The Art of Virtual Trust : A qualitative case study on how leaders establish trust in their geographically dispersed virtual teams.

Abstract: The advancements in technology have enabled contemporary organisations to work remotely, and this work structure is increasingly being adopted by more industries. This forces organisations to implement global virtual teams, that despite differences in geographic locations, time zones and cultures, are obligated to work towards organisational goals. It is possible to identify both opportunities and challenges for leaders within organisations. These can be viewed from various organisational perspectives, although one of the most recurring topics for leaders to consider when managing global virtual teams, is the notion of ​trust. ​Trust is argued to be one of the fundamental constituents for teams to work effectively. Even though the use of global virtual teams is becoming more prevalent, research on trust in regard to virtual teams is limited. Prior research argues that leadership is the key success factor for determining the level of trust in global virtual teams. 

    However, there is a research gap on specifically how leaders work in terms of the specific actions that are taken in order to facilitate for establishing trust. This case study therefore investigates how leaders establish trust in their geographically dispersed virtual teams. 

In order to answer this research question, nine leaders were interviewed through qualitative in-depth semi-structured interviews.