Job crafting agility: a conceptual proposition for rethinking behaviour in organizations

Abstract

Purpose

This research proposes a new construct towards the job crafting theory, termed job crafting agility. The study provides the potential contributions of job crafting agility in the context of rethinking behaviours in organizations during times of disruption and change.

Design/methodology/approach

A conceptual analysis is followed to present the construct of job crafting agility, based on a review of job crafting and agility literature.

Findings

The research proposes job-crafting agility as a dynamic and proactive process of balancing job demands and resources in response to changing or fluctuating circumstances. The study provides four propositions on job-crafting agility. This research contributes to the existing literature by proposing a new construct, job-crafting agility that can help organizations and employees adapt to changing circumstances during disruption and change. It highlights the unique components of job-crafting agility and its theoretical foundations and distinguishes the new construct from other forms of job crafting.

Research limitations/implications

The construct of job crafting agility is new and requires further empirical validation. It presents several propositions as recommendations for future studies.

Practical implications

The paper provides practical implications for organizations and managers on promoting job crafting agility among employees. It emphasizes the importance of creating a work environment that encourages flexibility, experimentation and learning to enable employees to adjust to changing circumstances effectively.

Originality/value

This research makes a novel contribution by introducing and defining job crafting agility, and advances job crafting theory by exploring how job crafting agility can foster resilience and positive organizational outcomes amid continual change and disruption.

Citation

Dhanpat, N. (2024), "Job crafting agility: a conceptual proposition for rethinking behaviour in organizations", International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOTB-03-2023-0062

Introduction

Organizations typically operate in stable environments but periodically undergo transition periods during which critical resources, technology, and institutional forces change, and organizations anticipate substantial changes of an unknown nature (Cummings and Worley, 2023). Over the years, technological advancements, economic shifts, and pandemics have disrupted organizations (Puaschunder et al., 2020). These changes often require organizations to alter their strategies, processes, and structures, which can have significant impacts on employees’ job roles and responsibilities and may necessitate top-down job-redesign strategies. Management are able to adjust the demands and resources of employees and jobs to ensure desired organizational outcomes (Oldham and Hackman, 2010). Employees are required to adapt to changes presented by modern workplaces (Roczniewska et al., 2023). Although some employees may thrive in such dynamic environments, others may struggle to adapt to the new demands and expectations.

In this study, we introduce the new concept of job crafting agility, which refers to employees’ capacity to proactively modify their jobs to better align with changing organizational demands. Job crafting ahility is a novel construct, that extends traditional job crafting by emphasizing an employee’s dynamic ability to adjust in response to rapidly evolving work demands, organizational disruptions, and environmental changes. Unlike traditional job crafting, which focuses on relatively stable changes to align with personal strengths or interests (Demerouti, 2014; Kooij et al., 2017), job crafting agility involves ongoing, flexible, and proactive modifications in response to both internal and external change.

Job crafting agility is conceptualized as both a process and a trait. As a process, job crafting agility involves employees making ongoing adjustments in response to internal and external change, such a shifting job demands, evolving technologies or new organizational stratgies. For instance, an employee who continually updates their skill set and reconfigures their tasks to match new technologies introduced in their department demonstrates job crafting agility as a process. This dynamic adaptation ensures that the employee remains aligned with changing job requirements and organizational objectives.

As a trait, it reflects the innate flexibility and responsiveness of employees to proactively engage in these adaptations and remain responsive to their work, to new challenges and environments. For example, an employee who naturally anticipates future changes in their role, seeks out training and development opportunities before changes are directed, and is consistently open to new responsibilities, this demonstrates job crafting agility as a trait. This distinction emphasizes not only the behavioural act of adapting but also the underlying capacity or agility that influences employees to act in this way. This duality adds depth to the construct and underlines its relevance in contemporary work settings.

Job crafting agility emphasizes a more dynamic and proactive approach describing employees’ capability to adapt to their job demands and resources. This involves continuous adaptation and experimenting with different ways to perform tasks, leveraging new skills, and adjusting to rapidly evolving organizational contexts.

