The COVID-19 pandemic has ensued a wave of work teams making the shift from the office to working entirely virtually. At the centre of this shift are the people. The people are at the heart of any team, and thus this thesis sets out to create a greater understanding of how the leaders and members of three project teams have fared with the shift from working collocated toovirtually. Three interviews consisting of one leader and two team members were conducted per team, totalling nine interviews. The empirical findings were analyzed through the lens of a theoretical framework with a focus on uncovering why, how, and what implications the effects of virtuality have on various team processes. The results show that most challenges pertain to the increased autonomy of team members created by using ICT, and that the role of leadership has been heavily affected with a clear preference for task-focused leadership with relationshipand trust-building not being deemed critical. Multiple team processes have all been affected to a greater or lesser extent, with team members finding themselves having to deal with new requirements being imposed on them as part of the shared leadership that is taking form. / COVID-19 pandemin har lett till att flera teams har gjort övergången från att arbeta på kontor till att arbeta helt virtuellt. I centrum för detta skifte är människorna. Människorna är kärnan i alla team, och därför avser denna uppsats att skapa en större förståelse för hur ledarna och medlemmarna i tre projektgrupper har påverkats av denna övergång från samlokalisering till virtuellt arbete. Totalt utfördes nio stycken intervjuer, tre per team som i sin tur bestod av en ledare och två medlemmar. De empiriska resultaten analyserades genom en teoretisk ram med fokus på att avslöja varför, hur och vilka konsekvenser effekterna av virtualitet har haft på olika teamprocesser. Resultaten visar att de flesta utmaningar är relaterade till den ökade autonomin hos medlemmarna som skapats genom användningen av IKT. Ledarskapets roll har påverkats kraftigt där en tydlig preferens för uppgiftsfokuserat ledarskap har utkristalliserat sig, med relations- och förtroendeskapande inte av hög prioritet. Flera teamprocesser har påverkats i större eller mindre utsträckning, i synnerhet de krav som ställs på medlemmarna som en del av det delade ledarskapet som tar form.

Digitization has changed the conditions in which organizations can operate and conduct their business through digital workplaces. In order to meet the organizational requirements and technologies that digitalization entails, the digital workplace needs to be adaptable as well as strategically coordinated. Organizations also need to provide digital tools and systems to be able to work in the digital workplace. For that reason, the importance of the underlying technologies becomes crucial in the digital workplace. The purpose of this study is to achieve a deeper understanding of individual experiences in relation to the implementation and usage of a new IT platform. To answer the purpose of this study, we used a case study in which we conducted semi-structured interviews together with observations. This resulted in findings based on individual experiences that show both aspects of challenges and opportunities with the use of the IT platform. The conclusions that we established through this study are that learning and education in how the platform is expected to be used, as well as the platform's complexity, affect understanding and use of the IT platform. More businesses and organizations are going digital, and the conditions under which they operate and conduct business through digital workplaces are constantly changing. This study looks at how digital tools are used in one specific organization and how they might be made more efficient. Something that we believe can benefit both learning and development in other digital organizations' work.

Organizations in the age of modern technology have a diverse workforce, who are spread around the globe, and the business leaders of the 21st century need to understand how best to manage, overcome new challenges, and know the various skills of team members to capitalize on their differences and unique skills. To allow those geographically dispersed workers to reach their full potential and facilitate team success. Global virtual teams (GVTs) operate in complex environments characterized by diverse cultural and organizational elements. The primary purpose of this correlational and nonexperimental quantitative research was to examine the impact of transformational leadership on GVTs, their productivity, and job satisfaction with leadership effectiveness. Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) and the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS), data analyzes were completed through SurveyMonkey.com and SPSS software. The study measured transformational leadership, the independent variable, by the leader's ability to motivate workers to be satisfied and productive, and by the leader's effectiveness in the organization. Data were assessed by frequency analysis, moderation analyzes, and multiple regression analysis on the dependent variables of job satisfaction, leadership effectiveness, and productivity. The findings from this study reinforced the positive relationships found between transformational leadership, employee productivity, and leadership effectiveness in GVTs. Results also showed that motivated employees increase productivity and help in the organization's growth. Implications for positive social change included improvements in GVT interactions to increase the exchange of diverse ideas that lead to increased productivity and job satisfaction.

