Role of servant leadership in contemporary hospitality

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to determine the possible role of servant leadership (SL) in meliorating critical issues in the contemporary hospitality industry by synthesizing literature on SL, examining benefits and deriving future research propositions. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review of SL in hospitality was conducted to analyze, categorize and synthesize the state of research. A nomological framework of SL in hospitality was created, and research gaps were identified. Future directions and propositions were derived to investigate the antecedents of SL by applying the person-situation theoretical approach, and second, to address contemporary challenges in the industry. Findings SL theory in hospitality is examined across various themes with focus on outcome effects related to firm performance, and across different cultures, with observed dominance in Asia. All analyses demonstrate the positive effects on employers and firms and thus confirm the relevance of adopting SL in hospitality. A notable gap in hospitality research is the lack of empirical investigation of SL antecedents. Such an investigation is crucial in promoting related behaviors. Practical implications This study identifies the benefits of SL, especially in addressing contemporary issues, such as sustainability, talent shortage, competition, growing demand for experience and retention of hospitality graduates. Recommendations are elaborated for hospitality educators and industry managers to revise leadership practices. Originality/value This study is the first to review SL in hospitality and determine its role in ameliorating critical issues in the field.

Narcissistic leadership and behavioral cynicism in the hotel industry: the role of employee silence and negative workplace gossiping

“…Although positive leadership styles such a servant leadership (Chon and Zoltan, 2019;Elche et al, 2020;Nazarian et al, 2020;Ye et al, 2019), empowering leadership (Hassi, 2019), authentic leadership (Kaya and Karatepe, 2020;Wang and Xie, 2020) and ethical leadership (Dimitriou and Schwepker, 2019) have received particular attention in hospitality research, there has been a recent increase in attention from hospitality scholars on toxic leadership, which can have harmful effects at both individual and organizational levels (Pan et al, 2018;Zhao and Guo, 2019). These adverse effects on both individuals and organizations have been well-documented in the hospitality sector (Xu et al, 2018) including decreased service performance (Lyu et al, 2016), low levels of engagement , low levels of helping behaviors (Zhao and Guo, 2019), decreased job satisfaction (Pan et al, 2018) and service sabotage (Park and Kim, 2019).…”

How do front-line employees make decisions on whether to hide their knowledge from co-workers in hospitality firms?

“…As there are few formal negotiation mechanisms for knowledge exchange in hospitality firms, individuals can only rely on their limited communication with knowledge receivers to estimate what they may obtain from an anticipated exchange. In the hotel context, limited communication usually manifests as the knowledge receiver’ s verbal promises or the recognition, empowerment and commitment provided by managers (Chon and Zoltan, 2019) as the agent of knowledge receivers. Through these communications, the knowledge holder can identify some signals of the reward that the knowledge receiver (or managers) may render the knowledge exchange.…”

The Five Constants: A Confucian Business Model for the Hospitality Industry

“…Future trends of the hospitality industry call for leadership that indorses ethical conduct and employee gratitude (Chon & Zoltan, 2019). Different leadership style creates various climates of trust, and thereby lead to diverse employee performance, such as firm commitment, work engagement, and work performance (Ling et al, 2017).…”