Emotion in teams: a scoping literature review

Purpose

The empirical findings of the roles of emotions in teams are mixed. This study, a scoping literature review, aims to synthesize extant research on the roles of emotions in work teams and offers future research directions.

Design/methodology/approach

Sixty-nine empirical studies from the past ten years (2012 to 2021) were identified and reviewed. The authors then analyzed these 69 papers based on their research design, focus and nomological network of emotions.

Findings

The authors found that there is a clear increasing research trend of studying emotions in a team setting. In the extant literature, team emotions were studied from three major perspectives: emotions, emotional management and emotion measurement. The authors also summarized findings into the nomological network of team emotions. Last but not least, future research directions regarding the research context, focus and design and analysis were recommended.

Originality/value

The role of emotions in teams has not been extensively reviewed or synthesized, and the empirical findings are mixed. This paper synthesized the role of emotions in teams and critical factors that affect emotions in teams. In particular, the research recommendations for critical human resource development scholars cover three aspects: research context advancement, research focus advancement and research design and analysis advancement.

A review of the literature on cross-functional integration (2010–2020): trends and recommendations

Purpose

Structural and technological changes are driving functional reorganization in many organizations. To date, there are very few articles that explicitly, consistently and cumulatively focus on cross-functional integration. This paper aims to review and explore the literature that does directly address cross-functional integration.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a literature review within the general management domain for the time frame 2010 to 2020 and identified 71 relevant articles that provide an overview of current practices and trends.

Findings

This conceptual paper reviews this identified literature and outlines key trends, noteworthy articles and a summary of relevant theories, and provides an overview of outcomes linked to cross-functional integration in the literature. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations for practitioners and an outline of potential research areas for academic researchers, including a call for more theory integration, building and testing in the area of cross-functionality.

Originality/value

This paper is the first of its kind to attempt to summarize the literature on cross-functionality (published between 2010 and 2020), a currently very fragmented field of study spread out across different management disciplines.

Modelling human resource dimension of international project risk management

Purpose

Project risk management (PRM) and human resource management (HRM) are the two critical success factors (CSFs) for international project management. This paper aims to correlate these two CSFs, identify the human resource (HR) barriers, develop a hybrid model for risk management and develop strategies to overcome the HR barriers to effective risk management in international projects.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 20 key HR barriers have been identified through a literature survey and verified by project professionals. These HR barriers are ranked according to their ability to trigger other barriers by analysing their interactions using the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method. Based on Ulrich’s revised model for HR functions, a hybrid framework for international PRM has been proposed.

Findings

DEMATEL analysis categorized nine barriers as cause barriers and 11 as affected barriers. The “PROJECTS” model proposed for HR strategy development suggests eight strategies to overcome these nine cause barriers. The hybrid PRM framework developed includes the effect of the HR dimension.

Research limitations/implications

This paper presents the generalized prioritization of HR barriers to international PRM. For a specific international project, the HR barriers and their prioritization may change slightly. The hybrid framework for PRM and the strategy development model suggested are yet to be validated.

Originality/value

Correlating two CSFs in international project management, i.e. HRM and PRM and ranking the HR barriers using the DEMATEL method is the uniqueness of this research paper. The hybrid framework developed for PRM based on HR functions in Ulrich’s revised model and the proposed new HR strategy development model “PROJECTS” are unique contributions of this paper.