthermore, the study's mediation analysis shows that affective commitment functions as a mediator between Internal Marketing Research and intention to stay. In addition, happiness is a mediator between all internal marketing dimensions and employees’ intention to stay, emphasising the importance of employee well-being in their decision to stay with their organisations. This study provides useful information for organisations looking to improve employee retention tactics by cultivating both affective commitment and employee happiness.

 

 

Keywords: Internal Marketing, Affective Commitment, Happiness, Intention to Stay, Private Banks, Frontline Employees

 

 

 

 

 

Introduction

Internal marketing has surpassed external marketing in importance in recent years. Internal marketing (IM) initially appeared in 1976(Berry et al., 1976), and the word was originally mentioned by Sasser and Arbeit. The IM concept has gained traction in the services sector and is seen as a strategic weapon that may help service marketers attain customer satisfaction and high-quality service delivery(Huang & Rundle-Thiele, 2015). IM has been proven to create strategic fit for firms, leading to more sound practises and policies(Warraich et al., 2014).Berry outlined IM four decades ago as "considering employees as internal customers, jobs as internal products, and then striving to provide internal products that fulfil the needs and wants of these internal customers whilst addressing the objectives of the organisation," and a number of conceptualizations of IM have been put proposed since then(Park & Tran, 2020). IM has been stated as a philosophy, a strategic strategy, or a set of tasks which must be carried out (Huang & Rundle-Thiele, 2015). The foundation of IM is to regard employees as internal customers, just as important as external customers(Sarker & Ashrafi, 2018). IM provides a significant impact on business performance and helps sustainably keep employees engaged and satisfied(Zaman et al., 2012).IM focuses on employee-organization interaction with the intention of creating an atmosphere that encourages workers to impact the firmpositively(Ahmed & Rafiq, 2003).

Instilling happiness in employees is predicted to yield several benefits.  Happy individuals tend to be more optimistic, possess higher self-esteem, and generally have an overall positive temperament(Thompson & Bruk-Lee, 2020). Being in a situation that differs from one's personality can exhaust a person down and leave him emotionally drained. Faking happiness at place of employment is a common practise, with around 81% of dissatisfied employees indulging in the practise. Employees that mask their unhappiness have been demonstrated to be 15% less productive all throughout a day of work lasting eight hours(Montañez, 2020).

Employees who have their unique needs addressed tend to express increased commitment and diminished turnover intention(Mahamad & Ramayah, 2011). As stated by Ahmed and Rafiq (2003), IM is a comprehensive approach since it is involved in all functions and activities. Additionally, they contend that attempting IM without a foundation of understanding, trust, and commitment would be fatal leading to scepticism and disappointment. They emphasise the need of knowing the staff because IM depends on trust and dedication. It has been advocated that IM could serve as an interdisciplinary tool. Jobs should be provided as goods that include techniques for attracting and retaining personnel(Vasconcelos, 2008). The work environment should be meticulously created and managed by the company so that happiness may be embraced, leading to beneficial consequences such as an enhanced degree of commitment, performance, reduced turnover intention, and various other work-related advantageous results.

Turnover is still an explosive subject among managers and executives. Since the last several years, the employment market has had a fair number of ups and downs. In the year 2020, a pandemic triggered an economic shutdown and global layoffs. One of the most significant factors that professionals connect with the turnover tsunami is pandemic burnout. Cultivating an increased level of transparency is one of the measures that can be implemented to foster in workers the feeling of being appreciated by the organisation for the success of the company and that the organisation is keen to retain the personnel.Retention surveys are a key step towards understanding why employees continue to work with the company and why they are considering exiting. Exit surveys should be carried out in order to clarify what is and is not working properly. Training opportunities, stretch assignments, and honest and forthright interaction may all contribute to reduce turnover intentions. Understanding what employees’ ambition is a major part of turnover prevention(Dennison, 2021).

Theoretical Foundation and Hypothesis Development

Relation between Internal Marketing Dimensions and Happiness

In the professional services industry, happiness is an essential ingredient of nurturing a pleasant work environment. Feeling joyful at work induces a sense of contentment and provides people with value and significance. It is advantageous for organisations that promote happiness at work for the purpose to establish a pleasant organisational atmosphere. When employees are engaged, they take greater ownership and control of their job, which may lead to an increased sense of contentment. Retention has also been associated with happiness(Olckers et al., 2017). Managing a pleasant workplace promotes employee well-being, which leads to improved overall performance. According to the literature, even if a blue-collar employee is paid above average, he is likely to leave the firm if he is unhappy(Santhanam & Srinivas, 2019).