This construct is distinguished by responsiveness to change and disruption, such as shifts in organizational priorities, changing market conditions, and technological advancements. However, it is also important to recognize that job crafting agility can be internally driven, motivated by an individual’s personal goals or evolving job roles. The importance of job crafting agility lies in its potential to enhance employees’ ability to cope with and thrive amid ongoing changes, thus contributing to both individual well-being and organizational agility.

Background and rationale

Organizations operate in rapidly changing environments (Harsch and Festing, 2020), and employees are expected to proactively shape their work beyond their tasks and social boundaries (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). Therefore, employees engage in job crafting behaviours that motivate them to achieve personal and organizational goals (Demerouti, 2014). Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001, p. 79) provided an early conceptualization of job crafting as being “the physical and cognitive changes individuals make in the task or relational boundaries of their work”. The construct of job crafting as a proactive and self-initiated change that employees make to their work tasks and relationships has gained increasing attention in work and organizational psychology research (Gori et al., 2021). Proactive behaviours are intended to align one’s personal characteristics with their job (Lazazzara et al., 2020). While prior studies have focused on the antecedents (Park and Park, 2023; Petrou et al., 2015) and consequences (Kim et al., 2018; Vogt et al., 2016) of job crafting, recent research has highlighted the importance of responding to changes through job crafting (see Buonocore et al., 2023; Petrou et al., 2018; Wojtczuk-Turek, 2022).

Despite the increased research on job crafting, several gaps remain. One area that requires further investigation is the role of context in shaping job crafting behaviours (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). For instance, little is known about how job crafting may differ in the context of disruption and organizational change.

While job crafting has been extensively studied as a proactive behaviour (see Bakker et al., 2016; Petrou et al., 2018; Zhang and Parker, 2019), the ability to swiftly and flexibly adapt to significant disruptions whether technological, organizational, or societal remains underexplored. Given the rapid pace of change in modern work environments (Cascio and Montealegre, 2016) employees must not only be proactive but also agile in how they modify their jobs. The traditional view of job crafting may be limited when considering environments characterized by uncertainty and constant change. In these contexts, employees’ ability to adjust job crafting behaviours quickly and effectively becomes critical. The literature has yet to fully address this dynamic aspect of job crafting, creating a gap in understanding how employees navigate such turbulent settings.

This focus area of research is becoming increasingly common in today’s organizations. Roczniewska et al. (2023), in their systematic review, emphasized the importance of job crafting in the face of challenges such as the pandemic and technological advances. Moreover, researchers are exploring how employees modify their job roles and tasks through job crafting, its implications for organizational change readiness (see Xu and Niu, 2022), and sensemaking during the pandemic (Stephens et al., 2020). Dhanpat (2022) suggested that more longitudinal, panel-design, and diary-design studies are needed to better understand job crafting, especially given the dynamic nature of modern organizations. Consequently, job crafting agility is likely to gain traction as organizations navigate disruptive changes. To date, the literature on job crafting has focused primarily on individuals’ proactive behaviours to shape their jobs (Devotto and Wechsler, 2019; Dhanpat, 2022). Limited attention has been given to the role of agility in job crafting. However, a study by Loghmani et al. (2023) reviewed how job crafting builds organizational agility. Park and Park (2023), in their systematic review, recommended that future research also explore how organizational change affects employees’ job scope and hence leads to job crafting. Therefore, this study proposes a more nuanced approach to job crafting that accounts for change and disruption, namely, the concept of job crafting agility.

The study introduces job crafting agility as the ability of employees to adjust their job crafting behaviours quickly and effectively in response to changing work demands and disruptive and changing contexts. Job crafting agility may be a critical resource for employees to adapt, thrive, and flourish amid the ongoing disruptions and changes in the modern workplace.

