![]() ![]() Moreover, the shift from manufacturing to an information economy has expanded the number of jobs amenable to remote work. Since the introduction of home computers in the 1980s and laptops and mobile phones in the 1990s, increasing numbers of office workers have become able to work from different locations. Typically, the remote location is the home, though telework centers and remote offices are alternative locations. These decentralized work arrangements were first named telework in the 1970s, defined as “work carried out in a location remote from the central offices or production facilities, where the worker has no personal contact with coworkers but is able to communicate with them electronically”. The acceleration of digital technologies has allowed common, even synchronous activities to be distributed across employees at remote locations. Today, most work teams have become virtual to some degree, though the literature has yet to incorporate the dynamic urgency of the pandemic and the impacts of rapid-fire learning of new technology and communication skills. In light of the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic, many industries experienced a rapid and overnight transition to virtual work as a result of “social distancing.” However, some scholars have argued the phrase “social distancing” in reference to the practice of physical distancing between colleagues may have dangerous connotations, potentially increasing prejudice based on age or ethnicity, isolation due to limited options for interpersonal contact, and hopelessness, given the focus on prohibitions rather than solutions. Yet, teams with a high degree of “virtuality” are not without their challenges, and when managed poorly, they often underperform face-to-face (FTF) teams. According to Hambley, O'Neil, & Kline (2007), "virtual teams require new ways of working across boundaries through systems, processes, technology, and people, which requires effective leadership." Such work often involves learning processes such as integrating and sharing different location-specific knowledge and practices, which must work in concert for the multi-unit firm to be aligned. When utilized successfully, virtual teams allow companies to procure the best expertise without geographical restrictions, to integrate information, knowledge, and resources from a broad variety of contexts within the same team, and to acquire and apply knowledge to critical tasks in global firms. Īs the proliferation of fiber optic technology has significantly increased the scope of off-site communication, there has been a tremendous increase in both the use of virtual teams and scholarly attention devoted to understanding how to make virtual teams more effective (see Stanko & Gibson, 2009 Hertel, Geister & Konradt, 2005 and Martins, Gilson & Maaynard, 2004 for reviews). Powell, Piccoli and Ives (2004) define virtual teams as "groups of geographically, organizationally and/or time dispersed workers brought together by information and telecommunication technologies to accomplish one or more organizational tasks." As documented by Gibson (2020), virtual teams grew in importance and number during 2000-2020, particularly in light of the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic which forced many workers to collaborate remotely with each other as they worked from home. ![]() The term can also refer to groups or teams that work together asynchronously or across organizational levels. A virtual team (also known as a geographically dispersed team, distributed team, or remote team ) usually refers to a group of individuals who work together from different geographic locations and rely on communication technology such as email, instant messaging, and video or voice conferencing services in order to collaborate. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |