Working online and impact on projects

Dear Andrew
Thank you for participating in this reflection and for your opinion

Do we have to adapt to this new reality? (however uncomfortable)

For at least the short term, yes. But for how long will the short term last. I, too, strongly prefer in-person work. I will have to adapt to a digital world, at least for now. It will be a bit on the uncomfortable side at first, but have been thinking about how to best adapt.

Dear Luis,

Yes I would say that there is a big difference between Video Conferencing and Face to Face Conversation.

This difference became more noticeable to me when I conducted a Skype Interview for a project management role. It is more difficult to interact and get your point across especially when you are not the one controlling the interview.

This issue arises also when trying to interview stakeholders and contributors to a project by video conferencing. No matter how well prepared and structured the meeting/interview is there is something of a intangible resources that is missing from the meeting that requires follow up communications and clarifications.

Having access to the same tools online remotely as you would have in your organizations office has being reached but what is missing is the personal interaction with your work colleagues that generates new ideas, new approaches, problem solving and improved forms of communication that can deescalate issues which is missing when working remotely.

Daire

Dear Luis,

At some point we are going to reach a digital glass ceiling. That is we have all the toys, technology and process short cuts that we can manage at any one time and what will distinguish one organization from another is the people they employ and how they interact with one another. It is this interaction, an intangible contribution, that will become they most valuable part of an organizations. Everything else will be interchangeable, plug and play and swap out in nature.

I would say after this crisis, a lot of organization will become leaner, more focused and more agile, which goes in tandem to the project management methodologies that are in play in most organizations.

Daire

Dear Sergio
Thank you for participating in this reflection and for your opinion

It is only possible to work online (virtual teams) with the internet and, of course, with the evolution of its speed and through the creation of and improvement of tools that facilitate this work

Nothing new under the sun? 25 years ago only if it were under your sun, not mine or the organizations I work with

We agree that the big question concerns the architecture of organizations

What will this new architecture be? That's the big question for me

I started working on line in 1988. So, we did not need the internet (or what it is known today as internet)Architecture was defined in 1986 by the CMU SEI and refined in 1998 by some people like myself an others when today internet explode. Those people created the EABOK when MITRE was formed by some companies (I worked in one of them). Just to comment I wrote an article on that which was published by the PMI and others.

Dear Daire
Thank you for sharing your opinion with us

We agree with what he wrote: "I would say after this crisis, a lot of organization will become leaner, more focused and more agile, which goes in tandem to the project management methodologies that are in play in most organizations"

I am convinced that trust in people is a fundamental pillar for working online

How will organizational structure give companies that will emerge from this crisis?

Dear Sergio
Thank you for sharing your opinion with us

I confess that I didn't know EABOK but I will carefully read the information it contains

Some designations used today (for example virtual teams) did not exist in 1986 (neither their designation nor the underlying concept)

As you know, better than I do, under a big hat, there's a lot to fit

On the other hand, I know some organizations that have created "bok's" (Book of Knowledge) that are nothing more than an expeditious way to "sell the fish" instead of being true mantras in the disciplines they address

Finally, when I created this topic for reflection it was so that we all could give our opinion on the impact that online work can have on projects and, of course, on new ways of organizing companies

I am curious and expectant about your contribution (prognosis) to the topic