Agile-Based Modeling of Service Organizations Grounded in Human Resource Management (Case Study: Aseman Airlines)

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to develop a model for enhancing agility in service organizations based on human resource management. The research method was mixed in nature. In the model design phase, the statistical population included faculty members in the fields of public administration, organizational behavior, and human resource management at higher education institutions, as well as senior managers and senior experts in human resource management. In the validation phase, the population consisted of senior and middle managers of Aseman Airlines and specialists and experts familiar with the research topic. In the quantitative phase, the population included all official, contractual, and outsourced employees of Aseman Airlines in the cities of Mashhad, Tehran, and Shiraz during the winter of 2025, totaling 2,820 individuals (2,193 men and 627 women). In the qualitative phase, using the snowball sampling method, 19 experts were selected. In the validation phase, 17 experts were selected through purposive sampling. In the quantitative phase, 339 participants were selected via cluster random sampling. For data analysis, thematic analysis was used in the qualitative section, which included initial coding, theme development, and refinement using semi-structured interviews in Atlas software. In the validation section, the Delphi method was employed over three rounds using an expert assessment checklist in SPSS software. In the quantitative section, structural equation modeling was conducted using a 115-item questionnaire analyzed in Smart PLS software. To ensure validity and reliability in the qualitative phase, essential checks such as acceptability (expert review) and confirmability (expert auditing) were applied. In the validation stage, the content of the expert checklist was reviewed and approved by several academic and organizational experts for clarity and comprehensibility, and its reliability was confirmed using test-retest with a coefficient of 0.86. In the quantitative phase, the questionnaire's validity was confirmed through three approaches: face validity, content validity (CVI ranging from 0.85 to 1.00 and CVR ranging from 0.70 to 0.90), and construct validity (convergent validity ranging from 0.548 to 0.698 and discriminant validity greater than inter-construct correlations). The reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed using three methods: factor loading coefficients (greater than 0.40), Cronbach’s alpha (ranging from 0.741 to 0.838), and composite reliability (ranging from 0.837 to 0.888). According to the qualitative findings, the final model consisted of six main themes: (1) human capital leadership, (2) agile human resource culture, (3) strategic management of agile human resources, (4) design of a flexible human resource structure, (5) emerging technologies in agile human resource management, and (6) performance management and development of agile human capital. These were accompanied by 24 sub-themes and 115 indicators. The validation results confirmed the main and sub-themes identified in the qualitative phase. The quantitative results indicated that the model’s components were validated and explanatory within the real statistical population.