Essays on Virtual Team

Project managers use a variety of tools and techniques to manage project teams. Project managers commonly use Project Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) and the Gantt chart to manage project teams. The PERT shows diagrammatically the sequence of project activities, how much time each activity will take, and the interrelationship between the various project activities (Maserang, 2002). The Gantt chart show the calendar time each task will take usually expressed in days, weeks, or months (Maserang, 2002). Gantt charts show diagrammatically for each activity the start time, the estimated time to complete the activity, and the time elapsed (Maserang, ...

IT Support for Virtual Teams

Issues faced by the IT department when it supports virtual teams The IT department has faced several issues when it provides support to the virtual teams. Some of the most important issues are as follows:

Communication issue

The IT department has faced a communication issue however the productivity and technology issues are also common. Research indicates that in the IT department, communication is the main problem when the IT department supports the virtual team. The IT department also faced a problem in the task management and the IT department fails in updating and assigning the tasks to the individuals.

The working ...

Literature review

The global developments in social, political, economic and technology sphere crucially affect organizational survival in the society. These new changes demand that organizations’ management must oblige to developing new management techniques so that their organizations can cope up with harder competition and more demanding market conditions. To large extents, organizations need to raise the performance of their employees through the power of communication (Erogluer, 2011). From the beginning, written and spoken language is considered the way to share meanings and messages for human societies. Often, the most common means of communication for most organizations is face-to-face communication. Communication is ...

Literature review

The global developments in social, political, economic and technology sphere crucially affect organizational survival in the society. These new changes demand that organizations’ management must oblige to developing new management techniques so that their organizations can cope up with harder competition and more demanding market conditions. To large extents, organizations need to raise the performance of their employees through the power of communication (Erogluer, 2011). From the beginning, written and spoken language is considered the way to share meanings and messages for human societies. Often, the most common means of communication for most organizations is face-to-face communication. Communication is ...

Suggest the issues that could have developed had the team not had taken a risk plan

Within a Satellite Development Project, new technology, with often untested outcomes, is involved. In the absence of a risk plan, the technology included in this project could have generated unexpected results that might have compromised the project. As the project’s description informs, the satellite development project implied many unknowns with variables that stretched across manufacture, supply chain system integration, etc. (Lavigne, n.d.). With the high amount of unknown factors, many aspects could have gone wrong in the project, which could have endangered its success. Risk refers to uncertainty regarding future events and outcomes, expressing “the likelihood and impact ...

Introduction

A multicultural organization is an organization characterized with a workforce of people from diverse social and cultural backgrounds. The workforce includes people from diverse religious, ethnic, racial and gender backgrounds, including those from minority social cultural backgrounds at all levels and in all departments of the organization (Wang & Chan, 2009). Virtual organizations are organizations primarily supported by technology such as World Wide Web, Internet, telecommunications, EDI, e-mails, videoconferencing and groupware. Organizations have been encouraged to become virtual to derive benefits that include lower overhead, lower labor costs, increased employee morale, more project options and flexibility (Wang & Chan, 2009). The ...

The advent of globalization led to the creation of virtual global organizations that develop business innovations through its members located in different regions in the world. Accordingly, the main aim of these virtual teams is to ensure that the members of these virtual teams interact and share knowledge and ideologies. The Amazon Company is a company in America that deals with electronic commerce and cloud computing with its headquarters in Washington. This paper explains the factors involved in the creation and sustaining global and virtual teams including the components of change and innovation, processes, technologies, and the standards and ...

Leading virtual teams is very different from leading onsite teams. Virtual teams are much more challenging to manage compared with onsite management. Virtual teams have several benefits to the office and the individual. For the individual, being a member of a virtual team and working at such give the individual a comfort to work wherever and whatever way is comfortable to the individual. If the individual is comfortable working in his bed then the management does not give a damn as long as he can deliver the required outputs. He can work anytime except on scheduled meetings when he ...

1. One particular experience in a virtual environment is working through oDesk. The first and foremost virtual team skill required of the remote workers is the capability to work competitively with the technology available in oDesk. Although there are some limitations – such as lack of face-to-face interaction – and advantages – like greater convenience – both managers and workers should adopt to the technology. Besides, selecting virtual team members may be based on technical expertise and experience (Gibson and Cohen 103). Moreover, workers need to have significant things: collaboration, socialization, and communication skills/behaviors. Collaboration skills are behaviors that make ...

The purpose of this memorandum is to answer to the memorandum previously received Re: Need assistance in coordinating virtual team schedules. The Virtual Team created by the company are currently working on different platforms supporting task management, scheduling and document repositories. To ensure a more efficient communication between and among teams, a unified environment is needed.

