The combination of flatter organizational structures, globalization, cost-saving initiatives, and the increased emphasis on knowledge sharing has been a contributor to the use of virtual teams in U.S. organizations.
The Solution
To perform efficiently in a virtual environment, team members must develop swift trust, which does not come inherently with team membership. Understanding the individual, team, organizational, and technological barriers affecting the development of swift trust is critical to an appreciation of how such barriers can be overcome.
The Stakeholders
In this article, we indicate how virtual human resource development (VHRD) can assist virtual teams, managers, and HR professionals overcome swift trust development barriers. The intended audience for this article includes HRD scholars, scholar-practitioners, practitioners, and students interested in understanding how trust is fostered in virtual teams and how HRD practitioners can make a valuable contribution to the effectiveness of virtual teams.
AndradeJ.HuangW. D. (2013, February23-26). A proposed framework for virtual teams. Paper presented at the Annual Academy of Human Resource Development Conference, Washington, DC.
2.
ArdichviliA. (2008). Learning and knowledge sharing in virtual communities of practice: Motivators, barriers, and enablers. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 10, 541-554.
3.
ArgyrisC. (2001). On organisational learning (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell.
4.
AshleighM. J.NandhakumarJ. (2007). Trust and technologies: Implications for organizational work practices. Decision Support Systems, 43, 607-617.
5.
BennettE. E. (2009). Virtual HRD: The intersection of knowledge management, culture, and intranets. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 11, 362-374.
6.
BennettE. E. (2010). The coming paradigm shift: Synthesis and future directions in virtual HRD. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 12, 728-741.
7.
BennettE. E. (2014b). How an intranet provides opportunities for learning organizational culture: Implications for virtual HRD. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 16(3), 296-319.
8.
BennettE. E. (2014a). Introducing new perspectives on virtual human resource development. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 16(3), 263-280.
9.
BennettE. E.BieremaL. L. (2010). The ecology of virtual human resource development. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 12, 632-647.
10.
BennettE. E.McWhorterR. R. (2014). Virtual human resource development. In ChalofskyN. E.RoccoT. F.MorrisM. L. (Eds.), The handbook of human resource development: The discipline and the profession. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
11.
BowlbyJ. (1969). Attachment: Attachment and loss (Vol. 1). New York, NY: Basic Books.
12.
CascioW. F. (2000). Managing a virtual workplace. The Academy of Management Executive, 14, 81-90.
13.
ChaikenS.LibermanA.EaglyA. H. (1989). Heuristic and systematic information processing within and beyond the persuasion context. In UlemanJ. S.BarghJ. A. (Eds.), Unintended thought (pp. 212-252). New York, NY: Guilford.
14.
ChalofskyN. E. (2010). Meaningful workplaces: Reframing how and where we work. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
15.
DelelloJ. A.McWhorterR. R. (2014). New visual social media for the higher education classroom. In MalliaG. (Ed.), The social classroom: Integrating social network use in education (pp. 368-393). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-4904-0.ch019
16.
DuarteD. L.SnyderT. N. (2001). Mastering virtual teams (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Jossey-Bass.
17.
FazarroD. E.McWhorterR. R. (2011). Leveraging green computing for increased viability and sustainability. Journal of Technology Studies, 37, 116-129.
18.
FerrinD. L.DirksK. T. (2003). The use of rewards to increase and decrease trust: Mediating processes and differential effects. Organization Science, 14, 18-31.
19.
ForresterR. (1995). Implications of lean manufacturing for human resource strategy. Work Study, 44, 20-24.
20.
FranceschiK.LeeR. M.ZanakisS. H.HindsD. (2009). Engaging group e-learning in virtual worlds. Journal of Management Information Systems, 26, 73-100.
21.
GardnerW. L.AvolioB. J.LuthansF.MayD. R.WalumbwaF. O. (2005). Can you see the real me? A self-based model of authentic leader and follower development. The Leadership Quarterly, 16, 343-372.
22.
GermainM. L. (2011). Developing trust in virtual teams. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 24, 29-54. doi:10.1002/piq.20119
23.
GreenbergP. S.GreenbergR. H.AntonucciY. L. (2007). Creating and sustaining trust in virtual teams. Business Horizons, 50, 325-333.
24.
HackmanJ. R. (1989). Groups that work (and those that don’t). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
25.
HargittaiE. (2010). Digital na(t)ives? Variation in internet skills and uses among members of the “net generation.”Sociological Inquiry, 80, 92-113.
26.
HertelG.GeisterS.KonradtU. (2005). Managing virtual teams: A review of current empirical research. Human Resource Management Review, 15, 69-95.
27.
HughesL. W. (2005). The spirit of GIVE: Relational transparency and humor in authentic leader-follower relationships. In GardnerW. L.AvolioB. J. (Eds.), Authentic leadership development: Monographs in leadership and management series (Vol. 3). Boston, MA: Elsevier.
28.
JarvenpaaS. L.KnollK.LeidnerD. E. (1998). Is anybody out there? Antecedents of trust in global virtual teams. Journal of Management Information Systems, 14, 29-64.
29.
JarvenpaaS. L.LeidnerD. E. (1999). Communication and trust in global virtual teams. Organization Science, 10, 791-815. doi:10.1287/orsc.10.6.791
30.
JarvenpaaS. L.ShawT. R.StaplesD. S. (2004). Toward contextualized theories of trust: The role of trust in global virtual teams. Information Systems Research, 15, 250-267.
31.
JinL.RobeyD. (2008). Bridging social and technical interfaces in organizations: An interpretive analysis of time-space distanciation. Information and Organization, 18, 177-204.
32.
