However, research investigating dif

However, research investigating different aspects of leadership in the virtual
context seems to be limited (Wakefield et al., 2008). Indeed, recently Malhotra et al.
(2007) bemoaned the fact that research throwing light on the issue of VT leadership in
general and studies exploring special skills and competencies required for effective
leadership of such teams in particular has received very little attention. More recently,
Schweitzer and Duxbury (2010) observed that the field of VT research is still maturing
and struggling with empirical and conceptual issues (p. 269). In this paper we attempt
to address this void. We stress that organizations deploying VTs need to reconsider
their extant leadership attributes, knowledge, and skills, and decide to develop and
utilize the capabilities that are embedded in the existing leadership theories. Hence, the
main objective of this paper is to examine these leadership capabilities in the context of
different stages of VT development and management.