Iranian Journal of Ergonomics

In today's world, the complexity, instability and unpredictability of environmental changes in approaches affect the concepts of traditional organizational management. Managers are also looking for organizational tools and actions that are effective to move and guide organizational performance and to be sufficiently flexible to changing environmental conditions to improve their performance [1]. The most important tool that can help organizations to do this is undoubtedly the human resources that have the power of creativity, learning, development of abilities, skills, etc. Through these capabilities, an organization plays a unique and valuable role in gaining and increasing competitive advantage to improve its performance in achieving its goals. Therefore, organizational goals must be aligned with business strategy so that employee policy is in line with management goals.
According to management researchers, organizational architecture is a complete expression of the organization; a master plan for collaboration between aspects of business planning such as goals, visions, strategies and principles of management, aspects of business activities such as business functions and processes, organizational structures and data of the organization, aspects of automation such as information systems and databases, as well as business support technology infrastructure such as computers, operating systems and networks [9]. Attention to information technology as one of the vital infrastructures to achieve agility is very important because the relationship and interaction of organizations with various factors such as government, private sector, social, economic, political and cultural factors cause them to face different demands and expectations [10].
One of the areas affected by the new systems is the performance management of sports organizations and physical education departments; therefore, this factor should be used for agility and improving their organizational architecture by the managers of these organizations, more than before and take the necessary measures. Sports organizations and physical education departments of universities, need to manage and evaluate performance, because all aspects of the organization, from human factors to inhuman factors, are all changing with astonishing speed.
The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of organizational architecture on performance management with the mediating role of organizational agility of physical education departments of country's medical science universities.

 

The present study is applied in terms of purpose and is descriptive and survey in terms of data collection and analysis. Also, in terms of time, this research is cross-sectional. The statistical population of this study includes 216 senior managers and employees of physical education departments in medical universities of the whole country, which was selected as a statistical sample by the whole population. After attending and communicating and reducing the subjects' sensitivity about the questionnaires and the reasons for their selection in the sample, the researcher provided the necessary explanations about how to complete the questionnaires and the subjects completed the questionnaires. We used three types of questionnaires to collect the data in this study.
In the present study, depending on the objectives and hypotheses of the research, we used different methods to analyze the data. In general, at the level of descriptive statistics, we used indicators such as frequency distribution tables, mean and standard deviations, and at the level of inferential statistics, we used tests such as Kolmogorov-Smirnov test to determine the distribution of data, structural equations and path coefficient. These tests were also performed with SPSS software version 20 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Ill., USA), and PLS. One of the reasons for using PLS software is proper predictive power, testing of intervening hypotheses and the ability to test theories in the form of equations between variables. Another reason for considering measurement error by this method is that it allows the researcher to report the analysis of his data by calculating the measurement error.

Based on descriptive statistics, the statistical sample of the study is 216 people (176 males and 40 females). The highest number of statistical samples of the study with 43.51% was in the age group of 41 to 50 years and the lowest percentage of the statistical sample of the research with 4.6% was in the age group under 30 years and 94% of the statistical sample had a degree in physical education. After examining the fit of the measurement model, structural model and general model, it was time to review and test the research hypotheses.
 In order to test the main hypothesis of the research which has a mediating variable, Sobel test was used. Given the obtained Z-value, which is higher than 1.96, the hypothesis of organizational architecture on performance management with the mediating role of organizational agility of physical education departments in medical universities is confirmed. The results of the organizational architecture hypothesis test are as follows.
 

Given the obtained Z-value, which is higher than 1.96, the hypothesis of organizational architecture on performance management with the mediating role of organizational agility of physical education departments in medical universities is confirmed.
The magnitude of the effect of the mediating variable using VAF was 0.228 and according to the magnitude of the direct effect of the independent variable on the dependent which was equal to 0.799, it can be said that the magnitude of the direct effect is greater than the indirect effect.
  The amount of T-statistic obtained to affect the dimensions of organizational agility in all dimensions of the amount of T-statistic obtained is greater than 1.96. Therefore, it can be said that the dimensions of organizational agility have a significant effect on the performance management of physical education departments in medical universities.
 

The results also showed that the dimensions of organizational agility have a positive and significant effect on the performance management of physical education departments in medical universities. Agility in any organization usually includes several capabilities, including responsiveness (the ability to detect change, react quickly and take advantage of it), competency (a set of capabilities that provide productivity of activities towards the goals and objectives of the organization), flexibility (ability to process products and different services and achieving different destinations with the same facilities), and speed (ability to perform activities and operations in the shortest possible time). Organizational agility is the ability to meet unwanted challenges to overcome new and unexpected threats to the business environment and to take advantage of change as opportunities. Physical education departments in universities are government organizations, and their structures, processes, and budgets are different from those of private organizations and sectors in the field of sports. The results also showed that organizational agility plays a mediating role in the relationship between organizational architecture and performance management. In explaining the results, it can be said that one of the main and basic tools to achieve agility is organizational structure.

 In modern performance management, the aims of staffs and the purposes of the organization should be aligned and by creating coordination and providing the necessary guidance by supervisors, people feel more belonging to the organization and make the organization more agile by organizational changes.

 

This article is taken from the doctoral dissertation of the corresponding author and all participants in this study are thanked and appreciated.

 

The authors declared no conflict of interest.