JohnsonS. D.SuriyaC.YoonS. W.BerrettJ. V.La FleurJ. (2002). Team development and group processes of virtual learning teams. Computers & Education, 39, 379-393.
33.
KirkmanB. I.RosenB.TeslukP. E.GibsonC. B. (2004). The impact of team empowerment on virtual team performance: The moderating role of face-to-face interaction. Academy of Management Journal, 47, 175-192.
34.
LiJ.D’SouzaD.DuY. (2011). Exploring the contribution of virtual worlds to learning in organizations. Human Resource Development Review, 10(3), 264-285
35.
LuoY. (2002). Building trust in cross-cultural collaborations: Toward a contingency perspective. Journal of Management, 28, 669-694.
36.
MaisterD. (1993). Quality work doesn’t mean quality service. In MaisterD. (Ed.), Managing the professional service firm (pp. 69-77). New York, NY: Free Press.
37.
MancusoD. S.ChlupD. T.McWhorterR. R. (2010). A study of adult learning in a virtual world. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 12, 681-699.
38.
MayerR. C.DavisJ. H.SchoormanF. D. (1995). An integration model of organizational trust. Academy of Management Review, 20, 709-729.
39.
McKnightD. H.CummingsL. L.ChervanyN. L. (1998). Initial trust formation in new organizational relationships. Academy of Management Review, 23, 473-490.
40.
McWhorterR. R. (2010). Exploring the emergence of virtual human resource development. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 12, 623-631. doi:10.1177/1523422310395367
41.
McWhorterR. R. (2014). A synthesis of new perspectives on Virtual HRD. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 16(3), 391-401.
42.
McWhorterR. R.LynhamS. A. (2014). An initial conceptualization of virtual scenario planning. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 16(3), 335-355.
43.
MeyersonD.WeickK. E.KramerR. M. (1996). Swift trust and temporary groups. In KramerR. M.TylerT. R. (Eds.), Trust in organizations: Frontiers of theory and research (pp. 166-195). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.
44.
MiltonJ.WatkinsK.D’AbundoM.DaleyB. (2004). Facilitating learning online: Modeling the skills for reflective practice. In SorkT. (Ed.), Proceedings of the 45th Adult Education Research Conference, pp. 363-368.
45.
MitchellA. (2012). Interventions for effectively leading in a virtual setting. Business Horizons, 55, 431-439.
MoranL. (2005). Virtual team culture and the amplification of team boundary permeability on performance. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 16, 435-458.
48.
MunkvoldB. E.ZigursI. (2007). Process and technology challenges in swift-starting virtual teams. Information & Management, 44, 287-299.
49.
NormanS. M.AvolioB. J.LuthansF. (2010). The impact of positivity and transparency on trust in leaders and their perceived effectiveness. The Leadership Quarterly, 21, 350-364.
50.
PetersL.KarrenR. (2009). An examination of the roles of trust and functional diversity on virtual team performance ratings. Group & Organization Management, 34, 479-504.
51.
PodsakoffP. M.AherneM.McKenzieS. B. (1997). Organizational citizenship behavior and the quantity and quality of work group performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 82, 262-270.
52.
PowellA.PiccoliG.IvesB. (2004). Virtual teams: A review of current literature and directions for future research. The Database for Advances in Information Systems, 35, 6-36.
53.
PyöriäP. (2009). Virtual collaboration in knowledge work: From vision to reality. Team Performance Management, 15, 366-381.
54.
RobertL. P.DennisA. R.HungY-T. C. (2009). Individual swift trust and knowledge-based trust in face-to-face and virtual team members. Journal of Management Information Systems, 26, 241-279.
ShachafP. (2008). Cultural diversity and information and communication technology impacts on global virtual teams: An exploratory study. Information & Management, 45, 131-142.
57.
ShepherdD. A.ZacharakisA. (2001). The venture capitalist-entrepreneur relationship: Control, trust and confidence in cooperative behaviour. Venture Capital, 3, 129-149.
SkeelR. L.NeudeckerJ.PilarskiC.PytlakK. (2007). The utility of personality variables and behaviorally-based measures in the prediction of risk-taking behavior. Personality and Individual Differences, 43, 203-214.
60.
StricklandL. H. (1958). Surveillance and trust. Journal of Personality, 26, 200-215.
61.
VrasidasC.ZembylasM. (2003). The nature of technology-mediated interaction in globalised education. International Journal of Training and Development, 7, 271-286.
62.
WangG. G. (2010). Theorizing e-learning participation: A study of the HRD online communities in the USA. Journal of European Industrial Training, 34, 344-364.
63.
WatkinsK. (2001). Learning by changing: Action science and virtual organization development. Adult Learning, 11, 20-22.
64.
WhitenerE. (1998). Managers as initiators of trust: An exchange relationship framework for understanding managerial trustworthy behavior. Academy of Management Review, 23, 513-530.
65.
WorkmanM. (2005). Virtual team culture and the amplification of team boundary permeability on performance. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 16, 435-458.
66.
XuG.FengZ.WuH.ZhaoD. (2007). Swift trust in a virtual temporary system: A model based on the Dempster-Shafer theory of belief functions. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 12, 93-126.
67.
ZaccaroS. J.BaderP. (2003). E-Leadership and the challenges of leading e-teams: Minimizing the bad and maximizing the good. Organizational Dynamics, 31, 377-387.
68.
ZakariaN.AmelinckxA.WilemonD. (2004). Working together apart? Building a knowledge-sharing culture for global virtual teams. Creativity and Innovation Management, 13, 15-29.
69.
ZandD. E. (1972). Trust and managerial problem-solving. Administrative Science Quarterly, 17, 229-239.
