A Longitudinal Comparison of Leader-Follower Relationships between High and Low Performing Self-Managed Work Teams in Virtual Settings

Abstract

We conducted a semester-long study that examined the influence of emergent leaders' behaviors on followers' behaviors in high- and low-performing teams over time. Our results indicated that in high-performing teams, followers engaged in greater adaptive, goal and stability behaviors solely as a function of time. Neither the virtualness nor the behaviors of leaders influenced the behaviors of followers in high performing teams. In contrast, in low-performing teams, leaders played an important role in facilitating followers to engage in more leadership behaviors. Generally, over time, in response to the increasing virtualness and behaviors of the leaders, followers responded by engaging in similar behaviors. Following the leader's behavior, however, was dysfunctional for team performance. Our findings suggest that mimicking the task behaviors of emergent leaders who are virtual is not necessarily a formula for successful team performance, especially in self-managed work teams Instead, as shown by the high-performing teams, behaviors that are self-initiated and autonomous-regardless of the leaders' behaviors or virtualness-are what lead to success.