Employee intrapreneurship and promotability prospect: the mediating role of personal brand equity and the moderating role of gender

Employee intrapreneurship is a crucial practice that drives corporate innovation and strategic renewal. Although existing research has extensively examined the positive impact of employee intrapreneurship on organizations, there is still little understanding of how it affects employees' career development. Based on signaling theory and expectancy violation theory, this study explores the relationship between employee intrapreneurship and promotability. Results from multi-source survey (N = 238) and scenario-based experiment (N = 159) indicate that employee intrapreneurship has a positive impact on promotability; personal brand equity acts as a mediator between employee intrapreneurship and promotability; additionally, employee gender moderates the effectiveness of employee intrapreneurship as a strategy for career advancement. This study advances research in employee intrapreneurship, promotability, and signaling theory, while provides important implications for managerial practice.