Abstract
Virtual collaboration involves the performance of joint work activities by individuals who are in different geographic locations. In this essay, I argue that that there is significant unseen and unaccounted for effort required to perform work in virtual collaboration. The notions of organizational discontinuity theory (ODT) and articulation work are employed to develop this argument and uncover the invisible work in virtual collaboration. I hypothesize that, while often perceived as unremarkable, this hidden work increases the complexity of collaboration activities. The chapter concludes with a discussion of potential consequences and future research directions.
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Notes
- 1.
I would like to acknowledge helpful discussion with my colleague Catherine Cramton in developing these ideas.
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Watson-Manheim, M.B. (2019). Discontinuities, Continuities, and Hidden Work in Virtual Collaboration. In: Riemer, K., Schellhammer, S., Meinert, M. (eds) Collaboration in the Digital Age. Progress in IS. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94487-6_6
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