Working in virtual teams is increasingly common, and the notion of team virtuality has received considerable academic attention. However, the definitions of team virtuality lack coherence, its ...theoretical integration is inadequate, and its effects on individual and team performance are not fully understood. To address these gaps, we systematically review the characteristics of team virtuality and its positive and negative effects based on various theoretical perspectives. Through this review, we find that no consensus is reached on the definition of team virtuality, and its dimensions are not fully identified. Moreover, we find that team virtuality positively influences individual and team performance through two mechanisms: resource and information, and motivation and ability. However, it also exerts negative effects through three mechanisms: cognition, emotion and relationship, and technology and media. Based on these findings, we propose several potential directions for future research: (1) integrate four characteristics of team virtuality by redefining its concept and dimensions based on process virtualization theory, (2) integrate the positive and negative effects of team virtuality using a resources conservation-based model, in which team virtuality positively and negatively affects individual and team performance through personal resource gain and personal resource loss, respectively, (3) integrate the different effects of team virtuality by exploring boundary conditions, and (4) integrate the dual effects by investigating the curvilinear relationship between team virtuality and its outcomes.
•A systematic review of virtual team literature is reported to advance the understanding of team virtuality functions.•The nature and dimensionality of team virtuality are proposed based on process virtualization theory.•Five theoretical perspectives are summarized to explain the positive and negative effects of team virtuality.•We propose a resources conservation-based model of the effects of team virtuality.
The post-pandemic COVID-19 has been influential in accelerating the digital transformation of enterprises and business process virtualization. However, in a virtual working environment with no ...physical interaction, the psychological requirements of the communication between teleworkers and the negative impact of information systems are hindering the business process virtualization. Studying the relationship between the interaction between organizational members and job performance is an important part of organizational psychology. For an enterprise to maintain high-efficiency output, it is necessary to study psychological factors related to business process virtualization. This paper verified the factors hindering business process virtualization based on process virtualization theory (PVT). The research was implemented on a sample of 343 teleworkers in China enterprises. The structure of the model of this study includes two aspects that hinder the business process virtualization: the psychological requirements of teleworkers (Sensory requirements, Synchronism requirements, and Relationship requirements) and the negative effects of information systems (Information overload and Communication overload). The results show that teleworkers' sensory requirements, synchronism requirements, and communication overload negatively impact business process virtualization. However, unlike the results in the existing literature, the relationship requirements and information overload do not affect the business process virtualization. The results will help business managers, teleworkers, and information system developers develop strategies to address the negative factors hindering business process virtualization. In the so-called new "normal era," our research will help companies to create a successful virtual work environment.
Process Virtualization Theory (PVT) proposes a set of requirements and relationships to explain and predict whether or not a knowledge work process can be successfully virtualized. However, at least ...in remote work, the crisis-driven digital transformation (e.g., during the COVID-19 pandemic) shows that almost all knowledge work processes can be virtualized unexpectedly and immediately. Since the requirements for these processes remain the same and need to be met to continue the processes remotely, an interesting question arises of how information technology (IT) can help to meet these requirements in a crisis-driven digital transformation of knowledge work. To address this question, we conducted 40 semi-structured interviews with a multiple-case approach using a critical realist perspective. Our findings contribute to information systems (IS) research in a twofold way. First, we demonstrate that the crisis-driven digital transformation of knowledge work triggers a revisited perspective on PVT by turning virtualized knowledge work processes into a prerequisite. Second, we show how the IT characteristics of PVT (representation, reach, monitoring capability) help to fulfill knowledge work process requirements in remote work settings and outline two additional IT characteristics (social presence and situation awareness) that positively support the fulfillment.
•Crisis-driven revisited perspective on Process Virtualization Theory (PVT).•Dependent factor “Process Virtualizability” in PVT turns into a prerequisite.•IT characteristics of PVT help to fulfill virtualized KWP requirements.•Extension of PVT by new IT characteristics (social presence/situational awareness).•Explorative multiple case approach including 40 semi-structured interviews.
Green Information Technology (IT) tools and practices contribute to environmental sustainability and business processes virtualization. To assess whether IT-enabled process virtualization ...capabilities impact organizational Green IT initiatives, Bose and Luo
2011
proposed a conceptual model that combines three theories: technology-organization-environment framework, process virtualization theory, and diffusion of innovation theory. We conducted an empirical analysis of data from 251 European firms, and found that environment context (competition intensity and regulatory support) was more important to Green IT initiatives than organization or technology context. Technology factors (sensory readiness, relationship readiness, synchronism readiness, and identification and control readiness) facilitating process virtualization were not found significant to organizational Green IT initiatives.