Employee happiness has the potential to influence employee retention as well as other work-related behaviours including absenteeism and performance. Because of the importance of pleasure, it cannot be separated from business. According to Howard & Gould (2000), employers would agree that having happy staff is critical for the organisation, but it is an uncommon occurrence to have it specified as an objective in the organization's strategic plan. Understanding the workforce and the organisational surroundings in depth is the first step in realising the firm's commitment to create a happy workforce.

Organisations have to implement effective methods of understanding employees' necessities by allowing two-way and open communication activities designed to increase employee happiness. Communication networks empower employees to communicate relevant ideas, opinions, and experiences. Face-to-face communication (e.g., meetings, dialogue, on-the-job counselling service for family-related matters, psychological services) enables management to reach out to and engage directly in an effort to comprehend their needs and successfully address their particular problems(Tang et al., 2020). Employees can also be urged to engage in mindfulness-based training (e.g., meditation, yoga, tai chi, and associated qigong) to enhance communication quality, lessen conflict, and alleviate negative emotions(Good et al., 2016).

Training for people who have a skill gap has an offsetting positive effect on work satisfaction. We then discuss the role of skill gaps and workplace training, demonstrating that there is a negative effect for workers who lack sufficient skills in the use of new technologies, and that this negative impact can be completely offset by providing training in the use of newly introduced technologies(Haepp, 2022).

H₁:Internal Communication has positive relation with Happiness

H₂: Internal Market Research has positive relation with Happiness

H₃: Training has positive relation with Happiness

Relation between Internal Marketing Dimensions and Affective Commitment

Internal marketing has been demonstrated to possess a particularly significant impact on affective commitment(Joung et al., 2015). The objective of internal corporate communication is to foster dedicated links within the firm. When an even more powerful strategic direction is promoted, the level of commitment will rise as well. Effective interaction with others is critical for maintaining trust and a high level of commitment(Welch & Jackson, 2007).Meanwhile, training and organisational commitment are critical for organisations, but research on how they interact are rare outside the Western world. Furthermore, because of cultural differences, investigations on commitment may change from one location to the next. According to study literature, whenever employers make a determined attempt to transmit information to their employees, it's perceived as a source of concern, forming an established psychological association.

There is a significant association between training and affective commitment across all three forms of commitment, and workers who thought training was readily accessible reported greater levels of affective commitment(Bashir & Long, 2015). Human capital is without a doubt an extremely important resource for a firm; nonetheless, investments in new recruits remain cautious since it is considered that intellectual capital is extremely readily transferable to competing organisations. As a consequence, many training efforts target personnel who have been associated with the company for a particular length of time. Similarly, if employees believe that sufficient development and training are not being given and that the business has breached its covenants, they might respond by lowering their degree of affective commitment. When it comes to IM research, companies must create an environment for work that inspires and motivates employees to engage (Krajcsák & Gyökér, 2013).

H₄: Internal communication positively impacts affective commitment among employees.

H₅: Internal market research positively effects affective commitment among employees.

H₆: Training impacts affective commitment among employees positively.

Relation between Internal Marketing Dimensions and Intention to Stay

According to India's Annual Compensation Trends Survey 2018-19, the average annual voluntary attrition rate across all sectors was 13.1%, with financial services accounting for 18.2%. According to Price Waterhouse Cooper (2012), 42% of millennials employed in financial services are open to new opportunities, while 48% are actively seeking new ones. 56% of millennials were content with the amount of recognition they acquire, however 24% were unsatisfied, with 29% belonging to the banking industry. As a consequence, recognising the reasons why employees stay with the company is critical in order to combat the industry's rising turnover rates.Training opportunities, stretch assignments, and open and honest communication may all contribute to reduce turnover intentions. Understanding what employees desire is a major component of turnover prevention(Dennison, 2021).

