Abstract: - The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between transformation leadership,

job satisfaction, and employee motivation in the Vietnam tourism industry (VTI). In the study, data were

collected from 207 respondents from different organizations related to the tourism industry, then partial

least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed for the analysis. The findings indicate

that the paths between inspirational communication, personal recognition, supportive leadership, vision,

and job satisfaction are highly significant. However, the intellectual stimulation does not positively affect

job satisfaction. In addition, the path of job satisfaction and employee motivation is significant. This

research also shows that there is only supportive leadership has a direct positive effect on employee

1. Introduction

In 2020, Vietnam's tourism faced many

difficulties due to the impact of the COVID-19

epidemic. In addition to solutions to overcome

difficulties and prevent the epidemic, there have

been an attempt to restructure the tourist market

(see Chen et al. [11]). In this context, the

development of human resources needs to be

given more attention to be ready for the recovery

and implementation of sustainable tourism

resources are always a difficult issue because of

the workforce, especially the serious lack of

direct labor. There is a large gap in the number of

employees in the hotel industry compared to the

number of workers needed in the future. There are

increasing requirements for improving the quality

of human resources and transparency in the

recruitment market. Choosing the right staff is a

big challenge. Competition for personnel in the

industry will lead to employees' intending to quit

difficulties. Studies show that being a good leader

takes a lot of effort, knowledge, skills, and

especially leadership style. Leadership does not

always mean applying only one leadership style

to every employee, but choosing a leadership

style that is appropriate for their qualifications

(see AlShehhi et al. [2], Asrar-Ul-Haq et al. [5]

and Tafvelin [37]). Many people fail to manage

the team because they are not aware of this point;

they set requirements that are too high for new

team or company (i.e., talent, intelligence,

enthusiasm of employees), the leader needs to

understand that leadership is different and how to

effectively lead an employee or team in practice.

Previous studies have demonstrated the success

of transformational leadership in delivering

employee satisfaction and employee motivation

in the tourism industry (see Khan et ,al. [20], Li

et al. [24], Mittal and Dhar [28], Mohamed [29]

and Vargas-Sevalle, Karami, and Spector [38]).

affecting employee satisfaction (see Võ [40]).

However, few studies have assessed the

model, which offers a leadership model with five

distinct practices that outstanding leaders use to

influence employees’ performance. This model

consists of some of the key elements of

transformational leadership styles. The five

practices of exemplary leadership are:

seizing challenging opportunities to change,

grow, innovate, and improve, with the

willingness to take risks and learn from mistakes;

followers, developing competence, assigning

critical tasks, and providing continuous support;

being consistent with shared values; and

recognition for success and celebrating

accomplishments.

transformational theories, focus on the

connections formed between leaders and

charismatic leadership theories in which leaders

with certain qualities, such as confidence,

extroversion, and clearly stated values, are seen

as best able to motivate followers (see Lamb

[23]).

motivate and inspire people by helping groups of

members see the importance and higher purpose

of the task. These leaders are focused not only on

the performance of members but also on the

employees’ work-related uncertainties and

ambiguity when facing an uncertain

characteristics, which are evaluated by their

colleagues, regardless of their position, and in

relation to leaders-evaluators (see Vasudeva and

Nayan [39]). Transformational leadership is

based on 4 elements described by Bernard A.

Bass (see Bass [7]): Idealized Influence,

Intellectual Stimulation, Individualized

Consideration, and Inspirational Motivation;

since then, they have been the focal point of

numerous studies. However, there are limited

Bass (see Bass [6]), this study attempts to develop

the theory for tourism leadership style to identify

five sub-dimensions of transformational

leadership that will demonstrate discriminant

validity with each other and with outcomes.

Tourism staff is said to have low motivation,

especially in the context of the COVID-19

pandemic (see Sobaih et al. [36]). Based on the

above discussions, following hypotheses are

proposed:

motivation in VTI

intellectual stimulation as a dimension of

transformation leadership style and employee

motivation in VTI.

to distorted research findings.

studies has increased exponentially since 2000, as

following scenarios: small sample size,

nonnormal data set, complex models with many

indicators, and constituent models. Overall, the

mix of advantages and disadvantages means PLS

is favored as a predictive technique and not as an

interpretive technique, except for exploratory

analysis as a prelude to an interpretive technique

such as multiple linear regression or covariance-

Cronbach’s alpha was used to test the reliability

of the data. It is used to assert rigor and the

correlation between the observed variables.

assert that factor analysis in this study is

consistent. The level of significance of Bartlett's

test is given at Sig. = 0.000 < 0.005, the variables

are correlated in general. The results showed that

the total variance explained (TVE) = 69.783 >

50%, which means that 5 extracted factors

explain 69.783% of the variation in the data set.

The remaining 31.3% of the variable data set is

due to factors not included in the model. The

rotated component matrix removes transformer

extracted from the construct with shared

variance. Each item should load more highly on

its intended construct than on other constructs. It

can be concluded that all our items satisfied this

condition (see Table 6).

PLS structural model results

The authors then examined the overall