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Global Virtual Team Project 2008-2009 at Carlson School of Management

Join a virtual team of students from WEMBA, VEMBA, CEMBA, & CHEMBA to develop a business plan for a product/service in an overseas market. Foster friendships & integrate concepts across various courses.

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Global Virtual Team Project 2008-2009 at Carlson School of Management

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  1. Virtual team projectNovember 2008 – May 2009 WEMBA VEMBA CEMBA CHEMBA Professor Svjetlana Madzar Carlson School of Management

  2. What is this project about? • In teams of 5-6 students from all four programs, you will select a product or service and develop a business plan for introducing this product/service in an overseas market. • Objectives • The experience of working in virtual teams spanning four countries and three continents • Allow integration of concepts across CEMBA courses you have taken from Strategy and Entrepreneurship to Marketing, Finance and International Business • Foster lasting friendships (hopefully!) across four countries • Evaluation • For CEMBA, 45% of your grade in the course CMBA5544 • For Poland it is a major part of their final course grade • For China it goes toward most of the grade on their International Residency course • For Austria, it is the grade on their Master’s thesis

  3. Some tips on high-performance virtual teams • Take the time to become a team -- introduce yourself, share personal information in initial e-mails – encourage shyer team members to do so as well • Suggest assignment of a regular role, however small, to each member • Find a way to rotate leadership, if possible • Frequently discuss and clarify team goals • Engage in frequent interaction – notify members about whereabouts • and absences • 6. Respect people’s opinions, focus on problem rather than personalities • Be forgiving of language difficulties • Keep it light. Have fun!

  4. Country Clusters • Anglo (Oz, U.S., U.K.) • Nordic (Denmark, Finland) • Germanic (Austria, Netherlands) • Central/East Europe (Belarus, Poland, Greece) • Mediterranean (France, Israel, Italy) • Middle East (Lebanon, Turkey) • Latin America (Brazil, Mexico) • Sub-Saharan Africa (Kenya, Nigeria) • South Asia (India, Thailand, Malaysia) • Pacific Asia (China, Japan, Macao) Gupta, V., Hanges, P., & Dorfman, P.W. (2002). Cultural clusters: Methodology and findings. Journal of World Business, 37, 16-27.

  5. Culture & Communication Style • High- and low-context styles • In high context cultures, the listener is expected to understand nuances of the implicit messages • In low context cultures (US), the onus lies on the sender to transmit a clear, explicit message – this may not be understood by non-US team members • Succinct vs. elaborate communication • Quantity of talk vs. silence • Central European cultures are moreelaborate • Scandinavia, UK, US emphasize clarity & precision • China, Japan, Korea are succinct but need ‘pauses’ especially to think and formulate responses in English • Self-enhancement vs. self-effacement • Team members from self-effacing cultures may find it difficult to “sell themselves” • Collectivist Asian cultures are generally self-effacing • Also affects the use of and reaction to praise/public praise

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