Identifying the impact of career development opportunities on employee turnover intention in hotel sector in Sri Lanka

Abstract

This research examines the effect of career development opportunities on turnover intention in the context of the hotel industry of Sri Lanka using the Hotel ABC, a five-star hotel located in Colombo. The study is mainly based on the theories of Social Exchange, Human Capital, and Herzberg’s Two-Factor. Also, investigates three main determinants of career development which are, mentoring, training and development, and career advancement, and their effect on employees’ turnover intention. The research was carried out as a single case quantitative study, where deductive approach was applied. The data was collected through a structured questionnaire from 137 employees on permanent employment basis. Exploratory factor analysis indicated that training, promotion fairness, developmental planning, and supervisory support combined into one higher-order construct named career development opportunities, whereas mentoring remained as a distinct relational factor. The statistical analyses identified a strong negative connection between career development, relational mentoring, and turnover intention, where career development opportunities being recognized as the most important predictor of turnover intention, followed by relational mentoring. Tenure also had a significant negative impact on turnover intention, while gender and age were found not influential in any manner. Hence, the findings reveal two distinct approaches that affect retention; main structural approach through integrated career development systems and the other being a supplementary relational approach through mentoring. The research concludes that thorough development methods play a vital role in decreasing turnover intention among the hotel industry and at the same time provides both theoretical and practical implications for hoteliers and decision-makers. The limitations consist of the single-hotel situation and requires a more extensive sampling to verify the factor structure in future studies.