Managing Virtual Teams

Part of being a manager for a company is managing teams. These teams can be created for many different reasons and can have various goals put upon them. Companies want managers that are capable of constructing teams that can effectively meet goals and set standards. The four types of work teams most commonly found in organizations are: problem-solving, self-managed, cross-functional, and virtual. In completing the simulation for this course, I will use cross-functional work teams as a foundation for my investigation of effective team management.

Virtual teams have emerged to mitigate the challenges of managing teams that are distributed across different regions, and are a sustainable component of global business. A project manager managing a virtual team would have to integrate communication strategies, project management techniques including human and social processes in order to support the team, (Kimball, 1997). The author is a project manager assigned to lead a virtual team of 300 volunteers located across the globe to develop recommendations for regulating carbon emissions in the world. As indicated Kimball (1997), this kind of a virtual team usually supports people working in the same professional field and most of the

Hertel, Guido, Susanne Geister, and Udo Konradt. 2005. “Managing virtual teams: A review of current empirical research.” Human Resource Management Review 15 (1): 69-95. doi: 10.1016/j.hrmr.2005.01.002.

A team is different from a group and have its own unique traits.A group interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to help each member do his or her job more efficiently and effectively. There’s no need or opportunity for work groups to engage in collective work that requires joint effort. On the other hand, work teams are groups whose members work intensely on a specific, common goal using their positive synergy, individual and mutual accountability, and complementary skills. The four most common types of teams are problem-solving teams, self-managed work teams, cross-functional teams, and virtual teams.

Globalisation has led to many changes in the international marketing and global advertising industry. Many international companies have projects spanning a variety of nationalities, involving great geographical distances and a range of time zones. In this scenario, companies are forced to make virtual teams - which are comprised of members who are located in more than one physical location (Peters and Manz, 2007). This virtual team trait has fostered extensive use of a variety of forms of computer-mediated communication that enable geographically dispersed members to coordinate their individual effort and inputs (Attaran, 2002). In addition, commitment to a virtual team goal may be further complicated by the single or coherent line of

Is anyone out there? A Guide to Virtual Team Working and Leadership’.Training Reference, viewed October 2011

Ebrahim, A., Shamsuddin, A. & Taha, Z. (2009). Virtual Teams: A Literature Review. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Science, 3(3), 2653-2669.

The use of virtual teams as a result of globalization of business is on the rise. However, several challenges have made virtual teams difficult to implement. Amongst such challenges are time differences between global locations, technological setbacks, data transmission and bandwidth, trust, number of meeting, and others. Coupled with real time discussions and actions, many global companies that addressed above challenges were successful in forming and implementing global virtual teams. Overall, the efficiencies measured in terms of quality and quantity increased as a result of the use of virtual teams within global organizations.

such teams cross organizational boundaries as team members are not necessarily to be from the same organization. Also membership frequently is diffuse and fluid, with team members rotating on and off the team as their expertise is needed. Team members may not even be aware of all the individuals, work teams, or organizations in the network. Depending on the complexity of the issue, additional members to the team may be added at any time. The duration these teams last may vary significantly depending on how fast or slow the issue is resolved. Such type of virtual teams often is found in consulting firms and in high-technology

In the business world, organization is a “systematic grouping of people brought together to accomplish some specific task.” (Robbin, DeCenzo, & Robert, 2013) An organization can be made of workgroups and work teams. While in a work team, members help create and gather information, accomplish different tasks, and meet common goals; whereas work groups interact to share information. “Today, more and more companies are incorporating teams—of a variety of sizes and types—into their workflows” (Miller, B.) There are so many different teams, but the following will be discussed self-directed work teams, cross-functions teams, problem-solving teams, and virtual teams. It is also important to be aware of the obstacles that exist while trying to construct an effective team and the overcoming of the challenges that teams face.

These groups rely on technology to communicate with one another and to accomplish the tasks allocated by the organization. One benefit of a virtual team is that they use technology and this can help increase efficiency and productivity of the members. The virtual teams also assist in the development of intellectual capital. The composition of the virtual groups helps improve quality as well as the outcome. The other benefit is the efficiency of communication. Some of the challenges include the distance between the members. The significant distance may dilute leadership, weaken human relations as well as amplify dysfunction. Virtual teams are hard to manage especially when it comes to goal setting, task distribution, coordination and member motivation. Virtual organizations rely on trust that the other members will fulfill their roles since it is not possible to monitor them closely (Hoppe, 2011). The virtual teams may face some internet challenges such as slow internet or disconnection. This problem can be handled through the use of alternative methods of communication such as mobile phones. While making a virtual team, the team members should address all challenges which may hinder communication by coming up with all possible substitutes of means of communication. These organizations rely heavily on the internet for video conferencing and sending emails. However, when the internet fails, they

Self-managed virtual teams rely on technologically-based networking, connecting team members who may not be in close proximity. Self-managed virtual teams can also be cost-effective, as remote communication is less expensive than travel. Because of the increasing utilization of virtual teams, especially within the healthcare industry, and the relative newness as a method of organizational structure, this research aims to explore how leadership styles impact the virtual structure. Virtual teams often differ from face-to-face interactions; as such, there are unique challenges to be addressed, as team members may not establish factors such as trust that they would in a face to face setting (Hoch & Kozlowski, 2014). There may also be less collaboration on specific tasks. To resolve these issues, the specific research question to be asked is: What leadership style would produce the best outcomes in an organization that utilizes virtual teams, specifically within the health insurance

Providing the experience of working on distributed teams, which an increasingly common requirement in the workforce

McLean (2014), suggest that there is no true effective approach to virtual team structures (McLean, 2014), therefore, it is vital that team leaders realize that paramount to the success of the

In many organizations, employees work together in structures commonly known as teams. Organizations utilize teams for a number of reasons (e.g., greater output, quality enhancements, or better decisions) and give them a range of labels depending on factors such as the members comprising the team {ex. managers, front line workers} or what the team is supposed to achieve {ex. to make decisions, develop a new product, deliver a service}. Some of the many types of teams found in organizations include top management teams, cross-functional teams { Bikson, 1996}, self-managing work teams {Cohen, Ledford, & Spreitzer, 1996, Orsburn, Moran, Musselwhite, & Zenger, 1990}, international task forces { Waite, 1998} and virtual teams {Hiltz, Johnson, & Turoff, 1986, Lumsden }. Despite investing heavily in teams, many organizations appear far from satisfied with their decision to become team-based (Dumaine, 1994). This is mainly due to the overall effectiveness of their teams and how their effectiveness tends to vary. At one end of the continuum, teams can be highly performing and produce outputs beyond the capabilities of its individual members. At the other end, however, they can fail dismally. Outputs for example are not produced on time or in some instances, not at all. Further, when outputs are delivered, they can be of such a poor quality, the reputation of the organization and the team members are effected. In the worst case scenario, these poor quality outputs can