Team Boundary Spanning: A Multilevel Review of Past Research and Proposals for the Future

Abstract

In response to increased complexity of work tasks, flatter organizational structures, and changing environmental conditions, organizational work teams must increasingly coordinate efforts across their boundaries and actively manage key relationships external to the team itself. Despite evidence of the importance of these processes—referred to as team boundary spanning—for both team and organizational success, significant gaps exist in our understanding of the nature of team boundary spanning, how and when these behaviors are carried out by teams, and the resulting impacts of team boundary spanning beyond that of enhanced team performance. Therefore, this article seeks to advance knowledge in this area by offering a taxonomy of team boundary spanning actions, reviewing the existing stream of team boundary spanning literature across multiple levels of analysis, and integrating this body of work with findings and perspectives from other boundary spanning research areas so as to stimulate fruitful avenues for future research.