Motivated by Agility, Hampered by Switching: A Boundary Perspective

Abstract

While agile working methods become more and more important in practice, the implications from applying this new work form are largely underexplored. In this paper, we contribute to the literature on the downstream effects of agile working methods from a Job-Demand-Control perspective. Our moderated mediation model suggests that agile working methods increase employees’ intrinsic task motivation through role clarity. Furthermore, we argue that this indirect effect diminishes with the frequency of switching projects. We find empirical evidence for both hypotheses using data from a field study in a manufacturing company with 206 observations of 103 employees, who were surveyed in terms of their experience with working in agile and traditional projects.