Having engaged employees have since been touted as the means for organizations to stay competitive. Organizations are therefore shifting gears and paying more attention to employees' needs since employees are not easily copied as processes and procedure. This exploratory study highlighted drivers of employee engagement in Jamaican hotels and also how employees’ needs differ based on demographic characteristics. Anova and T’test found that significant differences existed between gender, age and education, and drivers of engagement. Specifically, females in particular had higher unmet needs than males while younger workers and highly educated employees may need to be reached with targeted intervention programs. Organizational benefits, fairness and justice, good working conditions developmental opportunities, and job security consecutively, were the top 5 drivers of engagement in Jamaican hotels. It would be worthwhile for Jamaican hotels to embark on an engagement programs. The only way managers can know what employees want is simply to ask. Employees have different needs and no one shoe fits all. As such, finding out how to meet the needs of employees may put hotels on a path to success and organizational competitiveness.
Keywords: Engagement; Jamaica; Hotel; Demographics; Front line employees