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L A U S A N N E - S W I T Z E R L A N D
Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 1
High Performance fromGlobal Virtual Teams
Martha Maznevski
L A U S A N N E - S W I T Z E R L A N D
Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 2
My Background
Anthropology / Linguistics Education (Development, Learning) Organizational Behavior
• Business context• Social psychology, sociology, anthropology,
political science, etc.• Dependent variable is effectiveness
(organizational and personal)
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 3
Research Stream Global team effectiveness
• Multicultural, multifunctional, often multiorganizational
• Highly complex tasks, tight deadlines• Map-Bridge-Integrate model• “But most of the time we work virtually…”
Global virtual team effectiveness• Presented here
Global virtual network effectiveness• Current work, introduced here
L A U S A N N E - S W I T Z E R L A N D
Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 4
Introduction
Virtual team• Group of people working together on a shared task• Members are in different locations• Members communicate using technology significantly
more often than face-to-face Great potential!
• Get the best people, no matter where they are• Members bring perspectives from their own locations• Test ideas in multiple contexts before making final
decisions
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 5
Research Overview Main empirical study
• Multi-method, in-depth study of 3 teams in one organization over almost 2 years; one success, one failure, one mixed.
Other studies• Less formal in-depth research with several
teams over several years• Interviews and observation in many teams,
many organizations to test and validate research ideas
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 6
Technology Is Not the Most Important Part!
Teams that focus on the issues of being “virtual” sometimes do well, but often don’t.
Teams that focus on being a team and getting their job done well generally figure out the technology anyway.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 7
Three Simple Rules
1. Choose the right technology.
2. Manage by the task.
3. Sequence technologies in a rhythm.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 8
Rule 1: Choose the right technology
Face-to-face
Videoconference
Telephone – 1 person
Teleconference
Email – 1 person
Email – List
Fax
Letter
Choose technologies by their “richness”
Media are richer to the extent that they
• Allow for feedback; and
• Communicate using multiple modes (senses, channels) at the same time
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 9
Rule 1: Choose the right technology.Complexity = Richness
The more complex the message, the richer the medium required.
More complexity:• Higher stage in the decision-process• Number of messages in the same interaction• Greater degree to which information depends on
context to be understood (tacitness)• Number of cultural, organizational, professional,
geographic, or time boundaries crossed• Degree to which the message must generate
commitment from the receiver
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 10
Rule 2:Manage by the task.
Most important task factor is Amount of Required Interdependence.
AB
C
Task
Pooled (low)
A
A
B
B
C
C
Task
Task
Sequential (moderate)
Reciprocal (high)
L A U S A N N E - S W I T Z E R L A N D
Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 11
Rule 2: Manage by the task.Interdependence =
Frequency + RichnessThe more interdependence the task requires…
… the more frequent the communication should be; and
… the more complex the messages usually are, requiring richer media (see Rule 1).
The task may require different amounts of interdependence at different stages.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 12
Rule 3:Sequence Technologies in a Rhythm
Create a heartbeat• A rhythm set by face-to-face meetings• Pumps oxygen and blood into the life of the
team and its relationships• Face-to-face meetings do not need to coincide
with major decision points! Rhythm is more important.
• Time between heartbeats depends on task (interdependence and complexity) and team member cohesion
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 13
Heartbeat Evidence 1
Effective team:
• Meets face-to-face every four months.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 14
Heartbeat Evidence 2
Effective Team:
• Meets face-to-face every six months.
• Meets by formal telephone conference every two months.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 15
Heartbeat Evidence 3
Ineffective Team:
• No established rhythms of face-to-face meetings.
• No rhythms of contact using rich media.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 16
Some Finer Points
More effective teams and relationships…… also select technology based on receiver preference
… often use 2 or more technologies simultaneously (e.g., phone and email or shared database)
… explicitly talk about using different technologies
… if the relationship is strong, address and resolve conflicts over the phone rather than face-to-face (exception to the Rule 1)
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 17
Supporting Global Virtual Teams
Support your employees who are on virtual teams
Make available as many communication technologies as possible; give people access to good training
Remember this is dynamic: what you set up today is probably not how people will work next year
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 18
Current Research Notion of “team” is too constraining…
• Connotations of stable, bounded, unidimensional
• Real work flows are dynamic, open, multidimensional
• Capture this in networks Working much more with nature of
knowledge and knowledge flows, as well as collaboration and influence processes
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 19
Social Capital: Assets in Relationships
Organization
Team Resources
Combine Team and External Resources
Organizational Resources
External Resources
Organizational Performance
Managing Knowledge with Social Capital
Team Output
External Environment
Virtual Team
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 20
Empirical Study 35 global account management teams in a large
professional services firm, 10-100 people per “team”
Team networks for task advice, “people” advice:• Within the team• Between the team and the rest of the organization• Between the team and the client
Technology use Two points in time Multiple interviews, observations, etc.
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 21
Q3: How often have you gone to each of the people on your team to talk about task-specific issues
2
3 4
5
6
7
89
10
1
11 12
13
14Team (US based)
Team (overseas)
Team (not on partner’s list)
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 22
Q5: How often have you gone to each of the people on your team about account related people or HR issues
2
3 4
5
6
7
89
10
1
14
Team (US based)
Team (overseas)
Team (not on partner’s list)
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 23
Q8: ... have social relationship with people on your team
2
3 4
5
6
7
89
10
1
15
12
14
16
Team (US based)
Team (overseas)
Team (not on partner’s list)
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 24
Q9: How often have you gone to people within the firm not on your team to talk about task-specific issues
25
26
27
28
29 3
031
32
33
34
35
36 3
738
39
40
41 4
2
43
2
3 4
5
6
7
89
10
121
22
23
24
Team (US based)
Team (overseas)
Firm source
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Copyright 2001 © IMD, Lausanne, SwitzerlandNot to be used or reproduced without permission
Maznevski – Virtual Teams – 25
Q13: How often have you gone to CLIENT managers for task-specific issues
Team (US based)
Team (overseas)
Firm source Client source
25
26
27
28
29 3
031
32
33
34
35
36 3
738
39
40
41 4
2
43
2
3 4
5
6
7
89
10
121
22
23
24
51
52
53
54
55 5
6
57
58
59
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
707
1
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85