Collaborative tools and virtual team effectiveness: an inductively derived approach in India's software sector

Abstract

This paper seeks to add to the emerging research literature on collaborative tools and demographic dissimilarity and their importance in virtual team effectiveness. It investigates the relationship between the selection of collaborative tools, demographic dissimilarities and virtual team effectiveness and explores the consequence of such relationships. For the purpose of this study a research framework was instituted, with data collection and analysis based on grounded theory approaches. Data for this study was provided by 25 team projects gathered from IT companies in Bhubaneswar, Orissa. It was revealed that indicators such as blended approach, organizational policies, and process orientation are the constituents of collaborative tools that influence the virtual team performance. The impact of temporal rhythm on virtual team performance is strengthened through demographic dissimilarity that mediates the relationship between collaborative tools and virtual team effectiveness. Trust is action-oriented in the virtual work scenario and is significantly influenced by demographic dissimilarities. Complementary existence of trust is debated as it is remarkably monitored by organizational policies which are process-oriented. This paper also seeks to categorically demonstrate the theoretical and practical implications of the relationships among the variables.