The secretariat is soliciting recommendations for a cheap or free cloud-based SAAS Tool that could support task management, scheduling and document repositories. Software that could deliver all the requirements is much preferred. The SAAS tool must have the capability to coordinate free or busy schedules to ...

The purpose of this memorandum is to answer to the memorandum previously received Re: Need assistance in setting process and ground rules for a virtual team. It is understood that the company is creating virtual teams across the eight regions for both finance and operations managers. As agreed upon, each of the teams will be composed of nine members where each is expected to come up with a project plan on the span of ten weeks.

Though the company has a solid project management methodology, it is a neophyte when it comes to the setup of virtual teams thus the need come up with ...

Virtual teams rarely meet face-to-face and must rely on technology to communicate effectively (Roebuck & McKenney, 2006). Team members must communicate completely with each other for the virtual team to succeed. The following communication mediums are suggested to improve communication among virtual teams: e-mailing, teleconferencing, and videoconferencing. E-mail (electronic mail) is the most widely used form of written communication that is replacing the traditional paper memo. E-mail allows employees to communicate globally at virtually any time and any place. Teleconferencing is the simplest infrastructure for supporting a virtual team that allows tow or more people at different locations to have a simultaneous ...

Introduction

The Global Virtual Work Teams have now evolved into everyday practices for businesses working internationally. The significance of these work teams are attributed partly to its advantages and partly to the mere necessity of doing so. The main aim of this paper is to find a suitable Eastern European country as well as creating an appropriate plan for a multinational business organization to implement the virtual work team in that country. We have selected Poland for the successful completion of this paper. We also aim to focus on the cultural differences that may halt or fuel the work process in any ...

Virtual Teams

The virtual team refers to geographically dispersed team in which people living in different regions could work together by using communication websites. It has made it possible to work with effectiveness, efficiency and reliability in a virtual environment. I believe that working in a virtual team well approach to enhance the performance of the required task. In this way, one can find the expert of the work required and combined judgment would result in effective outcomes. The virtual team is promoted by the advance technologies. IT has made it possible to do the collaborative work. A survey was conducted for ...

Question 1

- Lack of proper communication Effective communication has a direct impact on the success of a virtual team. Most successful teams make an effort to meet face to face on a continuous basis. At the core of effective virtual team communication is sharing of a common vision and clearly defined goals. Limitations on time and distance can inhibit proper communication. - Physical distance Virtual teams face the challenge of face to face contact. Non-physical relations are rarely as effective as physical interactions. So it is advisable to pay attention and implement strategies that help humanize the virtual media. - ...

The Business Context

As per the earlier discussions by the Senior Management Executives of the company, it has been decided to launch an 1100cc touring bike (country not specified). Touring bikes has its own characteristics. A brief, about a‘touring bike’ the company is going to manufacture, will very much help in project planning. A ‘focus group’ by the design and marketing team with the prospective customers indicates that there exists no relationship between fast straight line speed and rider skill. In pure and simple terms bigger bikes have higher top speeds. Because they have more horsepower. Straight line speed is the ...

<INSTRUCTOR’S NAME> <COURSE NAME> - Research the different leadership styles within the Tesco’s organization. Identify 3 different styles and compare their effectiveness at achieving the organization’s goals. (2.1) Tesco managers have been given different areas of responsibilities while they face their customer and deliver the needed services, at the same time, provide instructions and guidance among their assigned employees. In this organization, managers apply different leadership styles as the situation calls for including democratic approach, autocratic and laissez-faire. A democratic approach of leadership allows reassigning of responsibilities, authority and decision-making power ...

Project management is a term that has two words; project and; management. For a clear understanding and definition of project management, we must start by defining these two building words; According to Method123 (2003), a project is a unique endeavor that is set to achieve a set of deliverables within a specified time, resources among other constraints. Every project is unique in that it has its specific and unique goals to achieve within a defined timescale, limited resources, budget and associated risks. At the end of it all, each and every project is usually aimed at achieving a beneficial change. Management can be defined as the process ...

Introduction

Practically every aspect of business has undergone a massive transformation over the past two decades as globalization and modernization fueled by technological advancement have engulfed the business landscape. As a result, significant change has been witnessed in a variety of business related areas that range from business operations and information technology, to strategic competitive positioning and human resource management. Regardless of the area of business in question, it is the leadership that has come to play an integral role in the change and innovation process, which has enabled the business landscape as a whole to transform into the highly efficient, modernized and high-tech ...

