Leading Remotely: The Best Traits to Have

With COVID-19 turning many offices into virtual spaces, new leaders in the workplace may be emerging while others could be struggling to keep their positions. The qualities that tend to make people turn to a leader in person do not appear to be the same in a virtual setting.

Traditionally, people who succeed at work and end up in executive positions tend to be outgoing and charismatic. In the new virtual world of work, greater emphasis is placed on such qualities as diligence and dependability. Hard workers with less flashy personalities might be impressing their peers more than they did in the flesh. The ability to ensure that the entire team is meeting deadlines and staying focused is a valuable quality.

The “Journal of Business and Psychology” published a study that looked at which workers became leaders across more than 200 groups that were either virtual, in-person, or hybrid. They also examined more than 100 teams of students at a university and did laboratory-based experiments with 86 teams of four. The in-person teams tended to be the extroverts who seemed confident and intelligent that emerged as leaders. However, for the virtual teams, the qualities valued were productiveness, dependability, and helpfulness. Teammates tended to look to people who connected them with resources and got the most work done as leaders.

The lead study author, Radostina Purvanova, pointed out that personality significantly affects how people are perceived in person. However, online, other qualities come to the fore, and as more workplaces go hybrid or virtual, the factors that make for strong leaders in that environment will need to be studied and considered more.

Those studies may be complex. For example, it is necessary to get real-time reports from both teammates and self-assessing leaders. Furthermore, one professor in the field has pointed out that while actions related to the work itself are one aspect of leadership, how these new leaders manage interpersonal relationships and whether they continue to do so over time must be studied as well.

The study does not mean that traditional leaders cannot succeed in these new workplaces as well. However, it does suggest that online interpersonal interactions may need to become a part of training in hybrid or virtual workplaces of the future.