Individual performance in multiple team membership (MTM) setting: The role of charismatic and boundary spanning leadership

Multiple team membership (MTM), a phenomenon where an individual is simultaneously a member of more than one team at a time, is increasingly present in organizational practice. In line with that, more and more attention to MTM is also being devoted from scholars, especially related to individual and team performance. However, we know little on how individuals in multiple teams should be led. Our study shades light on this topic and suggests that specific forms of organizing, such as MTM require specific forms of leadership to benefit individuals’ performance. In an experimental design, we manipulated two types of leadership, namely charismatic and boundary spanning leadership in a single team (at Time 1) and in a MTM setting (at Time 2) while aiming to study their effects on individual performance. Data retrieved from 118 students participating in an undergraduate course at a Dutch university reveals that participants exposed to boundary spanning leadership show a significant increase in performance between Time 1 and Time 2 at a significantly greater level of change than the participants exposed to charismatic leadership. This suggest that boundary spanning leadership is favorable in situations where a team member needs to be bridged with information beyond the borders of one single team. These results have implications for management practice as they show which type of leadership are the most relevant for MTM settings.