The Blinkered Boss: How Has Managerial Behavior Changed with the Shift to Virtual Working?

Abstract

Virtual working became the norm for most organizations since March 2020, and it brings well-recognized challenges. But we know little about the impact of virtual working on managerial behavior. This article presents the results of three surveys conducted before and during lockdown to understand what changed. It shows how managers became more blinkered: turning inward, becoming task-focused at the expense of relationship-building, and finding few opportunities to develop new skills. The article offers practical suggestions for how the evolution of managerial work might be accelerated, so that managers can become more effective in this changing environment.

Team and communication impacts of remote work for complex aerospace system development

“…The training and integration of new and recently hired employees was brought up as a particular problem by participants who were both recently hired employees and those in the position of onboarding others. Other work investigating the impact of remote work has come to similar conclusions and attributed this to a lack of mentoring when working remotely 48 . This topic was frequently mentioned in interviews because of the large amount of hiring during this study.…”

“…Other work investigating the impact of remote work has come to similar conclusions and attributed this to a lack of mentoring when working remotely. 48 this problem is to encourage existing employees to reach out to new and recently hired employees and create explicit opportunities for this, such as through virtual watercoolers. 49 There are comparatively few instances of improved teamwork due to remote work reported by the participants.…”

Elgar Introduction to Designing Organizations

“…We next turn to two major sources of change in organizational designs: changes in culture and society and changes in technology. We explain how design coevolves with changes in these domains (e.g., Birkinshaw, Gudka & D'Amato, 2021), showing that design, rather than being a strictly technical domain, is intricately tied to social factors, as noted above.…”

“…Design is the process of creating organizations that are simultaneously well coordinated/organized and flexible/adaptive. Throughout the book we have discussed the challenges posed by managing this paradoxical requirement, including the tendency of what Birkinshaw, Gudka and D'Amato (2021) qualified as a broad shift from more mechanistic to more organic organizational forms. It may not be particularly difficult to create well-organized, machine-like organizations; it may also not be especially challenging to create very flexible, organic structures.…”

The Digital Workplace: Navigating in a Jungle of Paradoxical Tensions

“…7 For many individuals and organizations around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic has not only accelerated the adoption of digital technologies but also paved the way for a lasting transformation of work, 8 leveraging the efficiency and effectiveness gains those digital technologies offer. 9 The virtual working environment has become a norm 10 ; with it, the challenges of digital work environments such as Zoom fatigue and the limitations of video conferences for personal interactions have become apparent. Previous research further acknowledges that digital technologies can have different effects on the nature of work.…”