The paper aims to make several contributions to the study of job crafting agility, including conceptual clarity of the construct. Building on existing job crafting theory proposed by Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001) and Tims et al. (2012), the paper extends these theories by proposing a new construct and exploring how employees can proactively modify their jobs to better align with changing organizational demands. The aim is to advance the understanding of job crafting agility and contribute to developing more effective workplace interventions that seek positive outcomes during times of change and adaptation. This goes beyond the traditional understanding of job crafting. Specifically, the paper seeks to define job crafting agility, differentiate it from other forms of job crafting, and examine its potential outcomes and antecedents. Furthermore, the paper discusses the implications of job crafting agility for positive organizational behaviour.

Organizational agility

In recent times, organizational agility has gained significant importance owing to the rapidly changing business environment (Helfat and Peteraf, 2015; Sherehiy and Karwowski, 2014; Tseng and Lin, 2011). Organizational agility plays a critical role in firms’ ability to respond quickly and effectively to evolving circumstances and uncertainty, and it is a vital factor in successfully navigating change and uncertainty (Helfat and Peteraf, 2015). According to Saha et al. (2017), organizations that prioritize agility are better equipped to identify and respond to emerging opportunities and threats in the market, adapt to changing customer needs and preferences, and pivot their business strategies. Saha et al. (2017) argue that, for organizations to become agile, they must be able to innovate and integrate new knowledge, which ensures the sustainability of organizational learning and performance development. Agile organizations are characterized by their ability to mobilize their entire workforce to react to workplace transformations and new challenges (Muduli, 2016). The benefits associated with an agile workforce include increased productivity (Braun et al., 2017) and business growth (Sherehiy and Karwowski, 2014).

Muduli (2016) concisely suggests that agility is the ability of employees to respond successfully to unpredictable and continuous changes. Organizational scholars have recognized that organizational agility is closely tied to employees’ ability to react and adapt to changes (Müceldili et al., 2020) and take advantage of new opportunities (Chonko and Jones, 2005). Research has shown that a proactive, an adaptable, and a resilient workforce is crucial for achieving organizational agility (Doeze Jager-van Vliet et al., 2019; Pereira et al., 2021).

This study introduces the concept of job crafting agility, which is closely related to but distinct from employee agility. Studies have shown that proactivity, adaptability, and resilience are the most prevalent behaviours linked to workforce agility (Fischer et al., 2017). While there are many different definitions and conceptualizations of agility (Salmen and Festing, 2021), it is important to understand employee agility rather than focusing solely on organizational agility. Employee agility refers to the capacity of individual employees to adapt and respond quickly to changes, thereby contributing significantly to organizational outcomes (Harsch and Festing, 2020). In contrast, job crafting agility focuses specifically on how employees actively reshape their work roles and tasks to enhance their adaptability in response to organizational change and disruption. By integrating the literature on job crafting and agility, this study aims to provide a more comprehensive understanding of how these concepts interact and contribute to positive outcomes in work and organizational psychology.

Job crafting: overview and current state of research

Overview of job crafting

Job crafting is characterized as a bottom-up, self-initiated form of proactive behaviour (Rudolph et al., 2017; Tims and Bakker, 2010), whereby employees take an active role in shaping their work experiences by intentionally altering the boundaries of their work related to their tasks, responsibilities, and relationships with others (Berg et al., 2010). This process allows employees to adjust their work to better fit their preferences and needs (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001) and involves creating, altering, or deleting tasks, relationships, and cognitive appraisals of their work (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). Job crafting can occur at the individual level or be facilitated by the work environment and social networks (Tims and Bakker, 2010), and it is a dynamic and ongoing process (Berg et al., 2013) that allows employees to tailor their work to meet their changing needs and interests (Tims et al., 2013). It highlights job-related actions (Wrzesniewski et al., 2013).

Job crafting has been conceptualized by various organizational scholars (Bruning and Campion, 2018; Slemp and Vella-Brodrick, 2013; Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001; Zhang and Parker, 2019). Two dominant perspectives of job crafting exist: the original conceptualization focused on task, relational, and cognitive changes at work as employees discover meaning and work identity. Subsequently, Tims and Bakker’s (2010) conceptualization operationalized job crafting based on the job demands–resources (JD-R) model.

Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001) presented three types of job crafting strategy: task, relational, and cognitive. Bruning and Campion (2018) and Zhang and Parker (2019) expanded on this by adding job crafting orientations, specifically approach oriented and avoidance oriented. Approach job crafting involves seeking and taking action to achieve positive aspects of work, while avoidance job crafting involves actions aimed at avoiding or moving away from negative aspects of work (Zhang and Parker, 2019). In a meta-analysis by Lichtenthaler and Fischbach (2019), the concepts of promotion-focused and prevention-focused job crafting were differentiated. Their study integrated resource- and role-based job crafting conceptualizations into one job crafting model.

Researchers have described job crafting using various terms and definitions. However, one common feature in all of these definitions is the emphasis on employees’ taking the initiative to change their jobs (Rudolph et al., 2017; Slemp and Vella-Brodrick, 2013; Tims et al., 2013). This bottom-up approach distinguishes job crafting from other organizational change forms typically initiated by top-level management (Berg et al., 2010). Job crafting agility differs from the initial conceptualization of job crafting (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001) and Tims and Bakker’s (2010) operationalization of job crafting based on the JD-R model. The initial conceptualization focused on task, relational, and cognitive changes, whereas Tims and Bakker’s conceptualization emphasized the employee’s active modification of job demands and resources. We adapted the definitions by Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001) and Tims and Bakker (2010) to define job crafting agility as the ability of employees to adjust their job crafting behaviours quickly and effectively in response to changing work demands and contexts. Hence, job crafting agility provides a new perspective on job crafting that highlights the importance of employees’ agility and adaptability in crafting their jobs.

Conceptualization of job crafting agility

Slemp and Vella-Brodrick (2013) suggest that employees engage in job crafting, namely task, relational, and cognitive crafting, to match their personal strengths, interests, and values. Previous research has shown that job crafting has positive effects on job satisfaction (De Beer et al., 2016), well-being (Hakanen et al., 2018; Harju et al., 2021), meaningful work (Dhanpat et al., 2019), and organizational performance (Geldenhuys and Peral, 2020). However, despite the recognized benefits of job crafting, it has been studied mainly in the context of individual-level outcomes.

The construct of job crafting agility extends beyond the traditional job crafting concept and considers how employees can adapt and continuously reshape their work tasks and relationships to meet changing organizational demands. This concept is particularly relevant in today’s fast-paced and constantly evolving work environment, in which organizations must be able to respond quickly to shifts in the market, changing customer demands, and technological advancements. Moreover, the nature of work has been transformed significantly by the rise of remote work, hybrid work models, and rapidly changing work environments (Babapour Chafi et al., 2022; Dhanpat et al., 2022). These changes have led to increased demands for adaptiveness and flexibility in the workplace, and employees are increasingly required to respond quickly and effectively to new circumstances and changing job demands (Ulrich and Yeung, 2019).

Job crafting agility may be differentiated from other forms of job crafting in several ways. First, job crafting agility is a proactive and dynamic process that involves adjusting job demands and resources in response to changing and fluctuating circumstances, as is presented in the current study. In contrast, other forms of job crafting, such as task crafting, relational crafting, and cognitive crafting, as presented by Wrzesniewski and Dutton (2001), tend to be more static and focused on specific aspects of the job, which includes changing the boundaries of one’s work. This approach to job crafting is operationalized as a role-based approach (Tims et al., 2022).

Second, job crafting agility is based on the premise that an individual has the ability to adapt to changing circumstances rather than specific job preferences or goals (see Tims et al., 2022; van den Heuvel et al., 2015). This means that job crafting agility involves a degree of flexibility and adaptability, whereas other forms of job crafting may be more focused on achieving specific goals or optimizing specific aspects of the job to enhance well-being (see Slemp and Vella-Brodrick, 2014; Van Wingerden et al., 2017).

Third, job crafting agility involves a degree of experimentation and learning. To be agile in adapting to changing circumstances, employees must be willing to try new approaches and learn from their experiences. Other forms of job crafting may be less focused on experimentation and learning and may instead rely on existing knowledge and skills. As such, several studies on job crafting focus on current work outcomes (see Brenninkmeijer and Hekkert-Koning, 2015; Karatepe and Kim, 2023; Rudolph et al., 2017).