Training is a crucial activity that cannot be overlooked in order to enhance service quality, and it also influences turnover intention(Mahamad & Ramayah, 2011). Employees are more loyal and less likely to switch a job when they are happy(Sarker & Ashrafi, 2018). Employees that have their particular needs addressed feel increased commitment and reduced turnover intention (Mahamad & Ramayah, 2011). The long-term health and prosperity of any firm are contingent on the retention of key staff. The majority of research has concentrated on turnover intention as a significant explanation for withdrawal intention, and these studies have been restricted to the Western setting.Employee turnover is an acute issue, and variables influencing staff retention must be investigated in order to deal with it more effectively(Pandey et al., 2019). IM knowledge inside organisations is as rare as hen's teeth, and the less we know about the issue, more severe are the undetected consequences (Theodoridis & Panigyrakis, 2011).

H₇: Internal communication positively impacts Intention to Stay among employees.

H₈: Internal market research positively effects Intention to Stayamong employees.

H₉: Training impacts Intention to Stayamong employees positively.

To check the remaining direct relations following hypotheses have been framed

H₁₀: Affective Commitment has positive effect on Intention to Stay

H₁₁: Happiness has positive effect on Affective Commitment

H₁₂: Happiness has positive effect on Intention to Stay

Mediating Role of Happiness and Affective Commitment

Employee happiness promotes the employee to stay with the organisation, or reduces his or her desire to seek another position in another company(Al-Ali et al., 2019). As an outcome, it was anticipated that employee happiness would have a considerable impact on the link between IM and employee intention to stay. This study extends to the literature on variables influencing employee intention to stay in the absence of prior studies which have not taken into consideration this relationship. Organisations might also benefit from the study's results in establishing programmes that link employee happiness with retaining employees, particularly the ones who are skilled and have relevant expertise(Alserhan et al., 2021). Positive emotions and moods induced at the workplace, result in increased happiness, which may contribute to work attitudes(Singh et al., 2018).

H_13a:Happiness mediates the relation between Internal Communication and Intention to Stay

H_13b:Happiness mediates the relation between Internal Market Research and Intention to Stay

H_13c:Happiness mediates the relation between Training and Intention to Stay

Affective commitment, like trust in any other institution, is highly tied to organisational trust(de Las Heras-Rosas et al., 2021). Over the last 20 years, researchers have consistently agreed that a concept of affective commitment may be stated as an individual's sense of attachment to an organisation as demonstrated by identification with and activity in that organisation. The relatively quick emergence of scholarly research regarding affective commitment in the 1970s illustrates the importance of knowing how individuals' views regarding an organisation influence their involvement and engagement in that organisation. Early social scientists were vital in establishing commitment as an essential sociological and psychological aspect of social organisations. Employee retention is a prominent topic in affective commitment research(Mercurio, 2015).

H_14a:Affective Commitment mediates the relation between Internal Communication and Intention to Stay

H_14b:Affective Commitment mediates the relation between Internal Market Research and Intention to Stay

H_14c:Affective Commitment mediates the relation between Training and Intention to Stay

 

 

Figure 1: Conceptual Model

Research Methodology

Instrument and Measures

The survey questionnaire has been divided into 3 sections. Section 1 included the items measuring perception of employees towards internal marketing dimensions. Section 2 constituted of the attributes defining happiness. Items assessing employees’ affective commitment were part of Section 3. Section 4 included the statements related to employees’ intention to stay while section 5 comprised of questions regarding demographic information of the respondents. Internal marketing has been measured using scale developed byHuang & Rundle-Thiele (2015). It includes three dimensions of internal marketing i.e., internal communication, training and internal market research. Happiness has been assessed using Oxford Happiness Questionnaire  (Hills & Argyle, 2002). Affective commitment has been measured using scale developed byAllen & Meyer (1990). The research items were assessed on five-point Likert scale ranging from 1- strongly agree to 5-strongly disagree. Intention to stay has been captured with help of six item scale as used by Har et al.,(2018).

