Virtual leadership
Leaderships is necessary despite the advancement in technology leading to the virtual space. Wendy Soon (2015) reporting about the Cornell Study (part 3) addresses the issues that the virtual leaders face. Soon argues that the virtual team is a mere collection of individuals in its initial stages, and, therefore, the leader has to make it a coherent group that can work towards one direction. Further, Soon outlines the challenges that the virtual leaders meet in the daily running of the team. The team experiences reduced trust since the members usually share little about themselves on online platforms. Additionally, face to face interaction enable one to pick up non-verbal cues to understand one another. Besides, there is an increase in diversity of the team that the leader needs to handle. It may also interfere with the daily life of an individual. For example, the team may have members from different time zones that may require the leader to work either odd hours of the day such as late night or very early in the morning. A virtual leader has to have the following competencies. One ought to be technologically knowledgeable so as to use the most modern innovations and also have the best skills of communication. On top of that, one has to be a good listener, compassionate and have an open mind towards world cultures.
Although the virtual space has taken management or organizations by a storm, the needs for leadership remain since there have to be people to take up responsibilities. Typically, the virtual leadership approaches have made the mode of management different through dispersing, devolving, and overcoming the barriers of time that limited meetings in brick and mortar buildings. I think that there is no way a team can work well without a leader whether in a virtual environment or not.
Questions:
What other challenges do virtual leaders face?
Describe the advantages and disadvantages of virtual management.
Work cited
Soon Wendy. Virtual Leadership (A Cornell Study – Part 3). January 30, 2015. Web June 22, 2015. <http://vorkspace.com/blog/index.php/virtual-leadership-a-cornell-study-part-3/>
