团队虚拟性的维度研究

为了解决不同的虚拟性定义导致无法准确地衡量团队虚拟程度及其对绩效的影响,在分析国外团队虚拟性研究的基础上,提出了虚拟性三维模型:对虚拟工具的依赖程度、沟通的信息丰富度以及团队成员的多样化程度,并分析了三者之间的关系;指出此三维模型对管理理论和实践的影响。     

虚拟科研团队中成员个性与知识贡献关系的实证研究

虚拟科研团队已经成为跨国校际研究合作的一种发展趋势。在远距离虚拟科研团队中,成员是否愿意分享本地知识将关系到整个团队项目的成败。本文借用社会交换理论,提出团队成员的个性差异变量会影响知识共享行为的假设,并通过对21个虚拟科研团队151名成员的问卷调研发现:与经典的组织理论假设相反,在虚拟科研团队中,成员交换意识越强,经济收益和社会收益对知识贡献行为的正面影响越弱。这一研究启示了虚拟科研团队在选择激励机制时应重视激励因素与成员个性因素的交互作用,避免负面影响。     

沟通技术和时间因素对虚拟团队过程影响实验研究

以学生为实验对象,进行由48个3人组参与的2×2因子实验,对不同技术条件和团队发展阶段下的虚拟团队进行模拟.通过时实验对象的问卷调查,收集贫瘠和丰富沟通技术条件下虚拟团队在早期阶段和后期阶段的信任水平、冲突水平和绩效水平数据,并以此分析两类沟通技术在虚拟团队发展的不同阶段对团队内冲突和信任水平的影响以及虚拟团队过程中信任的调节作用和绩效的反馈作用.研究结果表明,在虚拟团队发展的早期阶段,丰富度高的沟通技术会引发更多的关系冲突,不利于团队信任的建立,并且在促使成员积极讨论任务方面的优势并不明显;在虚拟团队发展的后期阶段,团队中的信任和冲突水平受到前期绩效的反馈作用和技术变更的影响,早期绩效对后期团队内冲突和信任具有显著的反馈作用,技术变更带来关系冲突水平的增加,而沟通技术在后期阶段将不再是影响团队内信任和冲突的主要因素;信任的调节作用在虚拟情境下得到验证.     

个人人际网络特征对虚拟团队成员绩效影响的实证研究

在对社会网络理论和虚拟团队相关文献进行深入检索和分析的基础上,归纳出网络结构(稀疏性、中心性)和知识多样性等个人人际网络特征变量,提出影响虚拟团队成员绩效(总体绩效和创新绩效)的4项假设.然后,对日本电报电话公司移动通信网分公司内部"MAGIC"项目小组的绩效问题进行了实证研究,假设得到验证.研究结果表明,网络结构和知识多样性对个人绩效存在显著的促进作用,可为高科技企业中类似的虚拟团队员工的绩效管理提供参考.     

心理契约对目标绩效的影响研究:以工作满意和努力为中介变量

编制了建设项目团队成员心理契约、工作满意、工作努力、目标绩效的调查问卷,对9家国有企业建设项目的300多名团队成员进行实地调查,共收集278份有效问卷,构建了建设项目团队成员心理契约对目标绩效的影响关系并以工作满意、工作努力作为中介变量的结构模型,采用验证性因素分析法和结构方程模型方法进行分析,研究结果表明:建设项目团队成员心理契约由交易型、关系型和管理型心理契约构成;工作满意对建设项目团队成员心理契约满足程度与建设项目关系绩效的关系具有完全中介作用;工作努力对建设项目团队成员关系型、管理型心理契约满足程度与建设项目任务绩效的关系具有完全中介作用。最后,基于结论给出构建建设项目团队成员激励及目标实现机制的管理启示。     

浅析电视媒介人力资源团队构建——基于能力互补增值视角

电视媒介是视听合一的传播媒介,随着电视的普及,电视媒介传播效果逐渐增强。电视媒介团队成员之间的能力互补是形成媒介团队整体优势,实现电视媒介效益增值,完成组织战略目标的重要因素。文章从能力互补增值视角,分析了电视媒介所必须的五类不同能力的人力资源类型,并通过媒介团队文化的建设、团队成员的磨合和团队沟通来实现五类人力资源的整合,从而构建成为优秀的电视媒介团队。     

