Path to 'Stardom' in Globally Distributed Hybrid Teams: An Examination of the Knowledge-Centered Perspective Using Social Network Analysis

Suprateek Sarker, Sarah Hove-Kirkeby, Saonee Sarker

    Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

    Abstract

    Although distributed teams have been researched extensively in information systems and decision science disciplines, a review of the literature suggests that the dominant focus has been on understanding the factors affecting performance at the team level. There has however been an increasing recognition that specific individuals within such teams are often critical to the team's performance. Consequently, existing knowledge about such teams may be enhanced by examining the factors that affect the performance of individual team members. This study attempts to address this need by identifying individuals who emerge as “stars” in globally distributed teams involved in knowledge work such as information systems development (ISD). Specifically, the study takes a knowledge-centered view in explaining which factors lead to “stardom” in such teams. Further, it adopts a social network approach consistent with the core principles of structural/relational analysis in developing and empirically validating the research model. Data from U.S.–Scandinavia self-managed “hybrid” teams engaged in systems development were used to deductively test the proposed model. The overall study has several implications for group decision making: (i) the study focuses on stars within distributed teams, who play an important role in shaping group decision making, and emerge as a result of a negotiated/consensual decision making within egalitarian teams; (ii) an examination of emergent stars from the team members’ point of view reflects the collective acceptance and support dimension decision-making contexts identified in prior literature; (iii) finally, the study suggests that the social network analysis technique using relational data can be a tool for a democratic decision-making technique within groups.
    Original languageEnglish
    JournalDecision Sciences
    Volume42
    Issue number2
    Pages (from-to)339-370
    ISSN0011-7315
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - May 2011

    Keywords

    • Hybrid Distrubuted Teams
    • Information Systems Development
    • Intellectual Capital-Based View
    • Knowledge Management
    • Social Network Analysis
    • Virtual Teams

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