Abstract
This phenomenological study examined the lived experiences of eleven current or formerremote team leaders from five different job sectors, including Federally Funded Research
and Development Centers (FFRDCs), medical, insurance and personal finance,
international aid, and academia. Analysis of the data gained through interviews identified
five prevalent leadership approaches, two theoretical models, and three core
competencies to include in the academic curriculum for future remote team leader
professional development programs. While leadership competencies are essential to
remote team leader success, a foundational understanding of transformational, servant,
leader-member exchange, situational, and transactional leadership approaches is a
steppingstone to competency development. Commonly shared resources and living
systems models provide frameworks for remote team leaders to benefit as they apply
anticipatory reflection in preparation for their roles. Relational systems and enabling
processes are crucial to understanding where, how, and when to apply leadership
approaches that allow remote team leaders to exercise strategic, problem-solving,
decision-making, and team-building competencies. Additionally, the strength of the data,
given the consistency of experiences across broadly diverse job sectors, indicated that
universal application of the findings might be projected to other job sectors to improve
the success rate of remote team leaders and the quality of service and products they
provide to communities.
Keywords: Leader, remote team, parent organization, environment, leadershipapproach, theoretical model, systems, competency, curriculum