Breaking the Barriers: Mediating Effects of Agile HR Practices and Challenging Organizational Members’ Comfort Zones on the Link between Digital and Agile Transformation and Organizational Performance

Purpose: Building on organizational change management (OCM), this study examines how digital and agile transformations influence organizational performance through people-centred mechanisms. Using socio-technical systems theory, the study investigates how aligning technical workflows and social roles can turn transformation initiatives into measurable performance gains. Design/methodology/approach: The research analyses data from 402 employees in Turkey’s connector manufacturing sector through structural equation modelling (SEM). Agile HR practices and employees’ behaviours that challenge their comfort zones are tested as parallel mediators connecting digital and agile transformations to organizational performance. Findings: The findings demonstrate that digital and agile transformations have a positive impact on organizational performance. These effects are stronger when Agile HR practices are adopted and when employees challenge their comfort zones. The results offer a mechanism-based explanation aligned with OCM and socio-technical views, highlighting participation, coordination, and discretionary actions as key drivers of successful transformation. Research implications: The study emphasizes the importance of encouraging participation and cross-functional coordination to reduce resistance to change. It also points out the need to foster employee behaviours that support experimentation and learning in uncertain environments. Future research should explore industry-specific and longitudinal effects to evaluate the long-term stability and conditions influencing these outcomes. Originality/value: This research adds to the literature on digital and agile transformations by identifying two people-focused mechanisms – agile HR practices and behaviours that extend employees beyond their comfort zones – that mediate the connection between transformation efforts and performance. It enhances understanding of how socio-technical and OCM principles can work together to improve transformation results.