Fluid teams in the metaverse: exploring the (un)familiar

Area of Science:

• Organizational Behavior
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Virtual Environments

Background:

• Fluid teams, characterized by members with no prior working relationships, are increasingly common in organizations.
• Team familiarity (knowledge of members and processes) is crucial for effective coordination and performance.
• The metaverse introduces a novel environment with contextual fluidity, impacting traditional notions of team interaction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the opportunities and challenges the metaverse presents for fluid team familiarity.
• To investigate how the metaverse's fluidity affects interaction, identity, and temporal aspects of team familiarity.
• To inform the development of new fluid team experiences within metaverse environments.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual analysis of the metaverse's characteristics in relation to team dynamics.
• Exploration of the implications of contextual fluidity on team familiarity.
• Identification of potential opportunities and challenges for fluid teams in the metaverse.

Main Results:

• The metaverse's seamless traversal between physical and virtual worlds creates a unique context for team interactions.
• Fluidity in the metaverse can impact familiarity related to interaction patterns, member identities, and the perception of time.
• Unfamiliarity in the metaverse may hinder initial team coordination but offers potential for novel team formation.

Conclusions:

• The metaverse presents a dual-edged sword for fluid teams, offering innovative collaboration possibilities alongside significant familiarity challenges.
• Further research into (un)familiarity dynamics within the metaverse is essential for designing effective virtual team strategies.
• Understanding and managing familiarity will be critical for unlocking the full potential of fluid teams in evolving digital work environments.