Virtual Team Dynamics - The Ulfire Podcast

In this article we consider the meaning of big data and how it may impact on virtual teams and those who work within them. Big data is such a fashionable term, yet many still don't really have a grasp on why it is one how it may change their lives.

The post Little People Not Big Data Make Teams Effective appeared first on ULFIRE.

Trust, respect and fear are the three emotions that most impact the ability of a business or a project to be effective. Sadly, fear is always going to play a part somewhere along the way, but trust and respect must be strong and present in all relationships for a long, sustainable and productive relationship to be built and maintained.

The post Trust, Respect And Fear: Emotions Of Getting Things Done appeared first on ULFIRE.

Businesses everywhere are struggling with whether to try to control the ways in which their personnel use social media in connection with their working lives. Some businesses are embracing the possibilities of using social media to support stronger and more resilient virtual teams, while others are still unable to let go of control of the message, insisting that their personnel don't use their social media accounts for any form of business relationship.
In this article, we suggest that the time has arrived for companies to get out of the way and even encourage their personnel to use social media to build better work relationships.

The post Social Media Use In Virtual Teams appeared first on ULFIRE.

Understanding and developing the skills to be a great leader of virtual teams is something that all members of these teams need to build. Leading virtual teams requires a skill set that builds on the skills of a leader of a co-located team.
This article identifies eight of the skills that need to be developed to become a truly great leader of virtual teams.

The post 8 Effective Virtual Team Leadership Skills appeared first on ULFIRE.

Maintaining the appropriate levels of simplicity in communications in virtual teams is an unending challenge. Resisting the temptation to write ever more complex, jargon filled emails or use multitudes of communication platforms is hard when there are so many tools to choose from and the jargon is such a part of our working lives.
Yet, simplicity is key to maintaining clear and reliable communication, and effective communications are the glue that holds teams together.

The post Simplicity In Virtual Team Communications appeared first on ULFIRE.

Attaining high productivity from virtual teams is a challenge for many businesses, this article introduces some steps to help get the most from your teams.
From spending time planning for your virtual team venture to ensuring you have a suitable reward structure and avoid a blame culture there are many steps you can put in place to build a high productivity virtual team.

The post How To Build High Productivity Virtual Teams appeared first on ULFIRE.

There are many ways virtual teams can fail to deliver the outcomes expected of them. This article draws on all of our years of experience and research to identify the top 4 reasons virtual teams fail and offers some suggestions for ways to avoid the worst of the failures.

The post 4 Ways Your Virtual Teams May Be Failing appeared first on ULFIRE.

Asymmetrical risks are frequently discounted in the estimation and management of projects, yet the impact of a risk with a high downside can cause major issues within any project.
This article considers why we are so bad at conceptualising asymmetric risks and how the impact of disregarding them can have a disproportionate impact on virtual team activities.

The post Understanding Asymmetrical Risks In Project Planning appeared first on ULFIRE.

In this article we consider how important it is to maintain a consistent message when leading teams.
Having all of the project team leaders not just say the same thing, but act in a way that reflects their words, helps personnel maintain their focus and avoids un necessary distractions.

The post Consistent Messaging In Virtual Team Communications appeared first on ULFIRE.

The recently released movie 'The Martian" contains some excellent examples of the difficulties of communicating in an extreme virtual team environment. Without giving away the plot to the book or film, this article tries to draw out the examples and bring them back to a more terrestrial virtual team environment where time zones, technologies, trust and empowerment are just as relevant.

The post The Martian – The Ultimate Virtual Team Challenge appeared first on ULFIRE.