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I och med den digitalisering som skett i samtliga delar av vår vardag, har nya möjligheter skapats som tidigare inte varit möjliga. Främst kan detta ses i den aktivitet vi lägger ner mest tid på, vårt arbete. Genom utveckling av digitala kommunikationsverktyg och utvecklingen av en digital arbetsmiljö, finns idag möjligheten att arbeta på distans. Denna fördel medför dock en rad utmaningar för chefer som nu behöver leda personal som cheferna inte träffar dagligen på samma sätt som man gjort tidigare. Även att den digitala kommunikationen gör det svårare för chefer att hantera de mjuka värdena i ledarskapet, exempelvis se hur personalen mår. Syf- tet med denna studie var därför att undersöka upplevelsen av att leda på distans, vilka utma- ningar cheferna står inför, hur de hanterar de mjuka värdena samt vilka egenskaper och ledar- skapsstil som kan vara till din fördel när det kommer till att leda på distans. För att undersöka detta genomfördes en kvalitativ studie, där data samlades in genom semistrukturerade inter- vjuer. Intervjuerna genomfördes med verksamhetschefer inom ett svenskt bolag som är en av de ledande aktörerna i sin bransch. Studien visade att cheferna står inför utmaningar som de inte tidigare stått inför och att de därför blivit tvungna att skapa strategier för att hantera dessa. Kommunikation och relationsbyggande var de största utmaningarna där tydlighet och feedback var delar i kommunikationen som upplevdes vara speciellt utmanande på distans. Tillit och tydlighet med förväntningar upplevdes utmanande i ett distansledarskap. Det fanns även fördelar med distansledarskapet, där systematiken och strukturen förbättrades samt att man enklare kunde genomföra administrativa arbetsuppgifter utan att bli störd. Slutsatsen för studien visade att chefer på distans främsta utmaningar är de mjuka värdena i ledarskapet. Ef- tersom området har begränsat med forskning bör därför detta vara ett framtida fokusområde i forskning kring ledarskap.

Background Following the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing (a purposeful physical gap between individuals) was adopted as a sound preventative approach, necessitating remote working. Information Computer Technologies enables, to a large extent, employees to operate practically anywhere and at any time. This shift in working mode from proximity to remote has resulted in a significant and abrupt shift in how businesses operate. Furthermore, teleworking was inevitable, but the pandemic has made it mandatory. International NonGovernmental Organizations were among the organizations that have shifted partially or totally to remote work within their local teams. These organizations have a key, but not visited, role in the societies and have partnerships with business organizations. Yet, they are forgotten about researching the remote work phenomena evolved by the pandemic. Aim Our research aims to shed light on the elements of the remote work in the INGOs, including enablers and inhibitors of this phenomenon concerning INGOs management and leadership, as well as the opportunities and the challenges created as a result of it.  Methodology A phenomenological study to compose the expressions of the INGOs managers in working totally remotely in response to COVID/19. This study is conducted using an exploratory qualitative approach by interviewing five managers of Norwegian INGOs  Findings The research exposes areas in managing remote work, such as age in employees' isolation in virtual teams. The INGOs managers have very human-centered perspectives on managing work remotely. The deep human perspective is driven by the vision and goals of INGOs of helping people. The inputs of the INGOs leaders focused on the importance of trust, social relations, freedom, and the well-being of employees.  Contribution From a more helicopter view, the research is an inspiration for learning from INGOs in relation to research in remote work. Up to our research capacity, this research is the first to explore the phenomena of remote work in INGOs in general and certainly in Norway. Practically. Our research might encourage INGO managers to recognize the need to acknowledge the unique characteristics of remote work. Ultimately, the research might help them identify capacitybuilding training for managers and emerging leaders to lead their teams better and include remote work requirements in the proposals for the donors. The organization plans to assign funds for this purpose.  Limitations Cultural limitations as the study were conducted in one country. Limitations related to the data collection as the sample size is small and covers the managers' perception only. Not to mention the age of the managers, which should have an impact on their perspectives. As well as the superficial knowledge and consideration of management issues and remote leadership in INGOs led to difficulty in getting their perceptions. The limitations related to qualitative research and online interviews.