团队成员创新行为的两层影响因素:个人目标取向与团队创新气氛

当代企业的发展越来越依赖于创新型员工与创新型团队,影响个人创新行为的主要因素一直是研究者关注的热点.本文根据目标取向理论的相关研究结论,将团队创新气氛因素纳入到目标取向对团队成员创新行为影响的研究中.通过对70个团队(包含352个团队成员)样本的调查,运用分层线性模型分析技术,对个人层次目标取向与团队层次创新气氛时创新行为的主效应与交互效应进行了分析.结果表明:团队成员学习目标取向对其创新行为具有显著正向影响,且这种正向效应不会受到团队创新气氛的调节作用;成员证明目标取向对其创新行为的正向影响不显著,但团队创新气氛可以显著调节(增强)这种正向效应;成员回避目标取向对其创新行为具有显著负向影响,但团队创新气氛可以显著调节(减弱)这种负向效应.最后讨论了本研究的管理启示、研究局限及研究展望.     

研发团队反思的结构检验及其对团队效能与效率的影响

团队已经成为动态环境下企业从事研发活动的基本工作单元,而团队反思是影响团队绩效的—个关键因素.本研究通过借鉴国外相关研究结论、企业访谈与小组讨论,编制测量研发团队反思的问卷.预试样本的探索性分析表明,研发团队反思为三因素结构,即任务反省、过程反省与行动调整.然后通过对正式样本的调查分析,验证了研发团队反思的三维结构模型;分析结果还表明团队反思的三因素对任务绩效与合作满意均能产生显著正向影响,行动调整对团队效率也产生显著正向影响,而任务反省与过程反省对团队效率没有显著影响.     

浅谈信息系统项目团队的沟通管理

信息系统项目中很多工作需要充分沟通。有效的沟通能使项目团队达成共识、明确分工职责,有利于团队关系的融洽。保持良好的畅通的沟通渠道,是建设一支高效的开发团队、取得项目成功的关键。本文笔者谈谈项目经理如何与项目团队成员进行有效的沟通,探讨沟通管理在项目团队建设中作用。     

MBA学生团队学习效果及影响因素研究

团队学习是管理教育中普遍存在的教学方式。以158名M BA学生组成的35个学习团队为样本,侧重探讨团队内部的认知活动和人际互动的质量对团队学习效果的影响。研究结果发现:团队成员间的沟通质量影响团队共享心智模型的建立,从而影响团队学习效果;团队成员中搭便车的行为会对团队成员的满意度产生消极影响,并降低团队学习效果;团队成员在学习中沟通和人际互动的质量会影响到学习之外的友谊关系。     

Linking CIO–CMO Communication and Product Innovation via Virtual Customer Environment Engagement: A Moderated Mediation Study

Intuitively, we would expect that CIO–CMO communication plays a minimal role in product innovation performance, because product innovation is primarily driven by firms’ market orientation, knowledge of customer needs and cross-functional integration among marketing, R&D and operations management. In a sharp contrast to this perspective, we propose that CIO–CMO communication increases product innovation performance through enhancing virtual customer environment (VCE) engagement. Such proposed effects are supported by two studies with different samples (i.e. MBA alumni in Study 1 and a representative sample in Study 2) and different performance measures (i.e. subjective ratings in Study 1 and objective sales data in Study 2). Furthermore, the effect of CIO–CMO communication on product innovation performance via VCE engagement is contingent upon two situational factors, namely marketing–IT integration policy and market uncertainty. The effect of CIO–CMO communication on product innovation performance via VCE engagement is positive and significant when marketing–IT integration policy is strong or when market uncertainty is high, but not when marketing–IT integration policy is weak or when market uncertainty is low. Theoretical contributions and managerial implications of these findings are discussed, especially on how managers can capitalize on CIO–CMO communication and VCE engagement to enhance the success of new product innovation.     

