Signaling Strategies as an Alternative to Face Time

Technical Notes on Cristea and Leonardi (2019)

Abstract

Cristea and Leonardi (2019), outlined the process through which subsidiary workers, who cannot display face time in the globally distributed workplace, take actions to signal their commitment. The misalignment between the interpretations of the signals sent by subsidiary workers, and the consistent need to signal their commitment, meant that most subsidiary workers were left exhausted and exited the signaling process. In this paper, we discuss how Cristea and Leonardi (2019) actually examine the outcomes of signaling, not face time, and how we can interpret the result that most subsidiary workers eventually quit signaling. In doing so, we aim to offer implications to companies in Japan, where remote work is becoming common.