Finally, job crafting agility is closely tied to the concept of organizational agility, which refers to an organization’s ability to adapt to changing circumstances (Park and Park, 2023). Specifically, individual agility, demonstrated through job crafting, can contribute to overall organizational agility by enabling the organization to respond more effectively to change. In contrast, other forms of job crafting may be more focused on individual-level outcomes (see Rudolph et al., 2017), such as job satisfaction (see De Beer et al., 2016) or performance (see Geldenhuys and Peral, 2020).

Overall, job crafting agility can be differentiated from other forms of job crafting based on its focus on adaptation and flexibility, its proactive and dynamic nature, its focus on experimentation and learning, and its connection to organizational agility. Based on the varying approaches to job crafting we are unaware of studies on job crafting agility. However, studies have positioned job crafting with change, flexibility, and agility.

Table 1 compares three types of job crafting: job crafting agility, Wrzesniewski and Dutton’s (2001) original conceptualization of job crafting, and job crafting based on the JD-R model (Tims et al., 2013). The table outlines the definitions, focus, antecedents, outcomes, and emphasis of each type of job crafting. Job crafting agility focuses on short-term changes in response to rapid changes in the external environment, while original job crafting focuses on long-term changes based on employee personal preferences, strengths, and passions. JD-R-model job crafting involves balancing job demands and resources to improve well-being and performance. The table highlights the importance of adaptability, autonomy, and self-expression in job crafting and the potential benefits of increased job satisfaction, work engagement, and well-being.

Discussion of propositions

The following propositions are presented to create a theoretical base for job crafting agility, grounded in existing research and practical applications. Job crafting agility places emphasis on adaptability, flexibility, and continuous learning in response to changing work environments. By integrating concepts from the broader literature on job crafting theory and organizational behaviour, these propositions aim to deepen the understanding of how employees can effectively navigate and shape their work to align with both personal and organizational goals. Each proposition provides a comprehensive framework to explore the impact of job crafting agility on individual and organizational outcomes.

Proposition 1.

Job crafting agility is a dynamic and proactive process that involves adjusting job demands and resources in response to changing and fluctuating circumstances

Job crafting, which involves employees’ actively shaping the boundaries of their job to align with their personal and professional goals, has been the subject of considerable research in recent years. Tims and Bakker (2010) proposed that job crafting can be operationalized based on the JD-R model and includes changes employees make to balance their job demands and resources. Their study established that job demands could lead to burnout and other adverse outcomes, while job resources can contribute to engagement and positive outcomes. Some studies have established that job crafting behaviours can be crucial for successful organizational change (Petrou et al., 2015, 2017). In addition, Slemp and Vella-Brodrick (2013) developed the Job Crafting Questionnaire to measure the degree to which employees engage in job crafting behaviours.

Proposition 1 builds on this existing literature by suggesting that job crafting agility is a dynamic and proactive process that involves adjusting job demands and resources in response to changing circumstances. This proposition is supported by Tims et al. (2013), who found that job crafting behaviours can have a positive impact on job demands and resources, and by Slemp and Vella-Brodrick (2013), who emphasized the importance of employees’ taking a proactive approach to job crafting. Ultimately, this proposition highlights the need for employees to be agile in their job crafting behaviours, adjusting their job demands and resources to ensure that their jobs remain aligned with their goals and priorities.

Proposition 2.

Job crafting agility requires a degree of flexibility and adaptability

Proposition 1 states that job crafting agility is a dynamic and proactive process that involves adjusting job demands and resources in response to changing and fluctuating circumstances. To effectively engage in job crafting agility, the current study suggests in Proposition 2 that employees need to be flexible and adaptable in their approach to work. Employees need to be able to identify changes in job demands and resources quickly and adjust their work behaviours accordingly.

