Beyond Avatars & Emoticons

  Communications Management   ProjectsAtWork  

Lack of face-to-face time makes cohesion difficult to achieve on distributed teams. Collaboration software can help, with forums for information exchange that enhance productivity and accountability. Along the way, it should also make “getting things done” more rewarding and spontaneous. Here are four keys to keeping your virtual team connected.

It’s no secret that many project teams today are geographically dispersed, even inside relatively small companies. In our “flat” world, nearly everyone relies on distributed resources. Social research from as far back as 40 years ago demonstrates there is a positive correlation between physical proximity and the ‘probability of communication.’ Individuals whose desks are more than 100 feet will likely only communicate with one another other electronically.

For teams who are spread across the country, across the globe, or even just across metropolitan areas, most collaboration takes place in email, instant messages, or in the online tools used to manage work and projects. The conversations over these channels lack the nuances of face-to-face communication (including facial expressions, stance, and tone), personal knowledge of the communicator, and a rapid real-time feedback loop. The resulting fragmentation can leave team members without a sense of cohesion, struggling to piece together the …

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