Sample and Data Collection

Punjab's economy has evolved from agricultural to services, with a robust banking system in existence. In the state of Punjab, the sector of private banking maintains a 24% stake. The population size impacts demand for banking services, given that more populous locations demand more bank branches to satisfy their clientele(Boďa & Čunderlíková, 2020). Economic development supports the mushrooming of the banking industry. Since there has been a boom in the working population along with an increase in disposable money, it is exceedingly likely that the demand for banking services will rise. According to the Indian Brand Equity Foundation (2020), as per capita income grows, so does the number of individuals who use banking services.Punjab has an extensive banking network, with 134 branches per 1,000 square kilometres(Punjab Economic Survey, 2019-2020). Data was gathered from the frontline employees of the top five private banks, namely HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, IDBI Bank, and IndusInd Bank, in Amritsar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar, Patiala, and Mohali, by using a structured questionnaire. The banks and cities were picked based on branch density. The selected banks made up 68.4% of all private bank branches in India as of the June 2022 fiscal quarter. The cities investigated in this study account for approximately fifty percent of the total private bank network of branches in Punjab(DBIE-RBI: Database of Indian Economy).Of the 810 distributed questionnaires, a response rate of 83.95% was attained, with 680 completed surveys returned. Among these responses, 644 were identified as valid and suitable for analysis, comprising 94.70% of the returned questionnaires. Frontline personnel are critical to the success of any organisation since they engage directly with clients, and their productivity determines the company's destiny.

 

 

Respondents’ profile

The sample's characteristics are shown in Table 1. The sample comprised 55.7% male and 44.3% female respondents. The vast majority of respondents, 63.8%, are among the ages of 18 and 30 years, while the remainder are between the ages of 31 and 50, with 35.9% and 0.3 percent, respectively. With regards to average monthly income, 33.1% of those surveyed earned under Rs. 25000. While most of respondents (43.9%) earned between Rs.25001 and Rs.50000 per month. 12.7% of those surveyed earned between Rs. 50001 and Rs. 75000. Only 10.2 percent received a monthly salary of above 750001. 40.2% were graduates, whereas 59.5% were postgraduates.

  Table 1: Respondent Characteristics

Sample Characteristics	No. of Respondents	Percentage of Respondents
Gender
Male	359	55.7
Female	285	44.3
Age (Years)
18-30	411	63.8
31-50	231	35.9
Above 50	2	.3
Qualification
Graduate	259	40.2
Post graduate	383	59.5
Doctorate	2	.3
Monthly Income (Rs.)
< 25000	213	33.1
25001 - 50000	283	43.9
50001 - 75000	82	12.7
> 75001	66	10.2

Compiled by author

 

 

Data Analysis and Interpretation

PLS-SEM analysis has been used for the analysis of measurement and structural model. The measurement model helps to establish reliability and validity of the constructs. Whereas, the structural model portrays the significance of hypothesized relationships.

Measurement Model

For assessing the quality of the constructs, evaluation of measurement model has been employed. The assessment initiates with examining the factor loadings followed by establishing the construct reliability and construct validity.

Factor Loadings. Factor loading is the degree to which each item in the correlation matrix has correlation with the given principal component. It ranges between -1.0 and +1.0, with higher absolute values demonstratehigher correlation of the item with the primary factor. It was observed that all items have a factor loading of greater than 0.50(Peterson, 2000), thus all the items were retained for further analysis. Factor loadings have been presented in Table 2.

Table 2: Factor Loadings

	AC	H	IC	IMR	IT	ITS
AC1	0.747
AC2	0.743
AC3	0.791
AC4	0.757
AC5	0.765
AC6	0.707
AC7	0.731
AC8	0.762
H1		0.737
H2		0.743
H3		0.725
H4		0.724
H5		0.762
H6		0.747
H7		0.779
H8		0.707
IC1			0.763
IC2			0.767
IC3			0.760
IC4			0.738
IC5			0.751
IC6			0.733
IMR1				0.747
IMR2				0.803
IMR3				0.775
IMR4				0.770
IMR5				0.766
IMR6				0.734
IT1					0.766
IT2					0.774
IT3					0.789
IT4					0.753
IT5					0.752
IT6					0.737
ITS1						0.769
ITS2						0.784
ITS3						0.752
ITS4						0.754
ITS5						0.738
ITS6						0.733

Compiled by author

Indicator Multicollinearity. Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) values are utilised to ascertain the multicollinearity in the indicators. There is no issue of multicollinearity if the values of VIF statistics are less than 5(Akinwande et al., 2015). Table 3 depicts the VIF values for the indicators and it has been observed that VIF is below the recommended threshold for each indicator in attention, showing that there is no issue of multi-collinearity.