► We develop framework to assess a firm’s readiness to go green via virtualization. ► Virtualization drives the integration of sustainability and business and IT practice. ► Virtualization can ...respond to the requirement for “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”.
Green IT (information technology) has recently emerged into an active research area in the information systems (IS) discipline. A major gap that exists in the Green IT research literature today is the absence of a theoretical framework that can be used to assist organizations in assessing their potential for undertaking Green IT initiatives and implementing them via modern technological means such as virtualization. This study attempts to bridge this gap by developing and proposing an integrative framework which focuses on identifying and examining the factors that contribute to the assessment of a firm’s readiness to go green via IT-enabled virtualization. The framework is firmly grounded using three well-established IS theories: (a) technology-organization-environment, (b) process-virtualization, and (c) diffusion of innovation. It integrates these three theoretical lenses to utilize the strengths of each for assessing the potential for undertaking Green IT initiatives and the stages of Green IT implementation at the organizational level. The implications of the outcome of this study, both for the IS researchers and for the practicing managers are discussed. The plan for empirical testing and validation of our propositions is presented, as well as suggestions for future extensions of this study.
•Supports Collaborative enterprises (CE) in adopting environmental-friendly initiatives.•Aims to evaluate the factors required for successful deployment of Green IT/IS practices.•Propose a model ...based on Perceived Organizational e-Readiness Theory (POER) and Process-Virtualization-Theory (PVT).•Examines variables that influence IT professionals and IT managers intention to deploy Green IT/IS practices.•Identifies environmental-friendly practices deployed in CE towards sustainability attainment.
This study investigates the perception of Information Technology (IT) professionals and IT managers towards deployment of environmental-friendly practices in Collaborative Enterprise (CE). Through literature review this study develops a model based on Perceived Organizational e-Readiness Theory (POER) and Process-Virtualization-Theory (PVT) to investigate the factors that influence IT professionals’ and IT managers intention to deploy Green IT/IS practices which are based on the current environmental-friendly initiatives deployed in CE. Data was collected using questionnaire and results indicate that the POER factors influence CE’s perception towards Green IT/IS. Moreover, results also reveal that PVT initiatives are influenced by the current environmental-friendly initiatives.
PurposeThis study investigated the impact of the virtualization requirements of the learning process on students' satisfaction and their intention to continue using online ...learning.Design/methodology/approachA research model was developed using the process virtualization theory (PVT); it was validated empirically using data obtained from an online questionnaire-based survey of 489 undergraduate students.FindingsThe main results support the role of representation for sensory requirements, sensory requirements, reach, representation for relationship requirements and relationship requirements on shaping students' satisfaction, which all also have a significant influence on students' intention to continue using online learning. Relevance factors are responsible for 61.6% of the variance in students' satisfaction and 83.6% of the variance in their intention to continue using online learning. However, neither the synchronism requirements nor the identification and control requirements had a significant effect on students' satisfaction or on their intention to continue using online learning.Originality/valueThe present research focused on PVT in an online learning context; consequently, a new set of factors that influenced students' satisfaction with and intentions to continue using online learning was empirically tested for the first time. This research contributes to the literature on information systems because it advances the generalizability and applicability of the PVT in a new context and new cultural setting. Moreover, the research apprises researchers and practitioners of new factors, which should be understood and fulfilled to make virtual learning equivalent to the face-to-face learning experience.
Previous Online Learning (OL) studies have provided significant insights into why students would adopt or use OL but far less attention has been directed towards understanding why they would reject ...or resist continuing to use OL. The capability of OL to simulate the learning process to be equivalent to classroom learning remains an unresolved theoretical and pragmatic conundrum. This study is conducted to investigate the factors that affect students’ resistance to continue using OL and proposes a novel model based on the Process Virtualization Theory (PVT). The PVT investigates the amenability or the resistance of a process to be migrated from the physical to the virtual environment and can predict whether a process is conducive to or resistive to being carried out virtually. The study model was validated using structural equation modeling against data obtained from 563 undergraduate students through an online survey. The results revealed that sensory requirements, relationship requirements, synchronism requirements, and monitoring capability significantly increase students’ resistance to continue use OL. A significant negative impact of representation capability on students’ resistance to using OL was found while reach capability impact was insignificant. The significant factors collectively explain 71.6 % of the variance in students’ resistance. The study is among the first that concentrates on students’ resistance, in which it defies the predominant focus on students’ adoption or use in OL literature. The practically application of PVT contributes to enrich both academics and practitioners insights into a novel set of factors that affect students’ resistance that are rarely considered in the context of OL, particularly during the later stages of OL implementation.
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