The Alignment between Organizational Critical Success Factors and Information Technology Capability in Academic Institutions*

Alignment between organizational critical success factors (CSFs) and competencies is widely believed to improve performance. This study examines the performance implications of alignment between CSFs and one source of competence, the organization's information technology (IT) capability. The effects of three antecedent factors–environmental uncertainty, integration, and IT management sophistication–are also examined. This paper uses survey data from 244 large academic institutions, along with some secondary data. Following the profile deviation approach to measure alignment, the academic institutions are divided into three clusters based on their CSFs: the academic comprehensives, the reputed giants, and the small educators. The ideal profile of IT capability is next developed for each cluster in terms of four dimensions: information retrieval, electronic communication, computing facilities for students, and computer-aided education. Alignment is then computed for each institution as the proximity of its IT capability profile from the ideal IT capability profile for the cluster to which it belongs. The results suggest that alignment facilitates both perceived IT success and organizational performance. Moreover, sophisticated IT management facilitates both alignment and perceived IT success, environmental uncertainty facilitates perceived IT success but not alignment, and integration facilitates neither alignment nor perceived IT success.     

An investigation of project complexity's influence on team communication using Monte Carlo simulation

Research using empirical methods has established a curvilinear relationship between team communication and performance. We conduct virtual experiments to examine team communication and performance when teams work under varying types and levels of project complexity. Data samples, generated using Monte Carlo simulation, are based on the statistical characteristics of empirical data collected from 60 cross-functional project teams that communicated over multiple media (email, phone, and face-to-face) and were completing projects of varying complexity. Regression analysis indicates that project complexity influences the communication-performance relationship. Optimization shows that the communication frequencies at which teams maximize or minimize their performance are dependent upon media used.     

Virtual Teams versus Face-to-Face Teams: An Exploratory Study of a Web-based Conference System*

Many organizations are forming “virtual teams” of geographically distributed knowledge workers to collaborate on a variety of workplace tasks. But how effective are these virtual teams compared to traditional face-to-face groups? Do they create similar teamwork and is information exchanged as effectively? An exploratory study of a World Wide Web-based asynchronous computer conference system known as Meeting Web™ is presented and discussed. It was found that teams using this computer-mediated communication system (CMCS) could not outperform traditional (face-to-face) teams under otherwise comparable circumstances. Further, relational links among team members were found to be a significant contributor to the effectiveness of information exchange. Though virtual and face-to-face teams exhibit similar levels of communication effectiveness, face-to-face team members report higher levels of satisfaction. Therefore, the paper presents steps that can be taken to improve the interaction experience of virtual teams. Finally, guidelines for creating and managing virtual teams are suggested, based on the findings of this research and other authoritative sources.     

Team Dispersion,Information Technology,and Project Performance

The impact of information technology (IT) on the performance of distributed projects is not well understood. Although prior research has documented that dispersion among project teams has an adverse effect on project performance, the role of IT as an enabler of communication to bridge the spatial distance among team members in distributed networks has not been empirically studied. We focus on the role of IT as a moderator of the relationship between team dispersion and project performance using projects as the unit of analysis. We find that IT mitigates the negative effect of team dispersion on project performance, especially in high information volume projects. Our central contribution is the development of an empirically tested model to improve the understanding of the operational impact of IT as a vehicle to bridge spatial dispersion among distributed teams that are engaged in knowledge‐intensive work.     

An Exploratory Analysis of the Value of the Skills of IT Personnel: Their Relationship to IS Infrastructure and Competitive Advantage

Determining and assessing the requisite skills of information technology (IT) personnel have become critical as the value of IT has risen in modern organizations. In addition to technical skills traditionally expected of IT personnel, softer skills like managerial, business, and interpersonal skills have been increasingly cited in previous studies as mandatory for these employees. This paper uses a typology of IT personnel skills—technology management skills, business functional skills, interpersonal skills, and technical skills—and investigates their relationships to two information systems (IS) success variables, IS infrastructure flexibility and the competitive advantage provided by IS. The study investigates these relationships using the perceptions of chief information officers (CIOs) from mostly Fortune 2000 companies. The contributions of this study are: IT personnel skills do affect IS success, technical skills are viewed as the most important skill set in affecting IS infrastructure flexibility and competitive advantage, and modularity is viewed as more valuable to competitive advantage than integration. Several explanations are offered for the lack of positive relationships between the softer IT personnel skills and the dimensions of IS success used in this study.     

