Promotion focus, growth i-deals and service creativity: a regulatory focus perspective

Purpose Given that content- and timing-based idiosyncratic deals (i-deals) are inherently heterogeneous across employees and contexts, this study shifts attention to motivation-oriented growth i-deals. Drawing on regulatory focus theory (RFT) and the ability–motivation–opportunity (AMO) model, the study seeks to examine the antecedents, outcomes, chain mediating paths and boundary conditions of growth i-deals. Design/methodology/approach Multiwave, multisource and multilevel data were collected from 600 frontline employees in 100 hotel and mall teams in China. A cross-level moderated mediation model was tested using multilevel path analysis in Mplus and 20,000 Monte Carlo simulations. Findings Four key findings have been obtained. First, promotion focus is positively associated with growth i-deals. Second, growth i-deals positively predict three AMO variables (creative self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation and perceived participation opportunity) that further promote service creativity. Third, team-level servant leadership moderates the main effect of promotion focus on growth i-deals. Finally, team-level servant leadership moderates the indirect effects of promotion focus on service creativity via the chain mediation path of growth i-deals and three AMO variables. The main effect and the indirect effects are stronger when team-level servant leadership is high rather than low. Practical implications Hotel firms should attend to employees’ underlying developmental motives and effectively channel their developmental aspirations through i-deals. Furthermore, hotel firms should place greater emphasis on cultivating servant leaders by encouraging managers to exhibit servant leadership behaviors and providing leadership training. Originality/value This study broadens the scope of i-deals research from traditional focus on i-deals content and timing to the focus on i-deals motivation. Moreover, the study extends RFT and AMO model by investigating the antecedent, outcome, mechanisms and contingencies of growth i-deals, particularly in hospitality and related service settings.