Hotel leaders' benevolent leadership, career management and employees' work engagement during COVID-19: a conservation of resources perspective

PurposeDrawing upon conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study aims to examine whether benevolent leadership from top hotel leaders can foster employees' work engagement during COVID-19 via two valued career-related resources, namely organizational career management (OCM) and individual career management (ICM). This study also proposes that the importance of ICM as a resource diminishes when ICM plays a prominent role.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data were collected from 600 employees in 20 hotels located in a major tourist destination in Thailand during COVID-19. The data were analyzed using latent moderated mediation structural equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThis study found that the relationship between hotel leaders' benevolent leadership and employees' work engagement was mediated by both OCM and ICM. Furthermore, as expected, this study found that the indirect effect of benevolent leadership via OCM was weaker when ICM was high.Practical implicationsThis study sheds light on the importance of hotel leaders and career management activities in promoting employees' work engagement. Thus, despite concerns that investing in career management activities might lead employees to manage themselves out of the organization, the current findings indicate otherwise.Originality/valueBased on the resource-gain perspective, this study contributes to the leadership and hospitality literature by being among the first to show that the influence of benevolent leadership on work engagement occurs through the simultaneous mediating roles of OCM and ICM. Moreover, this study contributes to the current debate about the interactive effects of OCM and ICM.