Group items tagged

Global virtual teams are internationally distributed groups of people with an organizational mandate to make or implement decisions with international components and implications. They are typically assigned tasks that are strategically important and highly complex. They rarely meet in person, conducting almost all of their interaction and decision making using communications technology. Although they play an increasingly important role in multinational organizations, little systematic is known about their dynamics or effectiveness. This study built a grounded theory of global virtual team processes and performance over time. We built a template based on Adaptive Structuration Theory (DeSanctis and Poole 1994) to guide our research, and we conducted a case study, observing three global virtual teams over a period of 21 months. Data were gathered using multiple methods, and qualitative methods were used to analyze them and generate a theory of global virtual team dynamics and effectiveness. First, we propose that effective global virtual team interaction comprises a series of communication incidents, each configured by aspects of the team's structural and process elements. Effective outcomes were associated with a fit among an interaction incident's form, decision process, and complexity. Second, effective global virtual teams sequence these incidents to generate a deep rhythm of regular face-to-face incidents interspersed with less intensive, shorter incidents using various media. These two insights are discussed with respect to other literature and are elaborated upon in several propositions. Implications for research and practice are also outlined.

Practical evidence from benefits of virtual collaboration presented at Enterprise 2.0 conference in 2009. Travel costs down, efficiency and innovation up.

Quite a good and simple presentation on the essence of what is effective virtual collaboration.

How to structure a virtual team and the role of social interaction in distributed work contexts

Framework for collaboration in distributed teams

work is not defined by place but by how we connect with others

Message: virtual is not as good as face-to-face. Virtual work is a necessity, but what si left out are the potentials

Virtual teams, although relatively new to the global business landscape, are already recognized as a boon to international organizations. Without the time, cost and hazards of travel, groups can now share information, chat, innovate and make decisions together. Creating effective virtual teams has proved to be more difficult than expected. Managers cannot simply create high-performance by assigning members and 'letting them run'. Without careful structuring, support and attention to processes, virtual teams do not achieve their potential and may not even get off the ground. Here we focus on four of the most important challenges: effective communication, relationship building, managing conflicts and leadership.

It is a 100 page PDF describing scenarios for the future of work: Scenario 1: Global product creation in a networked company Scenario 2: E-professionals in ad-hoc self-organising teams Scenario 3: Coordinating distributed work of individual worker Scenario 4: Community-based collaborative workspace Scenario 5: Mobile workplaces in a collaborative business network Scenario 6: Mobile competence workers in global supply chain

Virtual open space activities

Virtual teams cross three types of boundaries: Time, space and organization. Understanding those variables is crucial to deal with challenges of the different team types emerging from these complexity factors.