Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the simultaneous relationships among transformational leadership (TFL), customer citizenship behavior (CCB), employee intrinsic motivation (IM) and employee creativity (EC). Design/methodology/approach This study was conducted in companies (hotels and tour operators) from the hospitality sector in Vietnam. The respondents were selected based on convenience sampling. A cross-sectional survey design and questionnaire method was used for data collection. Findings The results of the empirical analysis suggest that: employee IM is significantly associated with EC, both TFL and CCB are positively related to employee IM and EC and employee IM positively mediates the effects of both TFL and CCB on EC. Practical implications The results may help managers focus on TFL behavior, CCB and employee IM to achieve higher EC. Originality/value This investigation is expected to be new and valuable. Research on relationships of CCB, employee IM and EC is of significant importance but has not been examined to date. It is hoped that this study addresses this important gap in the marketing literature.