How do job characteristics influence the motivation of millennial hospitality employees?

Orientation: Employee retention remains an ongoing challenge for the hospitality industry, especially given the nature of the industry (an often-hectic work environment, long-working hours and perceived poor compensation). The industry also fails to retain millennial employees, which is a grave concern. Research purpose: The investigation studied the impact of job characteristics on the motivation of millennial hospitality employees. The job characteristics model of Hackman and Oldham served as the theoretical guide. Motivation for the study: In addressing the retention issues that the hospitality industry faces, the study provides theoretical and empirical insight on the impact that job characteristics have on the motivation of millennial hospitality employees. Research approach/design: The study employed a quantitative research approach. A structured questionnaire was administered to 96 millennial hospitality employees using QuestionPro. Targeted snowball sampling was used to identify respondents. Partial least squares (PLS) structured equation modelling (SEM) was applied to determine the relationship between the variables. Main findings: The empirical findings revealed a positive relationship amongst task variety, task significance and feedback towards motivation, but a negative relationship between autonomy and task identity towards motivation. Practical/managerial implications: Prospective hospitality employees need to be well informed about the challenges of working in the hospitality industry. Contribution/value added: Autonomy and task identity emerged as factors that do not contribute to the motivation of hospitality employees. Millennial hospitality employees were, however, motivated by task significance, task variety and feedback.