Previous research has highlighted the importance of flexibility and adaptability in job crafting. Research has shown that job crafting can contribute to employee and organizational sustainability, which are vital in transformational work environments (Demerouti and Bakker, 2013). Moreover, proactive behaviours such as job crafting can be useful during organizational change. Enhancing one’s ability to adapt to the demands posed by work environments can result in sustainable employee change (Le Blanc et al., 2017). According to Petrou et al. (2017), job crafting behaviours are positively related to successful organizational change, and this relationship is partially mediated by employee adaptability. In addition, Tims and Bakker (2010) noted that job crafting requires the ability to be flexible and adaptable in one’s approach to work, as individuals need to be able to modify job demands and resources to fit their own needs and preferences.

Furthermore, job crafting agility may require individuals to be open-minded and willing to experiment with new approaches to work. Berg et al. (2010) found that employees who engage in job crafting remain adaptive in the pursuit of proactive behaviours. They are often characterized by a sense of creativity and openness to change, which may help them to be more adaptable in their approach to work. Moreover, Afsar et al. (2019), transformational leaders were found to play a pivotal role in a changing business context, as they can increase employees’ adaptability by expanding their job scope to better deal with changes and demands in the internal and external organizational environments.

In summary, job crafting agility requires a degree of flexibility and adaptability to adjust effectively to changing circumstances in the workplace. This includes quickly identifying changes in job demands and resources, modifying one’s approach to work, and being open-minded and willing to experiment with new techniques to work.

Proposition 3.

Job crafting agility involves experimentation and learning

The third proposition suggests that individuals who engage in job crafting are willing to try new things, explore different approaches, and learn from their experiences. Matsuo (2019) suggests that job crafting behaviours may be promoted by providing opportunities for employees to reflect on their job experiences. This allows individuals to draw lessons from both their successful and their failed experiences. Employees with a strong learning goal orientation tend to reflect on their work processes, which enables them to redesign and reassess their jobs to make them more challenging. Berg et al. (2013) indicate that employees engage in job crafting for their personal motives and to optimize their work experience (Tims et al., 2015). It is important to note that learning is essential to job crafting agility. As such, job crafting agility interventions in the form of training programmes could lead to desirable outcomes for employees and the organization. Job crafting interventions lead to desired employee and organizational changes (Demerouti et al., 2019).

Individuals who participate in job crafting need to be receptive to feedback and willing to learn from their experiences. Feedback fosters learning and increases job competence (Bakker, 2010). Moreover, employees pursue opportunities for growth and development and seek new knowledge and skills that can help them to be more effective in their work (Dachner et al., 2021). Thus, through experimentation and learning, employees are able to remain flexible and adaptive in order to succeed in a rapidly changing work environment (Pulakos et al., 2019).

Proposition 4.

Job crafting agility is linked to the concept of organizational agility

Current research on job crafting supports the notion of job crafting agility, as studies have alluded that job crafting allows employees to proactively optimize their jobs (Gordon et al., 2018). The research shows that employees who initiate job crafting demonstrate adaptive and proactive behaviours (Berg et al., 2010).

Schabram and Maitlis (2017) suggest that job crafting is an individual adaptive response by an individual when they face obstacles in the work environment. This proactive behaviour allows the employee to better align the tasks and cognitive and relational boundaries of their work with their personal needs and interests, resulting in developing their values and helping them to find meaning in their work (Berg et al., 2010; Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). This can lead to more innovative and flexible organizational practices, which, in turn, can enhance the organization’s agility.

Conceptualization of job crafting agility, based on propositions

The four propositions developed above may be advanced to best define and conceptualize job crafting agility as:

• (1)

  the ability of employees to proactively and dynamically adjust their job demands and resources in response to changing circumstances, in order to align their work with their personal and professional goals (Proposition 1);

• (2)

  the degree of flexibility and adaptability that employees exhibit when making changes to their jobs, in order to better balance their job demands and resources (Proposition 2);

• (3)

  employees’ experimenting with different approaches to their work and learning from both successful and failed experiences, in order to continuously improve their job design (Proposition 3); and

• (4)

  the extent to which employees are able to quickly and effectively adapt their jobs to changing internal and external organizational environments, in order to increase organizational agility (Proposition 4).

