Abstract:

Leadership and learning is an expanding field of study according to existing research. Studies on leadership and learning in hybrid work teams are relevant and timely as businesses struggle with the new modes of learning, leading, and working after the pandemic. Hybrid modes of work are necessary for the new working life, with leadership and learning patterns also changing. Digitalization is known for transforming organizational structures, changing and challenging leadership, and altering the workplace, as well as workplace learning. The pandemic has disrupted and influenced the movement of physically situated work teams to a blend of virtual and on-site work with greater flexibility for workers. Virtual teams existed before the pandemic, however, the expectations from leaders managing hybrid teams are quite different. Studies also show that organizational learning is important for swift adaptation to the dynamic business environment but is affected by organizational leadership. Consequently, new leadership practices are required to manage the workforce, foster employee learning, and navigate both modes. Therefore, there is a growing need for studies on leadership in digitalized organizations and digital workplace learning, especially hybrid work teams. The focus of this pilot study is to increase the understanding of the leadership and learning process in digitalized organizations especially hybrid work teams, as well as to investigate the opportunities and challenges therein. The pilot study is essential for an appropriate study design since it guarantees methodological rigor, scientific validity, and competence development for the researcher. The objectives are to observe the hybrid work teams, identify leadership, and consider learning in such work teams in digitalized organizations. The overarching research questions for this study are: How does the leadership process work in hybrid work teams, and how can leaders improve learning in hybrid work teams?

To achieve the aim and objectives of this study, and answer the research questions, the study employs a qualitative research strategy with leaders and co-workers in hybrid work teams. Data has been collected through six in-depth interviews, with leaders and co-workers in a hybrid team within a knowledge-based international organization in Sweden. The interviews were conducted between November 2022 to December 2022 and lasted 60-70 minutes, and were recorded and transcribed. The analysis was conducted using a hermeneutic approach. This entailed re-reading the transcripts and performing the first step of coding, which resulted in categories. The second part of the analysis narrowed the concepts to emphasize how the leadership and learning process is conducted in the hybrid workplace. Data collected from both leaders and followers presented the opportunity to find a more complex leadership process within the hybrid workplace. The results of the study have revealed perceptions of leadership from leaders and co-workers, new challenges of leadership, the interactions, as well as the learning processes occurring in hybrid work modes. The study has provided insights into the future of hybrid work teams, learning, and leadership in such teams. This research contributes to work-Integrated learning by way of investigating workplace learning in hybrid teams. Additionally, it will help identify gaps in current research and act as a springboard for future studies as this area needs more research.

Keywords:

Leadership, Workplace learning, Hybrid work teams.