E-leadership effectiveness in virtual teams: motivating language perspective

Abstract

Purpose – Virtual teams are becoming a norm in current knowledge-based society and offer a wide range of organizational benefits. This paper aims to investigate the effects of leaders’ motivating language (ML) and feedback approach on virtual team members’ creativity performance. Design/methodology/approach – A 2×2 with pre-test and post-test experimental design was employed to explore how to stimulate virtual team members’ creativity performance using a group decision support system. Findings – The results show that leaders’ ML and feedback approach via e-mail instructions have different interaction effects on members’ creativity and idea generation performance. Team members receiving direction-giving instructions generate more ideas under the demanding feedback approach and team member receiving instructions with more empathetic language exhibit higher creativity performance under the encouraging feedback approach. Research limitations/implications – Shortcomings of virtual environment and leadership remain the major factors influencing such findings. Since the results are also restrained by the functionality of the utilized software tool, tools for virtual teams are recommended to include features that can support the effective use of team leaders’ motivational language. Social implications – Virtual team leaders should provide proper guidance to members using understanding and empathetic wording approach. For task-oriented work, leaders should consider giving more specific instructions and provide constant feedback for completed work. For creative work, leaders should give positive encouragement as feedback or even challenge team members to stimulate their creativity. Additionally, facilitation rules can be set up in advance so that the intelligent agent can timely send out follow-up instructions/feedback. Originality/value – The gained insights beneficially help tool developers for virtual teams build/enhance their tools based on the need of team leaders. This paper also usefully offers important implications regarding how to motivate virtual team members’ creative thinking.

E-Leadership and Teleworking in Times of COVID-19 and Beyond: What We Know and Where Do We Go

“…In most virtual teams, e-leaders should communicate and work asynchronously through AITs. Hence, time and space separation in virtual teams create important challenges for leaders by demanding extra leadership competencies in ensuring and promoting organizational management (Fan et al, 2014). Given that the coordination of virtual teams for task accomplishment, responsibility, and knowledge sharing is done through telecommunication technologies, sometimes there may be distortion in information interpretation leading to misunderstandings and employee demotivation.…”

“…Given that the coordination of virtual teams for task accomplishment, responsibility, and knowledge sharing is done through telecommunication technologies, sometimes there may be distortion in information interpretation leading to misunderstandings and employee demotivation. Thus, e-leaders should be highly competent in their verbal communications to motivate their employees (Fan et al, 2014). Virtual team leaders should avoid employees' feeling of isolation and promote team cohesion.…”

The “Way” Toward E-leadership: Some Evidence From the Field

“…Quite a good proportion of the studies were also concerned with analyzing e-leadership in relation to the challenge of managing virtual teams (Cascio and Shurygailo, 2002;Zaccaro and Bader, 2003;Chang and Lee, 2013;Fan et al, 2014;Politis, 2014;Ibañez-Cubillas and Miranda Pinto, 2019).…”

Liderando Equipes À Distância Uma Contextualização Necessária Sobre Liderança Remota E Equipes Virtuais

“…No caso de trabalho criativo, cabe ao líder dar incentivos positivos e desafiar os membros da equipe como forma de estimular a criatividade. É importante que as regras de operação da equipe sejam definidas com antecedência, para facilitar a recepção das orientações do líder por parte dos liderados (Fan, Chan, Wang, & Chen, 2014).…”

“…Ao trabalhar virtualmente, a distância amplifica as disfunções. Devido às dispersões físicas, culturais e temporais entre os membros de equipes virtuais, a liderança passa a ter papel vital na eficácia da equipe (Malhotra et al, 2007;Fan, Chan, Wang, & Chen, 2014). Nas equipes presenciais os membros podem reconhecer e solucionar problemas com mais rapidez e facilidade, especialmente problemas interpessoais.…”