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Welcome to the Virtual Enterprise. "It's scary. A lot of organizations create virtual teams with almost no understanding of the unique implications of that decision" "We put people in a complex virtual environment and we don't give them training, because we don't know what to train them on,"
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"It's scary. A lot of organizations create virtual teams with almost no understanding of the unique implications of that decision" "We put people in a complex virtual environment and we don't give them training, because we don't know what to train them on," Margaret A. Neale, the John G. McCoy-Banc One Corporation Professor of Organizations and Dispute Resolution at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Some Questions about Virtual Teams and Virtual Enterprises How is managing a virtual team different? How is managing a virtual team the same?
Virtual Team Managers are NOT supervisors How is managing a virtual team different? • The task often determines how a virtual team is managed • Virtual Manager’s work to build communication linkages between employees • Autocratic behavior is not an option in a virtual mgt role • We attempt to simulate a face to face environment in many ways • Role is more supportive than directive • Role is more coordinating than controlling • Accessibility to your team is important (thus tools are important)
Same place, same time Different time Same Place Same time Different place Different time Different place Virtuality is about time and place • Place these on the Quadrant above : • A team leader on a conference call with team members located in different cities • An employee in London works with a co-worker in Singapore. One works while the other sleeps, and they communicate via groupware, chat, and email • Team members in the same manufacturing plant work different shifts, so the leave messages via post-it notes and voice mail (what's voice mail) • Members of a process improvement team meet together in a conference room.
How is managing a virtual team the same?The managers job still focuses on two areas:People ProcessesBusiness ProcessesThe key is not to do different things, but to do differently those things one has always done. • Research shows there are FIVE areas in which remote managers need to apply special focus. • Relationships • Trust • Performance Management • Enablement • Communications
RelationshipsSome say its difficult to create a good relationship with someone you see infrequentlyBEHAVIORS TO BUILD REMOTE RELATIONSHIPSEmphasize commonality (similar background, interests, etc)Stay in touch; phone contact is the next best thing to being thereFocus on being clear in your communicationHave empathy, show concernTrust – In the workplace it has 3 dimensionsProfessional regard – respect for one’s skills, knowledge, experience and ability to get the job done. This can impact management style as well.Personal regard. Values and integrity. The belief in what someone says and does.Relationship – History, friendship, shared respect.
Performance Management Performance mgt from a distance is difficult. It’s hard to assess what you can’t see. Places more performance responsibility on the employeeSome suggest that 90% of success of a virtual team is dependent on team selection10% on collaboration toolsShare knowledge by coaching – (we could do a whole semester on coaching)Keep interaction logs and review themFocus on the ‘right work’ Track process by resultsMaintain a copy of objectives AND MAKE A COPY FOR EMPLOYEE. REVIEW THEM.What criteria do you use to evaluate remote employees? How is productivity measured now in the organization? For remote employees the measures will usually be the samePerformance should be done on an ‘event’ basisFor example, in this class we might measure each virtual communication event and grade accordinglyProvide employees with timely feedback using appropriate collaboration toolsEmployees, team members should provide weekly feedback on progress toward goals and objectives of the project using appropriate collaboration tools
Enablement • Distance employees often have more difficulty with boundaries • They are uncertain about what they can and can’t do. • Encourage a buddy or mentor system if possible • Talk specifics – detail important boundaries • Watch – may mean more travel, more calls • Allow some exploration – then help and explain when they screw up • Communications • You don’t have water coolers, restaurants and cafeterias. • Use the technology you have. Virtual Worlds, Wikis, Skype/IM, etc.
Making VIRTUAL TEAMS work isn't easy. Relatively routine tasks, such as scheduling a meeting, become complex and fraught with interpersonal friction when one person's work day begins as another is sitting down to dinner or sound asleep. A simple email exchange frazzles nerves because of cultural misunderstandings, and information needed in one place sits on a desk in another because there's no routine mechanism to share knowledge. Stanford Business Magazine - http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/news/bmag/sbsm0305/feature_virtual_teams.shtml
LEADERSHIP IN A VIRTUAL TEAM WORLD The manager’s job still focuses on two areas; People processes and business processes. It can be described by looking at its components or inputs and outputs. The manager has a series of objectives to achieve (input), contends with and leverages a set of conditions (inputs) to do that, and draws upon certain skills and competencies (input) to produce an organizational climate and the desired business results (outputs).
LEADERSHIP IN VIRTUAL TEAM WORLD • Managerial Styles • basic management styles or behavior patterns which might be employed are: • Telling, • Providing direction, • Providing coaching, • Delegating and providing support, • Empowering and enabling • The most successful managers are those who have a broad array of styles in order to implement these styles.
LEADERSHIP IN VIRTUAL TEAM WORLD Your perception of the team members task competencies impacts the management style you employ. Telling – The team member seems unable to do the task. Lacks confidence, does not participate or contribute. Providing direction – Team member seems willing but cautious to do the task. Participates as directed. Providing coaching – When the team member is becoming more confident in the task. Contributes to team suggestions and the team collaboration tool. Delegating and providing support – The team member provides recommendations and suggestions. Displays confidence. Empowering and enabling – The team member is very able, secure and confident. Shows project leadership and serves as a resource.
Complexity • Virtual Teams are more complex • They cross boundaries related to time, distance and organization • They use electronic highly technological means to communicate
1. Has members from more than one organization 2. Has members from more than one function 3. Has members who transition on and off the team 4. Is geographically dispersed over more than three contiguous time zones 5. Is geographically dispersed so that some team members are 8–12 hours apart 6. Has members from more than two national cultures 7. Has members whose native language is different from the majority of other team members 8. Has members who do not have equal access to electronic communication and collaboration technology 9. Has members who are not formally assigned to the team Total number of categories checked: Complexity Index: 1–2 = some complexity 3–5 = moderate complexity 6–8 = high complexity
Business Justification for Virtual Teams is Strong • They lessen the disruption in peoples lives • Increase speed and agility • Leverage resource expertise • Make vertical integration between organizations possible (and easy) • Team members broaden careers by working across organizations and cultures This leads to the expectation that – going forward – leadership expertise is more likely to be gained from working in virtual teams than through more traditional methods.
Working in a virtual environment is not for everyone. It’s easy to feel alone, adrift, left out. IBM. Virtual team members really have to develop their own competencies. • Team Member Competencies • Project management skills • Networking across functional and hierarchical boundaries • Knowing the most appropriate technology to use • Using the technology well • Managing ones own time (and career) • A high level of interpersonal awareness
Virtual Team Projects What would be the perfect virtual team environment? Assign a process improvement team for a virtual team class