 

Table 3: Multicollinearity statistics (VIF) for the indicators

	VIF
AC -> Random	1.127
H -> Random	1.474
IC -> Random	1.647
IMR -> Random	1.177
IT -> Random	1.216
ITS -> Random	1.489

 

                                            Compiled by author

Reliability Analysis. The degree to which a measurement tool is reliable and consistent is referred to as its reliability. Its primary essential is repeatability. If a tool is used frequently, the findings will be the same. Cronbach Alpha and Composite reliability (CR) are the two most important techniques for determining dependability. Table 4 displays the findings for the same. Cronbach Alpha ranged from 0.847 to 0.889, while Composite Reliability (Rho_a) ranged from 0.880 to 0.892. Both indicators show values that are more than 0.70(Hair Jr et al., 2021). As a consequence, the construct's reliability has been established.

Table 4: Construct reliability analysis (Cronbach alpha and composite reliability)

	Cronbach's alpha	Composite reliability (rho_a)	Composite reliability (rho_c)
AC	0.889	0.892	0.912
H	0.882	0.883	0.907
IC	0.846	0.847	0.887
IMR	0.859	0.861	0.895
IT	0.855	0.856	0.892
ITS	0.849	0.850	0.888

Compiled by author

Construct Validity. Construct validity is achieved when there is existence of convergent and discriminant validity.Convergent validity is the degree to which several attempts to measure the concept happen to be in agreement. The concept is that if multiple measurements of the same object are valid, they should significantly correlate. When the AVE value exceeds or equals 0.50, items converge to assess the underlying construct, which leads to the establishment of construct validity(Barclay et al., 1995). Table 5 demonstrates that the AVE values across all constructs are in excess of the suggested value of 0.50.

  Table 5:  Construct Convergent Validity (AVE)

	Average variance extracted (AVE)
AC	0.563
H	0.549
IC	0.566
IMR	0.587
IT	0.580
ITS	0.570

Compiled by author

Discriminant validity exhibits the magnitude to which measures of distinct constructs differ from one another. The idea is that valid measures should have high correlation if two or more concepts are unique.According to Fornell & Larcker (1981) criterion, in case the square root of AVE for a specific construct is higher than its correlation with the other constructs in consideration, discriminant validity is established. Table 6 shows that square root of AVE (in bold and italics) for the construct was greater than the correlation it has with other constructs. This provides a strong support for establishment of the discriminant validity.

Table 6: Fornell & Larcker (1981) criterion

	AC	H	IC	IMR	IT	ITS
AC	0.751
H	0.322	0.741
IC	0.258	0.563	0.752
IMR	0.442	0.503	0.545	0.766
IT	0.362	0.506	0.583	0.577	0.762
ITS	0.337	0.581	0.601	0.453	0.544	0.755

Compiled by author

Cross loading aids to figure out whether an item belonging to a particular construct loads strongly onto its own parent construct or not. The results depicted in Table 7 shows that with respect to the underlying constructs, the loading of all the items is robust(Black et al., 2010).

