With the increasing rate of globalization, a demand for a more efficient workforce and with the introduction of online collaboration platforms we have seen an increase in the development of virtual teams across the globe. Many questions are being raised about Virtual Team Building and how to get the best out of virtual teams. One question that arises is how virtual team leaders can overcome the unique challenges facing Virtual Teams.
Though the introduction of virtual teams presents many benefits and opportunities, as a virtual team leader you’ll need to be aware of and address the challenges you will face. Some of the challenges facing virtual or global team leaders include:
Lack of feeling of connectedness within the Virtual Team.
Without regular interaction, individual virtual team members can feel isolated and unsupported. This leads to high virtual team member turnover and ultimately high expense to the global company. Virtual team building activities need to be introduced into the team. Just as team building activities are important in traditional working environments, even more so they need to be a regular part of your virtual team building strategy.
Virtual Team Communication breakdown.
Without the opportunity for face-to-face meetings, it is difficult to develop personal, one-on-one relationships with individual team members. In addition to this, if the right tools and resources are not made available to the virtual team, then communication breakdowns can cause entire projects to perform poorly. It’s imperative the virtual team is provided with the necessary tools and resources (specifically designed to support virtual global teams).
Lack of customized Training to prepare people for working in a virtual team environment.
Just because you have a bunch of employees working together online across the globe, does not mean they are functioning as an effective virtual team. Just as there is a unique working environment and unique challenges facing a virtual team, specific training needs to be introduced to the virtual team to ensure they truly are effective and functioning as a high performance team.
For more Virtual Team Building Tips >>> VIRTUAL Team Success – A Practical Guide for Working and Leading at a Distance.