Journal of Resource Management and Decision Engineering 3 Serial Number 6 2024 01 01 Identifying and Ranking Factors Affecting Personal Branding in the Food Industry Using the Network Analysis Process (ANP) Method Identifying and Ranking Factors Affecting Personal Branding in the Food Industry Using the Network Analysis Process (ANP) Method 1 12 EN Journal Article 2023 09 09 <p class="Abstract"><span lang="EN-GB">The purpose of this study is to identify and rank the factors influencing personal branding in the food industry. Accordingly, this research is exploratory in nature and was conducted in two stages. The first stage employed the grounded theory approach, which is applied in terms of purpose and qualitative in terms of methodology. Specifically, Strauss and Corbin’s (1998) systematic coding procedure was used, encompassing three main steps: open coding, axial coding, and selective coding. The second stage applied the Analytic Network Process (ANP) method, which is applied in terms of purpose and quantitative and descriptive–survey in terms of method. The statistical population consisted of managers in Iran’s food industry, from whom 19 individuals were selected through non-probability judgmental (purposive) sampling. Using the ANP technique, the relative importance of the identified factors was analyzed, and the prioritization was conducted with the aid of Super Decisions software. The results indicated that, within the variable of causal conditions, individual characteristics ranked first, followed by business characteristics. Within the context variable, social, economic, and political issues, cultural values, global dynamics, and public opinions and beliefs were prioritized. For the intervening conditions, criticism and feedback, audience expectations, the gap between virtual and real environments, and social norms were prioritized. Regarding the strategies variable, the priorities included adopting distinctive approaches, market research, social responsibility, social networking, appropriate visualization tools, goal orientation, and behavioral identity tools. Finally, in the outcome variable, the priorities were advancing company objectives, attracting and retaining audiences, saving time and space, enhancing communication quality, achieving internal satisfaction, and gaining reputation.</span></p> https://journalrmde.com/index.php/jrmde/article/download/191/168