Building a Virtual Team
Or
Virtual Team Building
At first glance one might garner the same meaning from these two different titles. However, these are two very different phases for virtual teams. Do you know which phase you are in?
If your answer to the question above is “no” we’ll need to chat. As you embark upon building your first virtual team or re-building a team you inherited or you are still pondering whether or not your business model may sustain a co-located team; it is extremely important to understand the different phases virtual teams experience.
Here is a great program hosted by The American Management Association that dives deeper into phase identification
If you are playing a Leadership role in Building a Virtual Team here are 3 simple tasks to help you start the process:
1.Identify the current or future need for a virtual team
2. Determine the virtual collaboration platform that best suits your business needs: Zoom, Cisco WebEx, Adobe Connect, Citrix GoToMeeting, etc.
3.Identify roles and responsibilities
If you are playing a Leadership role in Virtual Team Building here are 3 simple tasks to help you start the process:
1.Reach out to your virtual team members and ask THEM what would make them feel more cohesive as a team (you will likely be surprised at the creative answers you receive)
2.Choose a set date and time for your first virtual team building activity. The activity may be part of regular team meetings or a completely separate event. You may wish to test several different team building activities to understand which ones best meet the needs of your tribe.
3.Lead your group by being the first person to partake in an activity such as My Virtual Hat. Our team is spread across the globe. We kick off almost every TEAM meeting by turning on our web cam and giggling about who has the silliest hat. This exercise is a great way to kick off formal or informal meetings on all levels.
For more ideas regarding the virtual world please join our Genius Lab for Virtual Leaders and Presenters
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