Transformational leadership in context: Face-to-face and virtual teams

This experimental study examined transformational leadership in the context of traditional teams using face-to-face communication and virtual teams using computer-mediated communication. Thirty-nine leaders led both face-to-face and virtual teams. Repeated-measures analyses revealed similar mean levels of transformational leadership in both team types; however, leader rank order varied across team type. Post hoc analyses revealed that the most effective leaders where those who increased their transformational leadership in virtual teams. Furthermore, analyses at the team level revealed that the effect of transformational leadership on team performance was stronger in virtual than in face-to-face teams. Team-member ratings of transformational leadership were equally linked to project satisfaction in face-to-face and virtual teams. Considered as a whole, our results suggest that transformational leadership has a stronger effect in teams that use only computer-mediated communication, and that leaders who increase their transformational leadership behaviors in such teams achieve higher levels of team performance.     

The Role of Brokers and Social Identities in the Development of Capabilities in Global Virtual Teams

While organizations are increasingly relying on global virtual teams (GVTs) to carry out knowledge intensive activities, the understanding of how GVTs develop capabilities is still limited. We explore how GVTs adapt routines and build capabilities, and the role played by brokers and social identities in this process. We interviewed 49 professionals working in fifteen GVTs based in Europe, India, and US, and operating in IT and engineering consulting companies. Our multi-level grounded model highlights that, while brokers help in the creation of mutual knowledge, they reduce the accuracy of perceptions about distant co-workers. Mutual knowledge, combined with limited accuracy of perceptions, diminishes the need to adapt team routines over time. The negative effect of brokers on the creation of team capabilities is reduced when individual professional identities trigger the search for more accurate perceptions of distant colleagues and clients with the objective of adapting team routines and performing more stimulating work. On top of this, organizational identity further enables the process of adaptation of team routines. We conclude with a discussion of theoretical implications on the interplay between operational and social processes in GVTs and team capabilities, as well as practical implications for designing and managing GVTs.     

Predictors of the emergence of transformational leadership in virtual decision teams

This study examined the etiology of transformational leadership in virtual team contexts. First, we compared 127 members of virtual decision-making teams with 135 members of traditional face-to-face teams in terms of the relationship between aspects of personality and the emergence of transformational leadership. The type of communication media (face-to-face versus “pure” virtual) was found to interact with extraversion and emotional stability in the prediction of emerging transformational leadership. In line with prior findings, we showed how these personality characteristics were relevant to transformational leadership emergence in our face-to-face teams. However, they were largely unrelated to such leadership in the virtual team context. We also focused specifically on the virtual context by analyzing the content of team interactions. After accounting for the effect of degree of activity level, the linguistic quality in one's written communication was found to predict the emergence of transformational leadership in virtual teams.     

Communication and trust are key: Unlocking the relationship between leadership and team performance and creativity

Considerable theoretical and empirical work has identified a relationship between transformational leadership and team performance and creativity. The mechanisms underlying this link, however, are not well understood. To identify the intervening processes inherent in this relationship, we experimentally manipulated the leadership style assigned to 44 teams taking part in a resource-maximization task. Teams were exposed either to a leader using inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, or a control condition. Our findings reveal important differences between leadership styles in communication and team outcomes (objective task performance and creativity). These results suggest that different dimensions of transformational leadership should be emphasized depending on the outcome sought. In addition, our results provide evidence for a sequential mediation model where leadership influences team outcomes through overall team communication and trust in teammates. This study suggests mechanisms by which transformational leaders may impact team outcomes, which has implications for team building and leadership training.