Answer 1:

Virtual team may be described by the group of individuals who do not belong to the same cultural background. The members of the team should have indispensable skills and work collectively for the common purpose and individual performance goals and share an understanding of their working to be remained mutually accountable. So in short the virtual teams concurrently work together while they are apart physically.

Characteristics:

1. Managerial Support: The first feature of virtual teams is managerial support, the members of the virtual team work for the expansion of societal relationships at workplace and exhibit collaboration. 2. Efficient HR ...

Executive summary

This paper examines the operation of virtual global teams vis a vis heterogeneous groups from a single culture. The paper kicks off with an introduction explaining the difference thereof between global virtual teams and the latter. A general overview of the unique challenges typical for global virtual teams follows. Throughout the paper these challenges unique for global virtual teams form the pillar for the development of the skills needed to manage the teams.In this part, the challenges facing global virtual teams but are absent in the heterogeneous groups from a single culture are closely examined, citing the managerial skills needed by the ...

The case study under scrutiny is a case of global virtual teams and how they aid in project success and value creation. The core intention of the case study is to establish whether virtual projects pose any different challenges from those that are faced by the projects completed when people are in direct contact. The case study also tries to devise new means of solving problems virtually even better than face-to-face when in different conditions. The case observed that the virtual team-working industry was growing and was accelerated due to collaboration between different members and nations, both internally and ...

Version 14

Project Title: Relationship between Money and Time with Virtualization Technology DA Class ID: (A full and accurate number is a must!) The Specification: This report details an evaluation of the impacts of virtualization technologies on resources and time of an organization. A virtualized environment differs from a standalone physical server environment in terms of application execution time and cost of support and implementation. A virtual environment for a stock trading will be developed. The virtual trading environment will be put to test using NASDAQ trading engine and results compared with standard servers. Application execution time and cost of implementation ...

Computing Project’s Proposal

Project Title:Relationship between Money and Time with Virtualization Technology. The Project Aims and Objectives: This research will focus on how time and money is related to the use of virtualisation technology. The researcher will develop a virtual environment for stock trading. This virtual trading environment will then be tested using Nasdaq trading engine. The results will then be compared with the standard servers. There is a need to understand the different parameters of working in a virtual environment. The parameters of money and time taken are of critical importance. The need to compare results with the standard servers is so ...

Ans 1: Performance of the team can be effectively achieved by setting up goals and benchmarks, and accessing the team effectiveness. The goals of the team would be based in accordance with business, individual goals and team goals. Being in a learning and development team the goals for the designer would be learning new skills, time management, effective team member and contributor, project responsibilities and aligning requests with objectives. The senior designer goals would be similar to the designer with additional goals such as Mentoring, Coaching, Team configuration, and extemporary project participation. Ans 2: Performance reviews help achieve the ...

OUTLINE

Introduction

Cultural differences and conflict management within virtual teams is usually a common aspect in many organizations. The rise of telecommuting and improved technology has led to emergence of virtual teams within organizations. - The definition of a virtual team - The scope of work done by the virtual teams - The presence of various cultural backgrounds in workplaces

Types of Conflicts

There are various types of conflicts faced by virtual teams while in their workplace. They include the following: - Relationship/ social conflict - Data conflict - Identity conflict

Conflict Management

Conflict management is an important aspect in any ...

Introduction

In this current age technology-based solutions are the main drive for business growth. A company that lags behind in adopting technology-based solutions risk the potential effect of incurring losses and finally bowing out of the business. Amaco is a systems development company having been in the industry for more than 10 years. It has seven branches all over the globe with three in Europe, one in Middle East, One in Africa and the headquarters in San Francisco U.S.A. Over time, it has realized that business environment is changing and needs to adapt to the changes in order to remain competitive. ...

Abstract

Because of the increased use of virtual teams in businesses, particularly those that are globally based, focus has been directed at the particular leadership skills that are necessary to meet the challenges presented by their use. There are a number of benefits to the use of virtual teams, including possible increased productivity, the potential for lower costs, and the potential for better collaboration. However, in order for these benefits to be realized, the virtual team must be managed effectively. Otherwise the challenges of lack of face-to-face communication, lack of social interaction, lack of trust, culture clashes, and loss of team ...

The improved technology in Internet has made the organizations to work in a special system where people are spread globally and everyone works as a team member to achieve the goals. As stated by Rad & Levin (2003), the virtual teams have changed the project management because the task assignment in virtual teams is conducted on a member-by-member basis, and the resource allocation and schedule adjustments are conducted on a member-by-member basis, but across the entire project. This method is unlike the traditional project management in which the project is divided into packages and assigned to separate teams. Teams that work remotely face a ...

