Global Virtual Teams : Dynamics of Leadership, Trust, Communication, and Culture

We live in an era of digitalization, where everything is connected, and access to the internet is available to nearly 4 billion people worldwide. As technology and infrastructure continue to advance at a very fast pace, it becomes increasingly easier to collaborate with people across thousands of miles, in real time. Collaborating with people from various countries and regions of the world is a phenomenon that has become the new normal in business and academic environments. These so-called Global Virtual Teams (GVTs) and the dynamics that they face based on the dimensions of leadership, trust, communication and culture were the focus of this study. The aim of this research was exploratory and qualitative, and it followed the principles of a case study and it was conducted by using semi-structured interviews with ten IBM employees from eight countries. In addition to interviews, the author could rely on over 11 years of experience in GVTs and access to internal training and education documentation. Based on the analysis of the interviews, GVTs deserve special attention by leaders and team members, as the adoption of this operating model will continue expanding. Specific skills are needed when leading and developing trustful relationships as well as when communicating and dealing with different cultures. Being virtual means very different dynamics, challenges and opportunities than those known by collocated teams. This research brings insight and managerial recommendations related to the ways to leverage such opportunities and mitigate the challenges, along with an overall skill set approach to leading and working virtually across borders and cultures. These suggestions can benefit both new and existing teams, which are either global and virtual or aiming to become so