Inclusive leadership and employees’ workplace performance: The mediating role of employee engagement in five-star hotels in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

In the setting of five-star hotels in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, this study aims to examine the relationship between inclusive leadership and organizational performance with employee engagement serving as a mediating variable. Structured questionnaires were used to gather data from 323 workers working in 15 five-star hotels using a quantitative research approach. Utilizing a cross-sectional survey approach, the study analyzes the correlations between the constructs using structural equation modeling, or SEM. The results show that inclusive leadership improves workplace performance (β = 1.155, p < 0.001) by considerably increasing employee engagement (β = 0.904, p < 0.001). The crucial mediating function of employee engagement is highlighted by the fact that the direct effect of inclusive leadership on workplace performance is not statistically significant (β = −0.174, p = 0.159). The study emphasizes how crucial inclusive leadership is to creating a stimulating and psychologically safe workplace, which in turn promotes organizational performance. Practical implications indicate that in order to improve engagement and performance, hotel managers should give priority to inclusive leadership techniques, such as encouraging open communication, appreciating other viewpoints, and supporting employee participation. This study adds to the expanding corpus of research on inclusive leadership and how it affects worker outcomes in the hospitality sector, especially in culturally diverse environments like Ethiopia.