Operationalizing the definition of e-leadership: identifying the elements of e-leadership

Abstract

The effects of the ongoing digital revolution have been profound and have been studied in many contexts such as government interaction with the public (e-participation) and administrative structures (e-administration). However, the study of how the digital revolution has changed leaders’ interactions with followers via information and communication technologies (ICTs) has been modest, and the theory building in organizational studies and public administration has been, for the most part, nonexistent. A major reason for this lack of progress is the inability to produce an operational definition of e-leadership that spans telework, team, and enterprise settings. The article examines an exploratory case study to propose an operational definition based on six factors (or broad e-competencies) for e-leadership. Research limitations and future research opportunities are discussed. Points for practitioners E-leadership, technology-mediated leadership, has become critically important for leaders at all levels, both inside and outside of the organization. E-leadership is as much about blending technologies and traditional communication as it is about simply using more ICT-mediated communication. While there is a lot of consistency in the types of leadership skills needed in traditional and virtual environments, they are not the same and the differences are critical to success and failure. The areas in which competence in e-skills were most important included: e-communication, e-social skills, e-team building, e-change management, e-technology skills, and e-trustworthiness.

The effects of national cultures on two technologically advanced countries: The case of e‐leadership in South Korea and the United States

“…In this vein, Van Wart et al. (2017, 2019) came up with a total of 16 propositions related to the ‘adoption’ and ‘utilization’ of ICTs. The adoption propositions focus on adapting a leading model from the technology adoption literature to the leadership perspective.…”

“…Appendix summarizes Van Wart et al. (2017, 2019) propositions related to e‐leadership in more detail.…”

“…We also utilized media richness theory in the communication literature and adapted technology adoption theory and competency theory. The detailed review and literature are well discussed in the articles of Van Wart, Roman, Wang, and Liu (2017, 2019) and Roman et al. (2018).…”

Exploring E-leadership Behaviour of Sri Lankan Small and Medium Enterprises

“…Especially, research about leadership skills and how the use of ICT by management would accelerate the development and commercialization of new products and services [14] are also notable advances in this field. E-leadership does not necessarily imply greater use of ICTs per se, but does imply (1) using ICTs when they are advantageous for various reasons, (2) using the best and most appropriate ICTs available relative to the value of various resources, (3) using physically present communication channels when most appropriate, and (4) using ICTs with competence such as when we would distinguish a good face-to-face speaker from a poor one on a variety of grounds [7].…”

“…E-leadership was defined by Avolio [5] as "a social influence process embedded in both proximal and distal contexts mediated by AIT (Advanced Information Technology) that can produce a change in attitudes, feelings, thinking, behaviour and performance" (p.107). E-leadership has been defined by Van Wart, et al [7] as "the effective use and blending of electronic and traditional methods of communication. It implies an awareness of current ICTs, selective adoption of new ICTs for oneself and the organization, and technical competence in using those ICTs selected".…”