The research aims to determine how organizational performance is increased when soft TQM, agility, and knowledge management are aligned. It employs a model constructed from a literature review, and an empirical study conducted amongst electrical and electronics manufacturers in Malaysia. Soft TQM was found to have no significant direct relationship with organizational performance, but had a strong relationship when mediated by knowledge management. This relationship was further strengthened by the mediation of both agility and knowledge management. The empirical findings validate recent conceptual models of enablers of organizational performance, as well as contributing to the body of knowledge concerning the knowledge-based view of the firm, and the view of the firm as an epistemic community. In addition, the study identifies factors that should be considered when implementing soft TQM, agile practices, and knowledge management in an organization.

Purpose This paper aims to highlight a limitation of the understanding of agility within organizations, while providing the reasoning and anecdotal example of an effective setting where agility exists, and how this affects firms’ productivity through focusing on the principle of ownership motivation. Design/methodology/approach The contemporary thoughts and historical research with anecdotal evidence are gathered from small business owners in the insurance industry. Findings Agility implementation in firms today is mainly top-down team focused. While bottom-up input approaches are prescribed for firm organizational agility implementation, the mantle of ownership and drive are not imparted to employees. The example of a service industry highlights the possibilities of having agility within the organization implemented by direct ownership of most if not all the operations and functions. Practical implications This paper shares a working example of implemented agility and proposes the application within the broader scope of firm operations, particularly for smaller firms looking for sustainable advantages. Originality/value It re-looks at actual implementable agile practices by re-imaging the role of employees into functional business units from the bottom-up, rather than from the top-down, as a different perspective of agility.

The study empirically investigates the relationship between agility and knowledge management practices on firm performance among the electrical and electronics manufacturing firms in Malaysia. The study was conducted using a survey method. A total of 85 manufacturing firms participated in this study. The findings showed that knowledge management practices mediate the relationship between agility and firm performance, which is in line with the Knowledge-Based View (KBV) where knowledge is an asset of the firm. The findings also empirically support the theoretical conceptualization of agility as co-dependent on knowledge management. The implications for practising managers within manufacturing firms are twofold, where agility alone does not lead to increased firm performance, and the implementation of only one of the factors is suboptimal.