Last week we introduced the Five Myths and Realities of Virtual Teams and explored the first myth of the building a virtual team and balancing technology management and leadership series.This week we are moving to myth #2:
Building a Virtual Team with the Best People. Do you think it is a myth or reality that virtual teams will work if they have the best people?
Here is The Reality: No team is guaranteed success, even when it has the best virtual players. Teams fail for various reasons, including setting unrealistic expectations, falling short of deliverables, not engaging in conversations. Don’t underestimate the important building a virtual team planning element that goes into virtual team setup.
Advice: One of my favorite interview quotes from a client manager at a Computer Systems Company summarizes it best:
“It really helps during the non-virtual times to address issues that come up and set up the team for success later on. You must address how we work together, what we will do to call each other on it (permission to be honest with each other when things are not as they should be), how we will engage and stay virtually committed to each other, and how we as a team get things done. Having clear charter and team norms about what we do and how we do it really accelerates relationships.”
The Success Factors of Virtual Teams
• Assemble your virtual team for an initial face-to-face meeting and make sure you see your team at least once a year in person.
• Create structure and establish standards to manage remotely and ensure everyone is clear on the roles/responsibilities, approaches, and main elements: who, what, when, where, how and why.
• Focus on the vision and mission of the team at the beginning of each meeting.
• Break down team goals to smaller (short-term) objectives.
• Enable technology tools to support state-of-the-art reliable communication and collaboration and train team members how to use it.
• Develop a way for team members to get to know each other better (post resumes, pictures on website or/and in presentations).
• Pay attention to the silent members on your conference calls (who contributes, who doesn’t who is involved, who stays in the background).
• Create inclusive discussions that are made up of open and free (free of politically correct dialogue) communication.
• Time (duration for people) is important to understand how to communicate with each other’s different styles, cultures and approaches.
• Summarize team meetings, action items, deliverables, and decisions; distribute information to all team members, and have a backup communication plan /system when members can’t attend meetings.
• Develop mechanisms for building accountability and trust on the team.
• Handle conflicts and misunderstandings outside the main conference call. Follow-up with individuals afterwards to make sure you are respecting their cultures.
• Get deliverables out the door efficiently that meet quality standards and time guidelines.
• Give frequent praises for accomplishments and celebrate team success.
These and other best practices will be discussed in future blog posts the focus on building a virtual team and balancing technology management and leadership.
