In the past few years, there has been a shift in the workspace culture as teams are shifting towards either virtual or hybrid work environments. According to researchers, virtual teams will be the future. Fewer real teams will physically come together to work on a project, and more teams will be assembled over the internet.

According to work-life researchers, virtual teams will be the future. Fewer real teams will physically come together to work on a project, and more teams will be assembled over the internet.

Advantages of a virtual team

A virtual team has many advantages:

  • Each project member is responsible for their workspace and environment. Although sometimes the client will provide the equipment, the individual project member will most likely have to use their hardware. This saves the client a lot of money.
  • We have much better access to different skills. We are not limited to people from our region or our company.
  • We are not responsible for the team in the long run. We only have to pay them for as long as they work for us. We are under no obligation to find them their next job.
  • If the team is distributed worldwide, another advantage is that at any time of the day, at least one team member is most likely working on the project. There is hardly any project off time.

Problems with a virtual team

The main problem with virtual teams is that they lack the most efficient mode of communication—direct communication.

Note: Distance negatively affects communication, which in turn reduces coordination effectiveness.

Communication with the customer and inside the team is a problem in virtual teams. This way, it’s very difficult for a virtual team to achieve a common understanding and pull together.

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