Virtual Teams, Real Challenges

“There is not much that is specific to a virtual team, that couldn’t apply to almost any team.”

Are you on a virtual team or managing one? What challenge does your virtual team face? How have you worked to solve them?

00:01:00: In HBR’s newest issue, “Getting Virtual Teams Right” by Keith Ferrazzi.
00:03:00: You can model three tiers of team members – core, operational, and outer.
00:05:45: Calculate your team’s virtual distance – factors that exacerbate the challenges for a given team.
00:09:00: Operational distance as opposed to Physical distance.
00:10:00: Affinity distance.
00:13:00: How many managers stop to think: “How I recruit, assemble, and construct this team will have a big impact on the outcomes I will get from them”?
00:16:30: The moment “us” and “them” begins to form on a team, trust and therefore performance, erodes.
00:18:40: When management begins to consider putting together cross-functional teams, it is worthwhile to pass out copies of Ferrazi’s article to everyone, and ask – “Have we considered all these factors?”

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