Emergent leadership in global virtual teams

Abstract

The aim of this study is to provide a better understanding on emerging leadership in global virtual teams. Motivation towards this topic, is personal experience from the financial industry, where increased market pressures resulted in more global rather than local way of working. This led to an increase in online team meetings, which did not come without challenges. In fall 2015 the university course International Business Strategy provided me with the possibility to conduct my master’s thesis on this aspect that already interested me.

Globalization has led to an increase in market competition, pressuring firms to find new solutions. This along with the rise of technology has merged the concept of global virtual teams (GVTs), defined as diverse temporary work groups that work at distance and rely heavily on digital tools. These teams have increased their popularity as GVTs characteristics have been associated with innovativeness. Yet, these teams pose a new set of challenges: technology, culture, language, communication, trust, collective understanding of the common goal and leadership.

Due to the increasing use of these teams, GVT leadership and its impacts on efficiency have received attention in research. The role of GVT leaders has been closely related to solving problems related to virtuality, but otherwise leading these teams does not differ from traditional ones. But how does leadership emerge in a self-managed GVT with no assigned leader?

This at-home ethnography was conducted in fall 2016 by being a member of a self-managed GVT of the university course. The team was given four separate business cases to solve in the form of a video. The data of the study consists of a personal diary, reflective essays written after each case and informal interviews or group discussions held at the end of the course.

Leadership was first seen more as an individual act, but shifted towards a more collective action towards the end. The study concluded that leadership emerges and is required to solve GVT challenges. Reported leadership actions were facilitation, coordination, expertise and enabling team work that solved the language and cultural barriers, technological difficulties, and communication issues.