scholarly journals Making Virtual Teams Work: Redesigning Virtual Collaboration for the Future

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Meluso ◽  
Susan Johnson ◽  
James Bagrow
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Collaboration ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
The Future ◽  
Fundamental Needs ◽  
Do So ◽  
Hybrid Forms

The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted how many teams work, from face-to-face interactions to remote and hybrid forms of collaboration. Even at its best, though, virtual collaboration remains less effective than face-to-face collaboration, leaving millions of workers with both the temporary and permanent challenges of virtual work. Virtual collaboration as we know it was designed in and for a colocated world without prioritizing diverse needs. Design is uniquely positioned to not only alleviate these ails but even make virtual teams strategically advantageous by developing solutions specifically for hybrid virtual collaboration. To do so, designers must incorporate attributes that make virtual collaboration “work”. This article provides background on communication technologies before summarizing the attributes of collaboration and leadership that “work” for effective virtual collaboration. We then highlight several outstanding concerns and possibilities as an impetus for designers and researchers to develop solutions to the challenges of sustained remote and hybrid collaboration. In doing so, we seek to motivate designers and researchers to redesign the artifact of virtual work itself for the fundamental needs of collaboration.

Virtual Work Research Agenda

2011 ◽  
pp. 4018-4023
Author(s):  
France Bélanger
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Work Environments ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Work Arrangements ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Conducting Research

The paper by Bélanger, Watson-Manheim, and Jordan (2002) addresses the gap between research conducted and practitioner concerns in virtual work. One of the key difficulties in conducting research in this area is the overlap between terms used (McCloskey & Igbaria, 1998; Pinsonneault & Boisvert, 2001). While there are other distributed work arrangements such as hotelling, neighborhood work centers and flextime, most of the previous literature has focused on telecommuting (telework) and virtual teams/ organizations. In this article, the term virtual work represents work environments where individuals spend some time working in a non-face-to-face (FTF) mode, using information and communication technologies to perform work activities. Virtual work environments are increasingly employed by organizations. While there is increased complexity and potential for problems, virtual work strategies allow organizations a great deal of flexibility to compete in a rapidly changing business environment. While existing research provides insights into such environments, it does not clearly deal with major concerns faced by managers (referred to as the “gap” between research and practice). One of the potential reasons for this gap is that practicing managers are concerned with current challenges in their own work setting while academics are concerned with developing more generalizable rules and understanding.

Virtual Work Research Agenda

2005 ◽  
pp. 3013-3017
Author(s):  
France Belanger
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Work Environments ◽  
Work Activities ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Work Arrangements ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Conducting Research

The paper by Bélanger, Watson-Manheim, and Jordan (2002) addresses the gap between research conducted and practitioner concerns in virtual work. One of the key difficulties in conducting research in this area is the overlap between terms used (McCloskey & Igbaria, 1998; Pinsonneault & Boisvert, 2001). While there are other distributed work arrangements such as hotelling, neighborhood work centers and flextime, most of the previous literature has focused on telecommuting (telework) and virtual teams/organizations. In this article, the term virtual work represents work environments where individuals spend some time working in a non-face-to-face (FTF) mode, using information and communication technologies to perform work activities.

Systems Development by Virtual Project Teams

2011 ◽  
pp. 447-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Croasdell ◽  
Andrea Fox ◽  
Suprateek Sarker
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Global Market ◽  
Project Teams ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Business Organizations ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Virtual Project ◽  
Virtual Project Teams

Business organizations and global partners are increasing their utilization of virtual project teams to enhance competitive advantages in the global market. More than ever, organizations are using virtual teamwork to bridge time zones and geographic distances. The use of virtual work environments has spurred interest in understanding how team members interact and collaborate over the life of a project. Not surprisingly, organizations are trying to understand what factors are determinants of success with respect to virtual teams. Increasing network bandwidth, continuously improving communication technologies, shifting global economies, and changes in social practices have caused business managers to reconsider traditional practices. This paper provides a comparative case study of four cross-cultural virtual project teams as they analyze, design, and develop information systems.

Collaboration Among Multicultural Virtual Teams

2011 ◽  
pp. 306-313
Author(s):  
Kursat Cagiltay ◽  
Barbara A. Bichelmeyer ◽  
Michael A. Evans ◽  
Trena M. Paulus ◽  
Jae Soon An
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Problem Solve ◽  
Virtual Setting ◽  
E Mail

Due to the increasingly widespread use of various information and communication technologies (ICT), individuals from different countries and cultures are able to learn and work collaboratively in virtual environments (Mowshowitz, 1997). Electronic communication tools, such as chat, e-mail, and the World Wide Web, now make it possible for students and employees to communicate and problem solve with colleagues irrespective of geographical location (Scott, 2000). One of the major downsides of this form of collaboration, though, is that members of a virtual team do not have the advantage of face-to-face interaction and communication. Instead they must rely solely upon an assortment of computer-supported cooperative-learning and class-work tools and strategies—some planned, some ad hoc—to coordinate resources (Bichelmeyer, Cagiltay, Evans, Paulus, & An, 2004). Unfortunately, little research has been conducted to systematically investigate the dialectic between culture and computermediated communication (CMC). There is currently an insufficient understanding of how individual learning and work, cultural features, and CMC mutually influence one another in a purposeful, virtual setting.

