Beyond Individual Performance: How Personal Demands and Organizational Constraints Shape Administrator Performance in Islamic Boarding Schools

The performance of Islamic boarding school administrators is essential to effective program implementation, yet it may be constrained by competing individual demands and organizational limitations. This study explores the factors underlying suboptimal administrator performance at Tarbiyatul Hasanah Islamic Boarding School in Semarang. An exploratory qualitative approach was employed using the Gioia Methodology. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, observation, and documentation involving 17 administrators selected through purposive sampling. The findings identify two interconnected dimensions of administrator performance: individual factors, including role conflict, motivation, commitment, psychological well-being, and work initiative; and organizational factors, including communication, role clarity, resource support, performance evaluation, and organizational governance. The central finding is that suboptimal performance emerges not from individual limitations alone but from the interaction between competing role demands and insufficient organizational support. Theoretically, this study extends the application of the Job Demands–Resources perspective to pesantren administration by illustrating how individual demands and organizational resources jointly shape performance conditions. Practically, the findings highlight the need for integrated performance improvement through better workload management, clearer responsibilities, effective coordination, systematic feedback, and adequate organizational resources.