The Challenge: Managing Virtual Teams

By Matthew Schwall

“Managing virtual teams is different and more complex than managing face-to-face teams” (Berry, 2011, p.186).


Companies are choosing to build virtual teams that may be spread out geographically. As a result, in-person meetings are expensive for businesses due to travel. Electronic communications such as e-mail and teleconferences provide an alternative, but making the conversations effective is challenging. Data, which was presented in-person, must now be available to all members of the team and must be reliable and secure.

Face to face communications allow immediate feedback, a dynamic that is lost in some types of electronic communication. The “human touch” is part of what needs to be added to electronic communications suggests Uber Grose (2002). The dryness of non-personal communications leaves us with an automatic disadvantage. There is no body language to observe, no observable interaction with others, no feel for the counterpart’s environment, and no personal bonding. Additional personal information should be added to communication to humanize the person at the other end of the conversation.

Team communication across cultural boundaries using electronic media creates additional challenges, but may also have some advantages. Phone conferences are especially problematic. Non-native English speakers are at a disadvantage when trying to communicate verbally. Texas Instruments in an attempt to reduce travel costs uses WebEx to host virtual meetings (Uber Grose, 2002). Visual presentations can be shared between team locations to help clarify the information being presented. WebEx meetings have an instant messaging feature, which allows those that are timid or are not as fluent in English to communicate.

Moving data effectively between teams is a challenge. Gibson & Cohen (2003) found that team members prefer basic e-mail rather than larger more controlled data storage systems. Additionally, the method to communicate and move data must be reliable. Communication may be interrupted due to different technological issues, computer security, and system outages. I recently expected a WebEx call from the Far East and was rather concerned when the scheduled call was not attended. Was my meeting invitation received? Later in the day I found that there was a typhoon in the area from which the participants were calling. There was a country-wide evacuation and all communications were down. Working with off-site team members poses a unique set of challenges especially when normal lines of communication and data transfer are interrupted.

Managing virtual teams presents a unique set of challenges, which need to be understood and addressed for businesses to be successful. While difficult, these challenges can be resolved with the aid of electronic computer assisted tools and by understanding the environment and cultures of the team members.


References:

Berry, G.R. (2011). Enhancing Effectiveness on Virtual Teams Journal of Business Communication. Journal of Business Communication, 48, 186-206

Gibson, C. B., & Cohen, S. G. (2003). The last word: Conclusions and implication. In C. B. Gibson & S. G. Cohen (Eds.). Virtual teams that work: Creating conditions for virtual team effectiveness (pp. 403-421). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Uber Grosse, Christine (2002). Managing Communication within Virtual Intercultural Teams. Communication Quarterly, 65, 22-38