Smollan, Roy KMooney, Shelagh K2025-11-272025-11-272025-11-23Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, ISSN: 1533-2845 (Print); 1533-2853 (Online), Informa UK Limited, 1-25. doi: 10.1080/15332845.2025.25885221533-28451533-2853http://hdl.handle.net/10292/20227When caring leadership becomes a norm, and therefore part of organizational culture, it improves employee wellbeing and performance. The interviews conducted for this study reveal how demonstrations of care from the organization as a whole, and from individual leaders, had a beneficial impact on employees in hospitality and tourism. The study also underscores the potential downside of caring leadership in terms of leader burnout and diminished follower self-efficacy. This double-edged sword has implications for Human Resource Management practice, regarding what organizations can do to develop caring leadership as a key element of the culture, but also to train and support leaders in appropriately caring for others.This is the Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in the Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, © Taylor & Francis, 2025.1503 Business and Management1504 Commercial Services1506 Tourism3505 Human resources and industrial relations3507 Strategy, management and organisational behaviour3508 TourismCaring leadershiporganizational cultureperformancequalitativewellbeingJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.1080/15332845.2025.2588522