Am I Doing What's Expected? New Member Socialization in Virtual Groups

Abstract

The small miracle of telecommunications that Alexander Graham Bell brought to society in 1876 continues to transform our lives today. A technology that business was reluctant to embrace in the 1880s has now been embedded in the very fabric of organization life to such an extent that to exclude it is next to impossible. Today, communication technology allows people to work together even when they are physically far apart. In its most extreme use, businesses can operate without the employees ever meeting each other or their customers, thus creating a “virtual workplace” where time, space, and structure become tools for the individual rather than constraints of the organization.