Caught Between a Clock and a Hard Place: Temporal Ambivalence and Time (Mis)management in Teams

This paper examines how teams manage temporal ambivalence, or the simultaneous and conflicting perceptions of time as a resource, including much has passed whether there is enough it left. Team members’ influence team manages time; thus, effective management requires some collective resolution ambivalence. To study effects ambivalence on processes performance in teams, we conducted laboratory which manipulated by engineering wall clock to run at different speeds (normal, fast, slow) instantiate types Using both quantitative qualitative analyses, found that managing effectively essential for appropriately allocate phases work. Specifically, often misallocated their either transitioning too late early between work, were associated with worse than closer midpoint. Teams heightened more likely poorly following one three dysfunctional patterns: bypassing comments, glossing over contradictions, passively. By contrast, managed did so through huddles, members briefly collectively took away from main task explicitly discuss time. We implications these findings research process, organizations. Funding: work was supported Harvard University, INSEAD, UCL School Management.