Category: Virtual Team Management

Virtual management is a field which is designed to make a distinction when it comes to the responsibilities a project manager has, which is often separate from the production site. Virtual management is a critical area for virtual teams, and the reason for this is because it allows the managers to focus on the needs of an economy which is service based. In such an economy the relationship between a product and a commodity may no longer provide a solid competitive advantage which can be sustained, and this can be due either to international competition or related issues.

A virtual team will typically be one that is decentralized in a spatial way. It will have employees, customers, and even managers who may be dispersed over a wide region. Some of these organizations may be dispersed for only short periods of time, but when they are dispersed, this occurs within multiple time zones. Virtual teams are also heavily tied to technology, and it is the most cutting edge technology which has led to the advent of groups which are interconnected globally. Virtual management gives employees the option of traveling to their place of work if they wish, or working from a remote locations. This provides the corporations with a very high level of efficiency.

Virtual Team Challenges

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While a virtual team has many advantages over a physical one, it is far from perfect.  Much of the documentation today which is available on teams focuses on the traditional team, the group of people that work together in the same location with the goal of finishing a specific project. The concept of a virtual team is relatively new; it is a byproduct of the Information Age, and didn’t exist to a large scale prior to the 1990s. The key factor which separates the virtual team from the physical one… Read More

Virtual Team Disadvantages

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A virtual team offers many powerful advantages, but its weaknesses must be addressed. While virtual teams are truly powerful and robust in many ways, they are not without their drawbacks. Understanding the disadvantages which are inherent in virtual teams can allow the team to become more successful and efficient, particularly by avoiding the many mistakes which lead to failure. Communication Efficiency The first disadvantage that comes with virtual teams is a reduction in communication efficiency. A number of studies have consistently shown that much of what humans communicate to one… Read More

Virtual Team Benefits

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Virtual Teams are essential to remaining competitive in the information age. Not only can the implementation of virtual teams save companies a lot of money, but they can also extend the capabilities of these firms. In some cases, companies that have made the decision to switch to virtual teams have saved millions of dollars each year. A virtual team is a group of workers who function together on a variety of different projects. They will generally work from different geographical locations, which can range from cities to entire countries. When… Read More

Virtual Team Members

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Communications technology only plays a small role in the success or failure of a virtual team. In truth, many of the factors which can allow a virtual team to succeed are based on things that cannot be measured in terms of computers or Internet connection speed. In contrast, the success of the team is based on the psychology of the members that comprise it. All the technological tools in the world mean nothing if the team is not coordinated and cohesive. Studies show that while many people attempt forming virtual… Read More

Virtual Team Management

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More virtual teams fail, and will continue to fail, as a result of poor management on the part of the leaders. If you do not know how to properly manage a team, your idea will never get off the ground, regardless of how brilliant it is. There are a number of things that project managers can do to ensure their virtual teams are running with a high degree of efficiency. The first of these steps is to create a portal for communication. The easiest way to do this is to… Read More

Virtual Team Communication

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The speed of communication among team members can be described as one of the most important aspect of communication in a virtual team. Far too often, virtual teams fail to reach their objectives simply because the members of the team fail to communicate with each other. The issue of communication can be a technological phenomenon, but in many cases, it is a problem that occurs because of poor communication skills on the part of the team members. An example of a communication lapse is when different members of the same… Read More

Maximizing Virtual Team Performance

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While there is little doubt that a virtual team can give you a very competitive edge in the market, the success of this team is heavily dependent on its performance. All the advanced communication tools in the world mean nothing if a team is unable to perform at a high level. To maximize the performance of your virtual team, you must understand the power of "perception." In many ways, perceptions are more important for virtual teams than reality itself. When virtual team members encounter each other, they may need data… Read More

Virtual Team Success Factors

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A Virtual Team that emphasizes the following factors can successfully complete any project.  Due to the falling costs of virtual team technology and the growing power of networks, more virtual teams are being formed all the time, and will continue to be formed in the foreseeable future. Even though all virtual teams may be able to access the same technology, this does not mean that they will have the same results when it comes to the successful completion of their projects. Because many organizations don’t understand the advantages and disadvantages… Read More

Virtual Team Requirement

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Why and When a Virtual Team is Necessary No company that wants to compete internationally can function without virtual teams.  A virtual team is absolutely necessary for any corporation which wants to compete in the international arena. With the advent of the Internet and globalization, very few corporations today can afford to not take advantage of virtual teams. However, there are instances in which a virtual corporation may not be necessary. For instance, some would argue that a local business which caters its products to local customers has little need… Read More

Virtual Team Performance Variables

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Typically virtual teams have a large number of people working together on a single project, and these people will be dispersed in many geographical locations. Virtual teams are very powerful components of the information age because they allow employees to work across the boundaries of time and space. Being able to understand the relevance of these three variables will allow one to determine the proper virtual team to lead, and will help in deciding the proper actions to take. For instance, the team which has members working within the same… Read More

How to Develop Virtual Team

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Knowing how to establish a virtual team is very important.  The success or failure of a virtual team is largely dependent on how well the virtual team leader can establish the team at the beginning. The very first step in developing a virtual team is to pick competent people to comprise it. Many leaders make the mistake of picking incompetent people to be members or their team, or they choose friends or family members, and this is always a mistake. Incompetent people will kill the project long before it gets… Read More

Virtual Team Vs. Formal Team

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There are a number of differences between a virtual team and the traditional formal team. The most obvious difference between the two is the geographical location of the team members. With the traditional formal team, all the members of the team will work within the same geographical location, generally in the same physical building. This often means that the group must work on the same schedule, meaning everyone must be at the same location at the same time. Because virtual teams involve advanced global communication technologies, workers are not restricted… Read More

How to Build a Virtual Team

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It is important to note that only high performance virtual teams are effective.  The number of people who are working in the identical location at the same time are beginning to decrease. One advent of this phenomenon is the introduction of virtual teams. A virtual team is basically defined as a team where members work together from remote geographical locations. In every case, there is little need for the members of the virtual team to be in the same location while working, and in fact, for a virtual team, being… Read More

Virtual Team Definition and Concept

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What is a Virtual Team? A virtual team, which may also be referred to as a team which is geographically isolated, is a collection of individuals who work together through the usage of communication technology. These people will typically have skills which complement each other, and these skills are geared towards the achievement of a specific goal. The performance goals of this team will generally be interdependent, and each member of the team will hold themselves accountable when it comes to the completion of the shared objective. The goal of… Read More

The Concept of Virtual Manager

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The Role of Virtual Manager Virtual management is a field which is designed to make a distinction when it comes to the responsibilities a project manager has, which is often separate from the production site.Virtual management is a critical area for virtual teams, and the reason for this is because it allows the managers to focus on the needs of an economy which is service based.In such an economy the relationship between a product and a commodity may no longer provide a solid competitive advantage which can be sustained, and… Read More