In the digital domain, virtual teams within organizations and corporations are becoming common. Restructuring an organization or corporation is vital because competition and globalization are increasing. In this era of globalization, distributed working groups need to develop a competitive advantage in these ever-changing environments. Historically, teams had experienced problems stemming from geographical and temporal limitations. With the increase of technology in telecommunications, organizations are increasingly forming virtual teams, which have become critical to the survival of nearly any corporate entity. Virtual teams have some of the same problems that regular teams have. One of the key challenges is the method of forming teams, while such challenge is exacerbated in digital environments. Despite the difficulties, the digital environment has made successful team development all the more challenging. The variation in people's skills makes the formation of teams even more difficult. This is why organizations cannot determine in advance if a virtual team will be a success. To evaluate the success of team formation in a virtual setting, this research study assessed the role of different computer-mediated communications (CMC) levels employed (no-CMC/face-to-face, online learning system, online learning system + social networking site) on the success of team formation measured by the level of task performance (TP), team cohesiveness (TC), computer skills (CS) and social bond (SB), while assessing the differences on such relationships when controlled for demographic information such as gender, age, education level, academic major, as well as academic year. Empirical data was collected from students at the Medical Sciences Campus in the University of Puerto Rico with 140 usable records. Using three teams and 140 participants, the results indicated that there is a statistically significance difference in the role of CMC levels employed (no-CMC/face-to-face, online learning system, online learning system + social networking site) on the level of perception of CS in team formation. Significant differences were also found in the role of CMC levels employed on the levels of TP, when controlled for gender. In addition, there is a significance difference in the role of CMC levels employed (no-CMC/face-to-face, online learning system, online learning system + social networking site) on the levels of CS, when controlled for education, academic major and academic year. The outcomes of the study contributed to the body of knowledge for both practice and research, to help organizations identify ways to support effective team formations in virtual environments.

Date: June 1st, 2022  Level: Bachelor/masters thesis, Business Economics, 15 hp  Institution: EST – Economy, Society & Technology, Mälardalens University  Authors: Linnea Jibbefors, 1999-06-17, David Ohrlander, 1997-08-10.  Title: THE BEST IS YET TO COME - A qualitative study of Hybrid Leadership  Supervisor: Magnus Hoppe Keywords: Digital leadership, leadership, teleworking, communication, information- and communication technology, digital communication, global teams, virtual teams, hybrid leadership and hybrid work. Research questions:  ●        How does hybrid leadership apply in practice?  ➢     What are the most apparent possibilities and challenges between workplace leadership and digital leadership?  ➢     How is the leadership affected in regards to clarity, trust, technology and teams, related to hybrid leadership? Purpose: The authors of this study aims to investigate how the phenomenon of hybrid leadership, leadership that occurs both at physical workplaces and digital workplaces, appears in practice. Method: In this study a qualitative research method has been applied where the empirical data has been gathered through semi structured interviews. The theoretical framework was the foundation for the interview questions and a total of 13 interviews were conducted. Thereafter the empirical material was analyzed through the theoretical framework, which led to the answering of the purpose and the research questions. Conclusion: Hybrid leadership has contributed to multiple possibilities and challenges for organizations. The most apparent possibility is for workers to conduct their work both from home and digitally, which contributes to efficiency since the workers can accomplish work rather than traveling. The respondents have stated that this is the future of working. Hybrid leadership consists of four important ground stones: Clarity, Trust, Technology and Team. The hybrid leader must communicate a clear objective, maintain an open and continuous two-way communication, contribute to as high a social presence as possible and promote team dynamics on the digital platform. To do this, the hybrid leader must have an increased focus on the workers social satisfaction and well-being through the digital platforms, by using cameras and conducting one-to-one-meetings regularly. / Datum: 2022-06-01  Nivå: C-uppsats, Företagsekonomi, 15 hp  Akademi: Akademin för Ekonomi, Samhälle och Teknik, Mälardalens Universitet   Författare: Linnea Jibbefors, 1999-06-17, David Ohrlander, 1997-08-10 Titel: DET BÄSTA HAR INTE HÄNT ÄN - En kvalitativ studie av hybridledarskap  Handledare: Magnus Hoppe  Nyckelord: Digitalt ledarskap, ledarskap, distansarbete, kommunikation, informations- och kommunikationsteknik, digital kommunikation, globala teams, virtuella teams, hybridledarskap och hybridarbete.  Forskningsfrågor:  ●        Hur tillämpas ett hybridledarskap?  ➢     Vilka är de mest framträdande möjligheterna och utmaningarna mellan arbetsplatsförlagt ledarskap och digitalt ledarskap? ➢     Hur påverkas ledarskapets tydlighet, tillit, teknik och team vid ett hybridledarskap? Syfte: Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur fenomenet hybridledarskap, ledarskap som äger rum både vid arbetsplatsförlagt och digitalt arbete, framträder i praktiken. Metod: I denna studie har en kvalitativ forskningsmetod använts där den empiriska datan samlats in genom semistrukturerade intervjuer. Den teoretiska referensramen la grunden för intervjufrågorna och totalt genomfördes 13 intervjuer. Därefter analyserades det empiriska materialet med stöd från teorin, vilket resulterade i att syftet och forskningsfrågorna kunde besvaras.  Slutsats: Hybridledarskapet har bidragit till en rad möjligheter och utmaningar för organisationer. De främsta möjligheterna innefattar att medarbetarna kan arbeta hemifrån eller på plats, vilket bidrar till effektivitet, då tiden kan användas till arbetsuppgifterna istället för att resa. Respondenterna menar att detta är framtidens sätt att arbeta för organisationer. Hybridledarskapet bör hantera fyra viktiga beståndsdelar; Tydlighet, Tillit, Teknik och Team. Hybridledaren måste kommunicera ut en tydlig målbild, upprätthålla en öppen och kontinuerlig tvåvägskommunikation, bidra till hög social närvaro samt främja gruppdynamiken på den digitala plattformen. För att göra detta bör hybridledaren ha ett ökat fokus på medarbetarnas sociala tillfredsställelse och välmående via de digitala plattformarna, genom användandet av kamera och regelbundna one-to-one–möten.

