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Take A Virtual Reality Check
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The ability to lead 'virtual' teams is now a core competence for most managers - but it is fraught with difficulty - according to a new research report which examines the human aspects of remote working.
What Makes an Excellent Virtual Manager? - published by Roffey Park, the executive education and research organisation - describes the interpersonal and organisational challenges of virtual teamwork.
It highlights the competencies required by virtual managers, and how these differ from traditional management, as well as the impact of organisational culture on the performance of virtual teams. and also provides guidelines on how to make remote working effective.
According to the research authors, Andy Smith and Annette Sinclair, a virtual manager is one who manages others across separate locations and uses technology - such as the telephone, e-mail or video-conferencing - to communicate with the team.
"Virtual management is a high-growth phenomenon, as organisations are increasingly establishing cross-site project teams and global networks," say the authors. "These have a profound effect on individuals and work roles and they bring issues of cultural diversity to the fore."
A survey of 371 managers finds that 46% of managers currently work in virtual teams. 80% claim that virtual management arrangements have increased in their organisation over the past five years. The main reasons for this are the cost and time savings which accrue when project teams of experts work together remotely across a split-site organisation.
In other cases, virtual management has become an issue after organisations have introduced remote working - including telecommuting and home working - to enhance the work-life balance of individuals.
However the research notes that virtual management is very difficult to do well. The biggest challenge is to overcome the dispersed nature of remote working, which contributes to feelings of isolation.
"Reduced face-to-face contact and separation from co-workers are the principal differences between virtual and traditional management," say the authors. "This can make it more difficult to establish and maintain trust between the members of a virtual team. Technology can be both an aid and a barrier to effective communication. Sometimes it creates misunderstanding because you lose the nuances of facial expressions and body language which enhance face-to-face interactions."
The authors argue that not everyone is suited to virtual working."Remote working can change an individual's relationship with the organisation," they say. "Virtual team members need to be able to work in a self-managed way - and cope with the separation and isolation of virtual working. For some, their manager can become the embodiment of the organisation, acting an anchor for its values. Those more used to a traditional command and control approach may not be suitable."
The research highlights that virtual working thrives in 'flatter' structures, where knowledge workers have greater autonomy. For effective virtual management, the organisational culture must be open, collaborative and supportive. Diversity and facilitative leadership should also be valued and the culture should support an outcome-based approach to performance management.
The research stresses that to operate successfully in the virtual world, managers need well-honed interpersonal and communication skills, as well as integrity, clarity of direction and an ability to influence others and generate trust and productivity in the team. Other qualities include an ability to build and maintain relationships, a participative management style and good links within the wider organisation.
For organisations looking to introduce a virtual working relationship, the research stresses the need to recruit the right people at the outset and provide an effective induction process for the new team members.
"The community building aspects of social interaction should not be underestimated," say the authors. "The communication channels and appropriate ways of working should be established at the outset and regular updates and status reports should be instigated. If managed adeptly, virtual teamwork can bring great benefits to the organisation and to all members of the team."
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