Implications for practice

Organizations need to facilitate a culture of innovation and continuous improvement by promoting job crafting agility through creating platforms within organizations for employees to share their job crafting experiences. By doing so, employees are encouraged to experiment and learn from one another, which will lead to an environment of continuous improvement. Such a culture can lead to increased employee engagement and well-being, as employees are likely to feel empowered to take ownership of their work, thereby making meaningful contributions to the organization. Therefore, organizations that prioritize fostering a culture of job crafting agility are likely to see benefits with regard to both individual and organizational outcomes.

Although the current study posits the concept of job crafting agility during disruption and change, it should be considered a versatile concept that can be applied in varying contexts beyond disruption and change. As such, job crafting agility has the potential to be beneficial during career transitions, varying work arrangements, or even during organizational restructuring. By cultivating job crafting agility, individuals can navigate various work circumstances, professional challenges, and opportunities.

Job crafting agility is likely to have significant implications for employees and organizations. Earlier conceptualizations of job crafting have significantly affected individual and organizational outcomes (Tims and Parker, 2020; Zhang and Parker, 2019). As organizations continue to face disruptions and change, employees who are agile at job crafting are likely to be better equipped to adapt to new demands and work effectively in such dynamic environments (Walk and Handy, 2018), as these employees are likely to cope better with work-related stress and demands. This could result in improved employee performance, work engagement, and well-being, as well as better organizational outcomes such as increased productivity, as has been revealed in other studies on job crafting. More specifically, employees and, by extension, their organizations may have greater flexibility and agility in responding to changing organizational needs.

Various studies have been conducted on job crafting interventions to enhance work engagement (Kuijpers et al., 2020), maintain employee well-being (Demerouti et al., 2019), and increase performance (van Wingerden and Poell, 2017). Demerouti et al. (2021) noted, in an intervention study relevant to the context of the present study, that engaging in job crafting activities could serve as an efficient strategy for effectively adapting to organizational changes. Therefore, by promoting job crafting agility among employees, organizations may foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement, as employees are encouraged to proactively modify their work tasks and relationships to better meet changing organizational demands (Roczniewska et al., 2023). Organizations may promote job crafting agility among their workers through interventions such as training programmes that focus on developing employees’ awareness of and self-efficacy in job crafting (Tims et al., 2014) and their response to work demands.

To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to introduce the new concept of job crafting agility. As it is a new concept in the field of organizational behaviour, as with any new concept, there are potential limitations or challenges associated with its implementation. We acknowledge that a potential limitation is that not all employees may have the desire to engage in job crafting (Tims and Bakker, 2010). It is likely that some employees may lack the capacity to make changes in their work on account of changing work demands and contexts. As a result, they may struggle to adapt to new challenges or opportunities. Employees may be resistant to change, lack awareness of their strengths, or have no passion for shaping the experiences of their work. Research has shown that personality traits such as proactive personality (see Liao, 2022; Vermooten et al., 2019) and self-efficacy (see Tims et al., 2014) are essential in influencing job crafting and suggests that some employees may be better suited to job crafting than others (Tims and Bakker, 2010; Tims et al., 2012).

Another potential challenge is that job crafting may not be supported by the organization. A lack of support from supervisors can hinder job crafting, but inclusive leadership can create a favourable context for employees to achieve their job crafting goals by recognizing individual differences and personal goals (Carmeli et al., 2010; Leana et al., 2009; Xin et al., 2021). To promote job crafting, organizations should implement interventions that emphasize the importance of social support and empowering leadership, which work best in combination with each other (Audenaert and Decramer, 2018; Bakker et al., 2007).

