Samenvatting

The hospitality industry is known as one of the fields with highest levels of burnout due to heavy emotional labour, understaffing, frequent overtime and insufficent support. Concerningly, the youngest cohort in the workforce so far - Gen Z - showcases higher levels of burnout compared to previous generations. The reason for it is a combination of personal circumstances, different organisational and socio-cultural factors. An essential, but unexplored mitigating variable for burnout is emotional intelligence - this is especially relevant for Gen Z, who shows the lowest overall levels of emotional intelligence compared to other cohorts. This report seeks to explore the relationship between burnout and emotional intelligence in the context of Gen Z in hospitality. It also aims to discover how emotional intelligence can be developed among Gen Z to reduce the risk of burnout among this age group. Based on an extensive literature review and 11 semi-structured interviews, the study concluded that there is a strong relationship between burnout and emotional intelligence as an imperative mitigating factor. It also discovered that there is no universal method for development of emotional intelligence, due to the diverse circumstances and emotional challenges of each Gen Z representatives. Instead, a tailored approach is needed in order to develop this skill in the future workforce. To respond to this need, the study concluded with a proactive, personalised solution : A Collaborative Organisational Guide for EQ development: Version Z. It is a 3-stage organisational cycle designed to support managers and employees in collaboratively and proactively developing crucial emotional intelligence skills among Gen Z by identifying early emotional challenges and building a development plan. This solution contributes to a more emotionally intelligent, mentally healthy, and resilient workforce.