How Human-centric Leadership Catalyses Employee Voice Behavior and Employee Empowerment in the Hospitality Industry: The Mediating Role of Job Crafting

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Hotel Studies Department, Faculty of Tourism and Hotels, Fayoum University, Egypt.

2 Hotel Studies Department, Higher Institute of Tourism & Hotel King Marriott, Alexandria, Egypt.

10.21608/mfth.2025.447630

Abstract

Human-centered leadership (HCL) substantially benefits service sector organizations by investing in employees' capabilities and skills, respecting their well-being and personal needs, and promoting empowerment. Empowered employees often exhibit higher levels of trust and citizenship behaviors, enhancing workplace engagement. Based on self-determination theory, this study explores factors shaping employee empowerment (EE) within the hospitality sector, most notably HCL. A quantitative online survey was designed and shared with employees of five-star hotels in Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada, Egypt. The empirical work yielded 312 valid responses covering frontline and backline hotel employees. After the screening phase, PLS-SEM examined the model's quality and tested the hypothesized paths. We found that human-centric leadership (HCL) directly catalyzes job crafting (JC), employee voice behavior (EVB), and EE. JC has significantly mediated the nexuses between HCL and both EVB and EE. On the contrary, EVB had no direct influence on EE. Our examination paves the way for an additional grasp of how leadership style impacts employee outcomes in the hospitality arena. The study provokes managers to adopt human-based administration styles that stimulate employee empowerment and favorable behaviors. Such contributions can force hotels to appreciate employee well-being, resulting in quality performance.

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