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Virtual Teams

Virtual Teams. Chapter 15. Use of Communication Technologies. Creation of virtual teams Mediated by time, distance, technology Continuum Two types of technologies Communication Share information Collaboration Help teams solve problems, make decisions, work together.

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Virtual Teams

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  1. Virtual Teams Chapter 15 15-1

  2. Use of Communication Technologies • Creation of virtual teams • Mediated by time, distance, technology • Continuum • Two types of technologies • Communication • Share information • Collaboration • Help teams solve problems, make decisions, work together 15-2

  3. Use of Communication Technologies • Impacts: • Work design • Organizational design • Communication patterns • Secondary social effects • Limits social relations • Impact varies due to cultural and age differences • Increases cross-cultural miscommunications 15-3

  4. Use of Communication Technologies • Communication Technologies and Teams • 4 ways to support teams: • Gather and present information • Help team members communicate • Help teams process information • Structure group process 15-4

  5. Use of Communication Technologies 15-5

  6. Use of Communication Technologies • Characteristics of Communication Technologies • Axley (1996) • Speed • Reach • Interactivity • Cue variety • Reichwald & Goecke (1994) • Social presence • Media richness • Ability to document the message 15-6

  7. Use of Communication Technologies 15-7 Insert Table 15.2: Analysis of Communication Methods (p. 287)

  8. Communication Impacts • Status Differences • Equalizes differences in student groups • No effect on actual work teams • Mixed effects on performance • Anonymity • Leads to deindividuation • Results: • Social loafing • Flaming • Less pressure to conform • More ideas 15-8

  9. Communication Impacts • Miscommunication • More conflict (often negative) • Difficulty establishing and maintaining mutual knowledge • Faulty assumptions • Multi-tasking in videoconferencing • Communication Norms • Etiquette errors 15-9

  10. Team Impacts • Task Performance in Virtual Teams • Personal advantages: • Flexibility • Control over time • Empowerment • Personal disadvantages • Isolation • Increased miscommunication • Increased conflict 15-10

  11. Team Impacts • Tasks better suited for virtual teams: • Idea generation • Problem solving tasks • Brainstorming chief example • Not suited for consensus-seeking tasks (negotiation, decision-making) 15-11

  12. Team Impacts • Decision Making • Advantages • Sharing of unique information • Focused on logic and facts • Less distracted by irrelevant social information • Research before communicating • More participation • Higher creativity and performance • Disadvantages • Less sharing of information overall • Lower team satisfaction and cohesion 15-12

  13. Team Impacts • Social Relations • Lower satisfaction in virtual groups • Lack of social support • Increased stress • Difficulty with cohesion • More anonymity • Less team identification • Difficult to develop trust • Build through: • Occasional face-to-face meetings • Adopting Life-cycle approach 15-13

  14. Selecting the Right Technology • Factors to Consider • Task characteristics • Team characteristics • Group process • Theories: • Media richness theory • Adaptive structure theory • Task-technology fit theory 15-14

  15. Selecting the Right Technology • Matching Technology to Team and Task • All technologies somewhat useful • Group support systems useful for specialized functions • Not very useful for negotiating highly emotional conflicts 15-15

  16. Selecting the Right Technology • Matching Task to Technology Insert Table 15.3: Matching Task to Technology (p. 297) 15-16

  17. Challenge of Virtual Teams • Communication Problems • Cross-cultural miscommunications • Creating Effective Interpersonal Relationships • Difficult to develop trust • Limited success of videoconferencing 15-17

  18. Challenge of Virtual Teams • Team Building in Virtual Teams • More time to deal with problems • Face-to-face initial meetings • Instant communication channels • Operating structures • Communication norms • Better training • Appropriate leadership 15-18

  19. Challenge of Virtual Teams • Future of Virtual Teams • Changes in technology • Project management software • Discussion forums • Virtual reality environments • Characteristics of new employees • More comfortable with technology • New types of social interactions • Instant messaging • Chat rooms • Facebook 15-19

  20. Challenge of Virtual Teams • Future of Virtual Teams • Changes in technology • Project management software • Discussion forums • Virtual reality environments • Characteristics of new employees • More comfortable with technology • New types of social interactions • Instant messaging • Chat rooms • Facebook 15-20

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  22. 15-22

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  24. Insert Activity: Experiencing Teamwork in a Simulated Virtual Team (p. 303) 15-24

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