Technology has and continues to impact on various aspects of information and communication technology. With regard to organizational context, technology has provided avenues through which organizations communicate effectively and manage employees situated in different geographical contexts. The article “The Impact of Team Empowerment on Virtual Team Performance: The Moderating Role of Face-to-Face Interaction,” by Kirkman et al., 2004 offers a substantive review on how various organizations have managed to implement organizational behavior policies in the context of virtual teams. In fact the article delves on the relationship between the performances of virtual teams with respect to face to face communication. ...

Introduction

Over the past ten decade, most of the project has been completely or partially unsuccessful due to in effective strategy of communication among the team members. The work that the members has already has done can be rather futile if the objectives are not well communicated to the members participating in the project. All members should be full aware of every plan and action regarding the project. In effective communication triggers negative responses that can be very fatal to the success of the project.

The home remodeling project has been quite successive over the past nine month and is ...

It is acceptable that effective communication is the greatest asset that an organization can ever have. This is because the communication helps in coordination and management activities within the organization, making everyone more accountable, transparent and productive. However, there are times when communication becomes quite a challenge. Below is an illustration of how this can happen.

Challenges in Communication

In this case scenario, it can be seen that Songsri has a challenge in managing the virtual team. This is not out of the ordinary since the many organizations face similar challenges. The key to the solution is in understanding the problem clearly, and then ...

Different authors have come up with different definitions for the word virtual teams. However, the key concept of having collaboration even if physically dispersed through the use of information technologies is present in all definitions. Mortensen et.al. defined virtual teams as “interdependent individuals physically separated from one another and relying on information technologies to communicate, collaborate, and coordinate work to achieve a common goal” (2009). Another term use to refer to virtual teams is geographically dispersed teams (GDT). Basing from the term use to refer to them itself, it can be gleaned that these teams are not physically together, but ...

Definition and Overview of Virtual Teams

Technological evolution have brought monumental change on how humans live and work. It is the driving force that pushed the boundaries of human limitations in terms revolutionizing the way people live on a daily basis whether on a personal or professional level. When talking about professional level, it means the practical application of technology in a working environment that creates an impact to the success of an organization. One example of that application is the Virtual Team.

Virtual Team is defined as an organized group of people working as one unit similar to an organizational department such as marketing, accounting or sales. ...

Abstract

The emergence of virtual teams has changed the marketing ball game as well as strategically placed organizations in such positions that they are able to improve their innovation stance by employing professionals to their projects that are geographically disperse. Virtual team has in the last decade gained popularity with more intense research works being carried out to enable faster execution and communication during the whole project phases involved. As a matter of fact, virtual teams have been found to be useful in gradually decreasing costs associated with physical infrastructure as well as the risks associated with working under the same ...

Introduction

Since the onset of the fiber optic technology, communication barriers have been broken and the virtualization of teams has been possible. The objective of this chapter is to analyze the significance of virtual teams and their management in software development. The paper defines virtual teams and discusses their importance, their types, and the tools used by them for collaboration. It also analyzes the challenges faced by these teams in terms of management, collaboration, and coordination. The various virtual platforms used by these teams, such as cloud computing, are discussed. A secondary literature analysis is conducted to understand the role ...

DISSERTATION PROPOSAL:

Introduction

With the increase in globalization across various industries, the world seems to be getting smaller, especially with organizations having a presence in many areas of the world. This can be largely attributed to the creation of virtual teams, which enable people to work together despite being separated by distance.

A study conducted by American Business Collaborative found that more than 80% of the workers surveyed were “involved in some way with virtual work teams” (Brown, Huettner and James-Tanny, 2007, p. 1). These teams included those who worked across the world, across the country, across town, in offices, at a customer ...

Arguably, working with a team and a group has numerous experiences as well as the expectation. One gets a chance to communicate, share ideas, as well as taking roles. Additionally, the experiences achieved develop individuals mentally, emotionally, socially, and psychologically. Certainly, communication was the key factor in the activities of the team and groups that I participated. Communication within a group and a team enable people to work together and efficiently towards the achievement of the intended goals. The team I participate with was a football team, while the small group a family. In both, I was part of them and experienced the team and groups ...

Introduction

With the need to explore new markets in new territories, globalisation has become the trend in many companies. Therefore, in many organizations the common factor is the use of teams and teamwork in completion of tasks (Lipnack & Stamps 2000). Basically, a team is defined as a group of individuals interacting interdependently and who are brought together or voluntarily to accomplish particular outcomes. Buhlman, (2006), posits that team usage enhances proficiency, receptiveness, and tractability within a company mainly because synergies are created amongst members having diverse knowledge, experience, and expertise. Computer-aided communications systems have also been essential in encourage the use of teams. ...