Managing the Information Technology

2009 ◽  
pp. 192-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huei-Chen Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Types Of Knowledge ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship

The main points of this chapter are probing for the combination of information technology and virtual work, and how to change the distribution of different types of knowledge across individuals, teams, and even the organization. The discussion in the chapter will assess the dynamics between the individual, the organization, and information technology in the context of teams that vary in their virtualness. Information technology can make convenient spread of knowledge across the organization; even the point of making virtual teams a viable alternative to face-to-face work. However, unless managed, information technology may destabilize the relationship between organizations and their employees when it comes to the transform of knowledge. Therefore, this chapter advances theory and informs practice by illustrating the dynamics of knowledge development and transfer in more and less virtual teams.

Managing the Information Technology

2010 ◽  
pp. 1643-1662
Author(s):  
Huei-Chen Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Types Of Knowledge ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship

The main points of this chapter are probing for the combination of information technology and virtual work, and how to change the distribution of different types of knowledge across individuals, teams, and even the organization. The discussion in the chapter will assess the dynamics between the individual, the organization, and information technology in the context of teams that vary in their virtualness. Information technology can make convenient spread of knowledge across the organization; even the point of making virtual teams a viable alternative to face-to-face work. However, unless managed, information technology may destabilize the relationship between organizations and their employees when it comes to the transform of knowledge. Therefore, this chapter advances theory and informs practice by illustrating the dynamics of knowledge development and transfer in more and less virtual teams.

scholarly journals Is High ICT Intensity Always the Ideal?

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-64
Author(s):  
Jiahe Song ◽  
Muhammad A. Razi ◽  
J. Michael Tarn
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Good Deal ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Virtual Collaboration ◽  
Virtual Communication ◽  
Research And Practice ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
The Ideal

Virtual communication is a preferred working style for remotely structured teams to remain productivity while reducing cost. A variety of information and communication technologies (ICTs) are available for providing technical support to virtual teams. While companies as a whole have been accumulating a good deal of experience for executing virtual collaboration, challenges still exist due to the nature of different industries or organizations' business environment. The goal of this paper is to explore the types of ICTs adopted and ICT intensity implemented by contemporary virtual teams. Interview-based cases with companies located in U.S., U.K., and China were conducted to achieve our goal. Important insight for research and practice are discussed.

scholarly journals Challenges for Romanian Entrepreneurs in Managing Remote Workers

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyu Zhan ◽  
◽  
Delia Mioara Popescu ◽  
Valentin Radu ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Teams ◽  
High Performance ◽  
Virtual Work ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Remote Work ◽  
Work Processes ◽  
Organizational Boundaries ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Remote Workers

In an increasingly globalized society managing remote work allows entrepreneurs to compete favorably and increase profit. Moreover, with the rapid development of information and electronic media, decentralized work has become much more comfortable, faster, and more efficient in response to the globalization of work processes. Dynamic environments have introduced virtual work teams that collaborate through communication technologies across geographical, temporal, cultural, and organizational boundaries to achieve a common goal in the results of their organizations. Remote working grows in popularity, but with it also increases the need of the organization to demand high performance from their members through their projects and activities. All over the world, statistics showed in 2019 a steep increase in the number of virtual workers. Both managers and companies face a high number of challenges to keep their employees satisfied and their “numbers” up. This article focuses on the emergence of Virtual Teams in Romania, primarily through the real necessity of remote workers. We highly discuss the advantages and disadvantages of working from home for Romanian Entrepreneurs, especially in the current pandemic state of the entire world.

scholarly journals Selected Success Factors of Virtual Teams: Literature Review and Suggestions for Future Research

2014 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justyna Szewc
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Virtual Team ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
First Finding ◽  
Team Success ◽  
The Future ◽  
Selection Of

Abstract The aim of this paper is to extend the knowledge about virtual teams and above all to stress the differences between face-to-face and virtual teams as well as to define its chosen success factors. This paper is based on an extended literature review of virtual teams. The author describes virtual teams, reasons for their implementation and four factors that are prerequisites for team success. The first finding is that the successful introduction of a virtual team and its management requires knowledge about the special characteristics of this team and the effective handling of challenges. Second, the literature review of virtual teams reveals a lack of research on the differences in motivation between face-to-face and virtual teams. The originality of the article is ensured by selection of the most important factors which, according to the literature review, lead to the success of virtual teams and by a description of areas that need to be explored in the future.

Trust, Rationality and the Virtual Team

Virtual Teams ◽  
2011 ◽  
pp. 316-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Environment ◽  
Virtual Teams ◽  
Virtual Team ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Virtual Collaboration ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Collaborative Environment ◽  
Group Cooperation ◽  
National Organizations

Virtual teams need trust in order to function. Trust is an efficient way of gaining group cooperation. Online, trust is more effective than instruction or authority or status in getting people who are largely strangers to one another to work together. But trust is not a simple quality. The kind of trust that is the cement of distance relations of a global or virtual kind is different from the type of trust that binds face-to-face interactions and from the procedural kind of trust that operates in regional or national organizations of a traditional managerial kind. This study looks at the ways in which trust between virtual team members is generated. “Trust between strangers” is optimally generated when persons are allowed to self-organize complex orders and create objects and processes of high quality. Also looked at are the kinds of personalities best suited to working in a virtual collaborative environment. The study concludes that persons who prefer strong social or procedural environments will be less effective in a virtual environment. In contrast, self-steering (“stoic”) personality types have characteristics that are optimally suited to virtual collaboration.

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