Virtual Teams and Virtual Organizations
Our organization moved to a virtual office last year and the result for us has been better than we anticipated. However, along the way there are a number of different things that we learned:
1) Overcommunication is necessary--When we are in a traditional office environment, we tend to pick up many things just by osmosis...spontaneous conversations that come up, impromptu meetings that are called, etc. Even though it may seem like overkill, it is absolutely vital to be very clear on your meaning, and ask questions if there is any doubt.
2) The technological tools--Before going virutal, we took a great of time exploring different options for tools that we could use to replicate our communication patterns, and also to save money. Most of the tools we identified were either free or low cost, and all are internet accessible. For free applications, we selected Skype for our in house calling/chat tool, Gmail for our email addresses, and Google Calendar for our organizational calendar. For low cost tools, we chose Egnyte as the virtual server, Ring Central for our virtual PBX, Highrise for our customer database, and Basecamp for project management. We also have begun holding virtual conferences, and now use Webex as the tool for those events. Switching to this internet based system has probably saved us 15% in operating costs.
3) Connecting with other resources--We have also opened up to using Elance as a resource to help us staff up on projects that require skills outside of our core competencies. Many clients have needs that now cannot be filled by their in-house teams and are looking to us to fill the gap in related areas. As a result, we now have a trusted team of people that we have identified through Elance who are able to ramp up quickly on our projects. We have been happy overall, although I would add that our best experiences have been when a project was clearly definable in terms of a result, rather than a result that was more subjective.
4) Flexibilty--Our team loves the flexibility and the ability to balance work and home life. Some employees do their creative work at 5am and begin sending in the results of their work, while others make work late into the night. I am able to work in between taking my children to school, and then soccer practice in the afternoon, fitting things in both before and after. Life unfortunately does not fit neatly into boxes, so this flexibility has made us view our work and our lives in a different way.
5) Relationships are still the key--Being virtual actually has made the need for quality relationships even more important. Being isolated with time to reflect on something can result in thoughts running wild, so picking up on cues in someone's voice or tone can serve as a guide in figuring our someone's emotional state. Don't ignore your instincts....if you think you "hear" something, ask them, because there is probably something to it.
It has been a great experience, and I will share more thoughts on this soon.
Danny
1) Overcommunication is necessary--When we are in a traditional office environment, we tend to pick up many things just by osmosis...spontaneous conversations that come up, impromptu meetings that are called, etc. Even though it may seem like overkill, it is absolutely vital to be very clear on your meaning, and ask questions if there is any doubt.
2) The technological tools--Before going virutal, we took a great of time exploring different options for tools that we could use to replicate our communication patterns, and also to save money. Most of the tools we identified were either free or low cost, and all are internet accessible. For free applications, we selected Skype for our in house calling/chat tool, Gmail for our email addresses, and Google Calendar for our organizational calendar. For low cost tools, we chose Egnyte as the virtual server, Ring Central for our virtual PBX, Highrise for our customer database, and Basecamp for project management. We also have begun holding virtual conferences, and now use Webex as the tool for those events. Switching to this internet based system has probably saved us 15% in operating costs.
3) Connecting with other resources--We have also opened up to using Elance as a resource to help us staff up on projects that require skills outside of our core competencies. Many clients have needs that now cannot be filled by their in-house teams and are looking to us to fill the gap in related areas. As a result, we now have a trusted team of people that we have identified through Elance who are able to ramp up quickly on our projects. We have been happy overall, although I would add that our best experiences have been when a project was clearly definable in terms of a result, rather than a result that was more subjective.
4) Flexibilty--Our team loves the flexibility and the ability to balance work and home life. Some employees do their creative work at 5am and begin sending in the results of their work, while others make work late into the night. I am able to work in between taking my children to school, and then soccer practice in the afternoon, fitting things in both before and after. Life unfortunately does not fit neatly into boxes, so this flexibility has made us view our work and our lives in a different way.
5) Relationships are still the key--Being virtual actually has made the need for quality relationships even more important. Being isolated with time to reflect on something can result in thoughts running wild, so picking up on cues in someone's voice or tone can serve as a guide in figuring our someone's emotional state. Don't ignore your instincts....if you think you "hear" something, ask them, because there is probably something to it.
It has been a great experience, and I will share more thoughts on this soon.
Danny
Labels: Organizational Development
posted by Innovations International at
10:15 AM
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