Promoting work engagement in the hotel sector: review and analysis

Purpose - Using the job demands-resources (JD-R) model as a theoretical framework, the purpose of this study is to identify antecedents of work engagement in the hotel sector through an integrative literature review of existing empirical studies. Design/methodology/approach - A total of 38 quantitative studies published between 2001 and 2017 were reviewed, and a summary of the antecedents of work engagement was compiled based on the JD-R model. Findings - Support from the organization, supervisors and coworkers were the most frequently discussed predictors of work engagement. Compared with previous studies in other sectors, the findings show unique antecedents of work engagement in the hotel sector, such as internal branding, organizational justice and organizational features (e.g., organizational size/history/level) as job resources; behavioral intentions and polychronicity as personal resources; and customer emotions and sexual harassment as job demands. Practical implications - This study is relevant considering the discourse in the hotel sector on delegating human resource responsibilities to frontline managers. Hotel managers should establish and maintain a work environment where coworkers and supervisors provide support as the environment is found to be a key factor that promotes work engagement. Originality/value - The significance of the study is that it provides an overview of studies on work engagement in the hotel sector and insights on how hotel service practices affect employees and work engagement by highlighting the antecedents of work engagement from previous empirical studies.