Welcome to (Visit) Dalarna : An interview-based study of co-worker ambassadorship at the destination organisation Visit Dalarna

This study examines co-workers’ roles as organisational and brand ambassadors. The purpose is to investigate to which extent the co-workers at the destination organisation Visit Dalarna act as ambassadors for the organisation and how this relates to the brand. The theoretical framework is based on the three functions of an organisational brand presented by Dahlqvist and Melin (2010): the brand as means of governance, as a way of creating value, and that of carrying identity. Qualitative interviews with five co-workers and one manager at Visit Dalarna constitute the empirical material. The results confirm existing research on co-worker ambassadorship that claims knowledge and engagement to be defining and crucial aspects of a brand ambassador. Furthermore, the results suggest that these two dimensions are even more multi-dimensional than earlier indicated. The engagement is constituted in both verbal and non-verbal expressions, and the knowledge involves aspects of both the organisation, the work-related facts, and professional performance