Table 7: Cross- Loadings

	AC	H	IC	IMR	IT	ITS
AC1	0.747	0.296	0.265	0.367	0.307	0.325
AC2	0.743	0.169	0.171	0.284	0.217	0.217
AC3	0.791	0.244	0.221	0.355	0.274	0.252
AC4	0.757	0.215	0.193	0.337	0.284	0.220
AC5	0.765	0.233	0.181	0.330	0.244	0.250
AC6	0.707	0.230	0.164	0.292	0.258	0.214
AC7	0.731	0.267	0.159	0.340	0.259	0.243
AC8	0.762	0.255	0.178	0.328	0.315	0.276
H1	0.252	0.737	0.426	0.401	0.361	0.443
H2	0.223	0.743	0.440	0.381	0.378	0.440
H3	0.237	0.725	0.412	0.365	0.354	0.406
H4	0.241	0.724	0.393	0.349	0.355	0.389
H5	0.259	0.762	0.400	0.391	0.386	0.438
H6	0.227	0.747	0.425	0.359	0.383	0.441
H7	0.265	0.779	0.426	0.376	0.407	0.452
H8	0.202	0.707	0.411	0.356	0.371	0.426
IC1	0.219	0.446	0.763	0.443	0.441	0.496
IC2	0.170	0.462	0.767	0.391	0.453	0.444
IC3	0.184	0.399	0.760	0.433	0.436	0.450
IC4	0.189	0.397	0.738	0.366	0.409	0.442
IC5	0.192	0.402	0.751	0.421	0.439	0.434
IC6	0.209	0.428	0.733	0.401	0.453	0.441
IMR1	0.342	0.336	0.428	0.747	0.414	0.292
IMR2	0.346	0.405	0.395	0.803	0.442	0.315
IMR3	0.375	0.368	0.404	0.775	0.458	0.355
IMR4	0.339	0.430	0.450	0.770	0.443	0.402
IMR5	0.342	0.398	0.380	0.766	0.429	0.318
IMR6	0.283	0.367	0.446	0.734	0.464	0.390
IT1	0.259	0.406	0.453	0.412	0.766	0.442
IT2	0.299	0.369	0.453	0.440	0.774	0.422
IT3	0.305	0.359	0.409	0.460	0.789	0.390
IT4	0.282	0.402	0.466	0.430	0.753	0.419
IT5	0.224	0.399	0.445	0.429	0.752	0.437
IT6	0.289	0.374	0.438	0.469	0.737	0.370
ITS1	0.247	0.461	0.461	0.315	0.411	0.769
ITS2	0.252	0.461	0.457	0.352	0.441	0.784
ITS3	0.326	0.422	0.465	0.399	0.405	0.752
ITS4	0.200	0.491	0.459	0.314	0.390	0.754
ITS5	0.307	0.400	0.431	0.331	0.400	0.738
ITS6	0.194	0.391	0.448	0.341	0.418	0.733

        Compiled by author

HTMT is ascertained based on the estimate of correlation between the constructs. According to Henseler et al. (2015) the threshold for HTMT is 0.90 or less. Table 8 demonstrates that HTMT ratio is less than the prescribed limit.

Table 8: HTMT

	AC	H	IC	IMR	IT	ITS
AC
H	0.359
IC	0.294	0.650
IMR	0.502	0.575	0.638
IT	0.412	0.581	0.685	0.674
ITS	0.383	0.669	0.708	0.528	0.637

        Compiled by author

Structural Model

Hypotheses Testing

Bootstrapping procedure has been applied to scrutinize the hypothesis. Table 9 shows that internal communication does not have a significant impact on affective commitment (p<0.05) rejecting H_4. Further, internal market research also fails to have a significant effect on intention to stay, therefore leading to rejection of H₈. Rest all the hypotheses have been accepted as all the remaining direct relations are significant (p<0.05).

Having a look at table 10, it is clear that affective commitment fails to act as mediator between training and intention to stay, rejecting H_14c. Also, it fails to act as a mediator in the relation between internal communication and intention to stay, leading to rejection of H_14a. With respect to all the remaining relationships, the role of happiness and affective commitment as a mediator is proven to be significant as depicted in Table 10.

Table 9: Direct Relationship Results

		Original sample	Sample mean	Standard deviation	T statistics	P values
H1	IC -> H	0.340	0.331	0.068	4.963	0.000
H2	IMR -> H	0.211	0.213	0.046	4.545	0.000
H3	IT -> H	0.186	0.185	0.047	3.919	0.000
H4	IC -> AC	-0.084	-0.078	0.082	1.035	0.300
H5	IMR -> AC	0.336	0.334	0.055	6.168	0.000
H6	IT -> AC	0.156	0.159	0.053	2.946	0.003
H7	IC -> ITS	0.312	0.304	0.059	5.318	0.000
H8	IMR -> ITS	-0.014	-0.014	0.043	0.336	0.737
H9	IT -> ITS	0.189	0.185	0.053	3.605	0.000
H10	AC -> ITS	0.103	0.111	0.051	2.008	0.045
H11	H -> AC	0.121	0.126	0.049	2.465	0.014
H12	H -> ITS	0.283	0.278	0.045	6.361	0.000

Compiled by author

Table 10: Indirect Relationship Results

		Original sample	Sample mean	Standard deviation	T statistics	P values
H13a	IC -> H -> ITS	0.096	0.093	0.028	3.393	0.001
H13b	IMR -> H -> ITS	0.060	0.059	0.015	4.012	0.000
H13c	IT -> H -> ITS	0.053	0.051	0.016	3.359	0.001
H14a	IC -> AC -> ITS	-0.009	-0.006	0.009	0.988	0.323
H14b	IMR -> AC -> ITS	0.035	0.036	0.016	2.162	0.031
H14c	IT -> AC -> ITS	0.016	0.018	0.011	1.455	0.146

