Virtual Teams
Q. What types of Virtual Teams have you worked in? Was one better than another? Why? What is the Core Culture of the organization that you currently work in?
Virtual teams are a group of people who work together but are connected electronically. They are in most cases not together physically. I have worked in an organizational virtual team. The virtual team involved several tasks divided into departments; there was the web design department, the electronic engineering department and the secretarial department (Reference, 2011). All of these departments are aimed at pulling the company’s resources together for an ultimate goal. I was specifically in the web site design department which involved designing web sites for the clients who the organization had. The websites would be designed and developed by experienced employees. I have also been involved in a departmental virtual team which was located in far and wide places. The department involved working for an NGO in determining the use of the revenues in different parts of the country. We consequently had to collect the relevant data and the related evidence to prove the same; we consequently had to compile a report for the NGO.
The departmental virtual team was quite exciting, as it involved several teams performing the same task. There was a feeling of correlation between the groups. The work involved spending time out of a building. The task issued was in a far detailed format that made our understanding easier as well as the working environment.
I currently work in a departmental virtual team where by the work is simplified and the responsibilities that have been laid out are direct (Pauleen, 2004). My colleagues and I are able to get a clear view of the environment we will be working in. the culture that is being advanced is the responsible acquisition and sharing of information. The department looks out for responsible leadership, freedom in sharing and acquisition of information, priority is given the most important and relevant sources of data. Any decision needed to be made is shared among the members of the team.
Q. Describe what a good virtual team looks like. What are its characteristics?
A good virtual team possesses several characteristics; it is able to pass and acquire information through an efficient communication method. A break down in information is not a frequent occurrence. Good communication is passed to the relevant groups for cohesion; it helps them to similarly organize themselves in an orderly manner. When it comes to report acquisition and submission, the measures applied are in efficient manner to allow for ease in understanding them. The structures that are formed are highly rigid and are able to pass through information to the relevant relative departments, the structures are consequently solid.
When it comes to the recruitment of staff members, strict measures and processes are put in place to allow for only the best of the staff assessed are able to work in the virtual groups (Development, 2010). This creates an opportunity for only the best methods of acquiring; displaying and storage of information are used. The leaders that are made to organize and coordinate the groups ought to possess the required capacity of knowledge to lead these teams to the set goals. A good leader possesses good leadership skills that are more so related to the work that is done. The team hierarchy that is available is of the utmost effectiveness, they must be in a model that allows for easy and efficient sharing of information.
Successful teams are able to efficiently pass information to the relevant groups that they work with. Their structure and their skills that they possess are relevant to success of the virtual team, their consideration is hence important.
References
Development, T. (2010, January 27). Pros & Cons of a Virtual Team, Are they better? Retrieved May 14, 2011, from http://www.businessmantra.net/pros-cons-of-a-virtual-team-are-they-better.html
Pauleen, D. (2004). Virtual teams: projects, protocols and processes. Covent Garden, London: Idea Group Inc.
Reference, T. (2011). Retrieved May 14, 2011, from Is anyone out there? A Guide to Virtual Team Working and Leadership: http://www.trainingreference.co.uk/skills/team_development/virtual_teams_2.htm