Syfte: Syftet med studien är att undersöka motivation inom virtuella arbetsmiljöer. Vidaresyftar studien även till att jämföra skillnader mellan olika generationer gällande motivation ivirtuella arbetsmiljöer.Metod: I denna studie har en kvantitativ metod applicerats med hjälp av enwebbenkätundersökning. Studien är hypotetisk-deduktiv där hypoteser härleds från denteoretiska referensramen. Den data som samlats in består av 84 svar, vilka bearbetades iprogrammet SPSS där oberoende t-test och medelvärdesanalys genomfördes.Resultat & slutsats: Av de motivationsfaktorer som studerats motiveras den äldregenerationen av flexibilitet och självstyre och bra ledarskap, samt delvis av teknologiskbekvämlighet. Den yngre generationen motiveras av flexibilitet och självstyre, teknologiskbekvämlighet och bra ledarskap, samt ledarskap kopplat till social närvaro. Studien har ävenfunnit att de faktorer som leder till motivation, också kan leda till amotivation inom virtuellaarbetsmiljöer om de hanteras oaktsamt.Bidrag: Studiens praktiska bidrag är en ökad förståelse för olika generationers motivationhos medarbetare inom virtuella arbetsmiljöer, vilket kan underlätta ledararbete ochHR-processer. Studiens teoretiska bidrag ger framför allt en indikation på motivationsfaktoreroch amotivationsfaktorer inom virtuella arbetsmiljöer genom de teoretiska modeller somutvecklats. Vidare bidrar studien även med teoretiska förslag på nya perspektiv på Herzbergstvåfaktorteori och Hawthornestudien. / Aim: The purpose of the study is to investigate motivation in virtual work environments.Furthermore, the study also aims to compare differences between different generationsregarding motivation in virtual work environments.Method: In this study, a quantitative method has been applied using a web based survey. Thestudy is hypothetical-deductive where hypotheses are derived from the theoreticalframework. The data collected consists of 84 responses, which were processed in the programSPSS where independent t-tests and mean value analyses were performed.Results and conclusions: The older generation was found to be motivated by flexibility andself-management and good leadership, as well as in part by technological comfort. Theyounger generation is motivated by flexibility and self-management, technological comfortand good leadership, as well as leadership linked to social presence. The study additionallyfound that the factors which lead to motivation also can lead to amotivation in virtual workenvironments if they are handled negligently.Contribution: The study's practical contribution is an increased understanding of differentgenerations' motivation among employees in virtual work environments, which can facilitateleadership work and HR processes. The study's theoretical contribution primarily provides anindication of motivational factors and amotivational factors within virtual work environmentsthrough the theoretical models that were developed. Furthermore, the study also contributeswith theoretical proposals for new perspectives on Herzberg's two-factor theory and theHawthorne study.

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