Compiled by author

Discussion

The findings of this study suggest that the association between AC and internal communication is insignificant. Some research show that communication plays an insignificant role in determining employee commitment. Though good internal communication channels inside the company are desirable, the degree of commitment stays unchanged because there is no tangible advantage to the personnel. It is recommended that bank managers use extreme caution and judgement when identifying which IM dimensions to implement in their company, as not all dimensions have a beneficial influence on employee commitment. Furthermore, even if the message is aesthetically pleasing, it is not deemed sufficient to communicate for commitment. Because the recipient is highly attentive, there is now a possibility that the repercussions of internal communication will be completely contrary to what it means to convey(Togna, 2014).

Further Internal Market research showed insignificant impact on employees’ intention to stay.According to some study, the average organisation spends one to three years creating a feedback system and continues to be disappointed with the results(Ridley, 2007). This discontent can be pertaining to a shortcoming in feedback comprehension and also to the lack of an understanding of what is being assessed. A typical feedback shortcoming is a lack of established criteria as well as a lack of clarity on what is being reviewed(Baker, 2010).If a substantial proportion of employees do not feel adequately informed, there will be no effective upward feedback sessions. People will only speak up if they are certain that their leaders trust in them, support them, and challenge them to think and act more professionally. People may form a strong relationship if they learn about the company's policies and objectives, as well as who trusts them and whom they can trust. All businesses/institutions must be conscious that, regardless of their differences, people all want the same thing: a successful and profitable organisation(Constantin & Baias, 2015).

Moreover, the "double-edged" character of commitment has been acknowledged, noting that, while a strong commitment might inspire active coping in some circumstances, it can also leave a person "particularly vulnerable to psychological stress in the area of that commitment" (p. 58). This is referred to as the "paradox" of commitment (Meyer & Maltin, 2010). Some researchers have expressed worry about the negative consequences of excessive OC on individuals, such as work-family conflict, stress, and ill health. Despite this, little study has been undertaken to address these issues(Lee & Lee, 2021).

Conclusions and Implications

The study's findings aid in assessing the effect of internal marketing on hitherto unexplored consequences. Understanding the mediating function of happiness and affective commitment is critical since it is thought to influence the dynamics of organisational behaviour. This study will pave the way for more extensive studies in the field of internal marketing by taking into account elements that have been identified in the literature as critical and vital but have received little empirical attention.

Theoretical Implications

This study contributes to the richness of the internal marketing literature by bringing the nuances of unexplored variables in the domain. The increased degree of stress that private sector bank workers endure necessitates an examination of ways for raising their commitment levels so that their intention to stay can be increases. The literature that fails to capture the essence of happiness and affective commitment in amplifying positive behaviour among the staff. Academicians and researchers can profit from this research since the study's groundbreaking discoveries will assist in the examination of more robust models.

Practical Implications

The private banking atmosphere is stressful, which affects staff productivity and motivation. This study will be extremely useful for managers and policymakers in developing programmes that focus on enhancing employees' happiness and commitment, which will further magnify the level of their intention to stay with the organisation. Furthermore, the study emphasises how different aspects of internal marketing act in conjunction with happiness and affective commitment, which is critical for firms to understand in order to properly implement internal marketing programmes to obtain maximum advantage.

Limitations and Future Research

The current study attempted to close a gap in the literature through examining the effect of happiness and affective commitment in mediating the link between internal marketing and intention to stay. Despite the study's favourable results, there are some limitations that require to be being addressed. The study used a cross-sectional design. Longitudinal data should be employed by future studies to strengthen the link between the constructs. Longitudinal studies are thought to be beneficial to determine causal links (Santhanam & Srinivas, 2019). Furthermore, the study was limited to on-the-job frontline personnel from private sector banks, casting doubt on the findings' generalizability. The findings and recommendations of this study may be affected by the region's unique socioeconomic and cultural factors, which may not be universally relevant to other nations and locations. As an outcome, efforts should be undertaken to get insight into such unsolved subjects. Future research might concentrate on expanding the current study into more domains, particularly off-the-job personnel. Studies comparing the public and private sectors can be implemented to gain an understanding of the outcomes and determine whether there are any disparities.

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