The Virtual Global

Workforce: Leveraging Its

ImpactWayne F. Cascio

Gateway I/O PsychologySt. Louis, MO

March 30, 2012

Global Labor

Markets Knowledge, trade,

technology, capital, goods, and services are more globally connected than ever

Coupled with the rise of emerging markets, and focus on new revenue streams, these trends have created a swell in global worker mobility

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Labor Will Become More Mobile

500M people, double the number today, will legally work outside their home countries in the next 20 years; why?

Conflict, natural disasters, climate change, economic opportunism

Implication: Great need for cross-cultural skills, adaptability, and flexibility

Source: SHRM, “At Work in 2020”

The Search for Talent

Having access to the best talent continues to challenge CEOs and business leaders

97% of CEOs in PriceWaterhouse Cooper’s 2011 Global CEO Survey say that having the right talent is THE most critical factor for their business growth

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SIOP XXVI - Number and Title of the Workshop 5

Global Talent GapAs many world populations age, birthrates in most mature economies are trending downward Many Western economies cite declining birth rates as a major

problem in the war for talent China, India, Eastern Europe, and parts of South America are

also grappling with critical talent shortages Russia alone faces an estimated reduction of approximately 20

million working-age people by 2030 The UN anticipates that China’s working-age population (those

aged 15-59) will fall behind Vietnam’s in 2020, and lag behind India and Brazil in 2025

Result: Safeguarding the talent pipeline will be a key driving force in HR strategy over the next decade

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The Rise of Virtual Teams

Aon Consulting’s 2009 Benefits and Talent Survey: 97% of

respondents said their organizations either planned to increase virtual work and telework options or keep them at the same level

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“According to our research ~30% of tasks in multinational corporations could be done virtually. Virtual mobility can also take a lead in women inclusion and enablement that have previously been excluded from the active labour force.”

– David Arkless, President, Corporate and Government Affairs, Manpower Inc.

Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

Source: Global Talent Mobility (2011)

Examples of Virtual Mobility

Intel – virtual recruiting An Intel representative presents an audio or video

presentation, and prospective employees can submit topic and job questions

Intel also offers a variety of social-networking opportunities — blogs, podcasts, video, Facebook, Twitter — to allow interested individuals to interact with Intel employees around the world

“E-lancer” businesses - composed of one or more workers connected by electronic networks - will enable more people to undertake full or part-time work from home, such as outsourced tasks from other companies

Key Management Challenges in Virtual Teams

The success of any team – virtual or not – depends on the people

Technology can bring people together, but it’s the manager who must ensure that:

Relationships stay vital Each team member is valued, and Productivity is high

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Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

Managing Global Virtual Teams

Must be sensitive to language differences, differences in business protocol, and time zones

With ESL: It’s vital to determine that everyone understands what’s been said “I heard you say…” is a good way to clarify

Show respect to far-flung team members by varying start times, so people take turns participating in meetings in their early mornings or late evenings

Try to visit each country’s team once a year E&Y’s Americas Inclusiveness Team: all team members meet together annually Billie Williamson, E&Y partner and Americas Inclusiveness Officer:

Communicate more frequently, check in more often, be sure that people understand what is going on

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To Nurture Relationships Among Team Members

Set up a community home space featuring pictures and profiles of team members A discussion board, a team calendar, a chat room

Result: team members can connect with each other outside of meetings and create closer bonds as a group

Listen carefully to each team member on phone calls – is he/she excited? Bored?

Listen to everything, particularly to silences Silence can mean consent, disagreement, or disengagement Follow up immediately to those who are not responding, not

participating, or missing deadlines. Find out: what’s going on?

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Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

What Role Can I/O Psychologists Play?

Staffing Virtual Teams – many psychological issues are at play in virtual work

Cisco and Pear Kandola (UK consultancy) studied hundreds of workers at Cisco and other companies worldwide

Hypothesis: quants, introverts, and reclusive types will thrive in virtual work situations

Finding: It’s extroverts – office gabbers, life of the break-room party – who thrive They stay connected no matter where they are Shy, disorganized types are better kept in-house

Hypothesis: Mobile workers are more likely to be disorganized

Finding: Mobile workers are far better organized personally than their office-bound counterparts

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Developing Feedback Systems

Helps virtual workers feel connected to an organization

Must define expected deliverables clearly and in advance – projects completed on time, customer-satisfaction ratings

Leaders must reach out often; also use micro-feedback 19

Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

Implications for Managers of Global Virtual Teams

Find ways for more face-to-face contact with introverts on the team

Possibly pair them up with executives in the same geographic area

Create an office-like environment in cyberspace – perhaps through in-house social networks

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Creating “Swift Trust” in a Virtual Team

Such teams are often assembled to carry out a specific project

Must build trust swiftly at the outset, but it can be fragile No prior history of working together, no F2F communication Can create a sense of physical and psychological distance among team

members Solution: focus more on building cognitive than affective trust at the

outset

Cognitive trust – rational characteristics – reliability, integrity, competence, professionalism

Affective trust – emotional aspects and social skills of others – care and concern for the welfare of others, and an emotional connection

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Creating Trust (Cont.)

To work effectively, team members need to establish trust quickly to enable them to take risks and to rely on fellow team members

With short-lived virtual projects there is insufficient time to gather enough info about team members to assess their trustworthiness fully

Assessing cognitive, work-related attributes, such as competence, enables team members to judge potential trustworthiness quickly

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Creating Trust (Cont.)

Cognitive trust can be fragile One missed deadline or failure to respond can shatter the

team’s faith in an individual

Teams with higher levels of affective trust: Have more continuous and frequent communication Communicate more social information Allows closer relationships to be formed

With time, virtual teams can build affective trust24

Source: Johnson, S. L., SIOP/LEC, Oct., 2011

Implications for Managers

Facilitate cognitive trust building at the outset by sharing “CV information” among team members

Include details of their accomplishments, competence, experience, and integrity

Use socialization strategies to facilitate development of affective trust Online chat rooms, social videoconferences, social conference calls

Must maintain trust once it does develop! Use research-based conflict-resolution strategies to deal with

disagreements quickly before they undermine trust

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Data Privacy and Other Concerns

Organizations will need to pay close attention to the risks that emerge as a result of

technological enhancements

Key focus areas include:

• The potential interception of financial or personal data when transmitted across borders• The importance of personal data privacy when tracking an

employee’s movement• The need for a distinct separation of business and personal

profiling with regard to social networking

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Concerns (Cont.) Need clear company guidelines about the

extent to which an employee is seen torepresent the corporation in social

networking sites

Employers need to be careful about monitoring the ‘behavior’ of employees

when accessing these communication channels

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Hidden Benefit of Global Virtual Work

Arrangements

Permits employers to keep fast-track employees who are unwilling or unable to relocate for job assignments to remain in their leadership-succession pipelines

Hidden cost: Failure to get direct exposure to international assignments

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Conclusions World Economic Forum (2011): “Widespread talent scarcity

will persist for decades. That scarcity will redefine human capital practices and ways of doing business for a long time to come”

I/O psychologists will play crucial roles in defining and facilitating those human capital practices

The rise of global labor markets and global virtual teams offer ongoing opportunities for I/O psychologists to develop and refine innovative practices to meet these challenges

Isn’t it time we got on with the job?

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