Recommendations for future research

Job crafting has been studied extensively through various conceptualizations, and the same needs to be done for job crafting agility. With regard to developing a measure for job crafting agility, future researchers may consider using mixed methods approaches to capture the complexity and dynamics of the construct. For example, interviews could be used to explore employees’ experiences and perceptions of job crafting agility to inform the development of a quantitative measure. Subsequently, a measure that encapsulates the dimensions in the study needs to be developed and validated to understand the construct better. As a starting point, further methodological considerations for researching job crafting agility should be explored, such as developing objective measures that can be validated and used reliably across different contexts. Using a newly developed measure as a point of departure, future researchers may consider longitudinal studies that track changes in job crafting agility over time, through weekly or diary studies, and assess its effects on individual and organizational outcomes such as job satisfaction, performance, turnover, and well-being. While longitudinal and diary studies dominate job crafting research, cross-sectional studies could be conducted across various occupations, industries, and organizational contexts. This would assist in establishing the factors that facilitate or hinder job crafting agility in various settings.

Future researchers should also investigate the role of job crafting agility in promoting organizational agility and resilience in the face of disruption and change. This will necessitate an exploration of the impact of organizational interventions designed to enhance job crafting agility. Future research should consider quasi-experimental designs. Based on the aforementioned recommendations, this should be considered a clarion call to contribute to and advance empirical research.

Table 2 provides specific recommendations based on each of the propositions made in this study in order to contribute towards empirical studies on job crafting agility.

Conclusion

The concept of job crafting agility has emerged as a promising area of research for scholars interested in employee well-being, engagement, and organizational effectiveness. This paper has contributed to the development of this concept by exploring its various dimensions, including its dynamic and proactive nature, its ties to learning and experimentation, and its links to organizational agility. Specifically, the objectives of defining job crafting agility, differentiating it from other forms of job crafting, proposing a measure, and examining its potential outcomes and antecedents have been met, providing conceptual clarity and establishing a foundation for further research. The findings suggest that job crafting agility is a critical skill that employees should possess in today’s rapidly changing work environment and that organizations can benefit from fostering a culture that supports this type of behaviour. By embracing job crafting agility, employees may proactively shape their jobs to align with their personal and professional goals, and organizations may enhance their agility and competitiveness. However, further research is needed to understand the potential benefits of job crafting agility fully. Nonetheless, it is clear that this emerging concept holds significant promise for organizations seeking to adapt and thrive in the face of change.

Table 1

Comparison of job-crafting agility, original job crafting, and job demands–resources-model job crafting

Aspect	Job-crafting agility	Original job crafting	Job demands-resources model job crafting
Definition	Employees’ proactively changing work environment in response to rapid changes in external environment	Employees’ proactively changing work environment to align with personal preferences, strengths, and motives	Employees’ proactively changing work environment to balance job demands and resources
Focus	Short-term changes	Long-term changes	Both short-term and long-term changes
Antecedents	Rapid changes in external environment	Employee personal preferences, strengths, and motives	Job demands and resources
Outcomes	Adaptation to changes, improved performance, job satisfaction	Improved job satisfaction, work engagement, and well-being	Reduced job demands, increased job resources, work engagement, and well-being
Emphasis	Agility and flexibility in response to changing environment	Increased meaning and work identity	Balancing job demands and resources to improve well-being and performance

Source(s): Author’s own compilation

Table 2

Propositions and recommendations

Proposition	Recommendation for future studies
Proposition 1: Job-crafting agility is a dynamic and proactive process that involves adjusting job demands and resources in response to changing and fluctuating circumstances	Through intervention studies, such as training programmes, future studies can focus on how organizations can create a culture that encourages job-crafting agility and how employees can be trained to develop job-crafting agility
Proposition 2: Job-crafting agility requires a degree of flexibility and adaptability	Future studies can explore the relationship between job-crafting agility and personality traits, such as openness to experience and adaptability. Fluctuations in these variables over time may be studied through longitudinal-design studies, such as weekly and diary studies
Proposition 3: Job-crafting agility involves experimentation and learning	Future studies may examine how organizations can create a learning environment that encourages job-crafting agility, such as providing opportunities for employees to experiment with different job tasks and feedback to encourage learning
Proposition 4: Job-crafting agility is linked to the concept of organizational agility	Future studies may investigate how job-crafting agility can contribute to organizational agility and how organizations can foster job-crafting agility to increase their overall agility