Mariana Borges Nunes Vieira

There has never been so much flexibility and organizational capacity to adjust to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on work. This article examines beliefs and perceptions related to new arrangements imposed by compulsory telework on skills and performance management practices, as well as identifying related advantages and disadvantages associated. This paper draws on 17 in-depth interviews using the collaborative interactive action research method. The authors study how leaders acted in multiple ways, aiming to reduce the negative effects on workers and work design and provide greater balance of actions. The perspective of multiple levels of action was adopted, considering human and social behavior and organizational arrangements made at a macro level. The sense of collectivity and the search for the standardization of routines were privileged in the interpretation of the answers. The main results reflect the influence of compulsory telework to performance factors, essential competencies required, and the main advantages and disadvantages associated to the construct. This study is relevant for organization studies, especially in the kinds of organizational contexts where there is still unpreparedness to deal with the effects of the pandemic or have uncoordinated telework practices.