Virtual Teams is a relatively new concept of replacing the conventional and boring idea of "working in confined cubicles" with "working from the comfort of your home". This being more convenient still manages to ooze out more performance out of the employees by being more efficient. So let's know a bit more about this new way of working.
First of all, what is a Virtual Team?
Virtual team can be defined as a team of people which can be working in same office or spread across various locations- which can be different cities, countries and hence different time zones too. People of varied cultures, backgrounds and expertise come together to work on a common goal. Generally virtual teams are formed for either finding solution to critical problems, development of a new product/service and the problems of similar difficulty level.
With the advent of decentralization and globalization, organizations felt the need to adapt to something which is quick and agile in solving the problems, Virtual team offers flexibility as well as fast delivery of results. Hence it has become widely popular and used extensively by organizations all over the world. Not only IT industry, but industries like construction, manufacturing, engineering, finance and the like has been seen following the trend of virtual teams.
So now that we know what a Virtual Team is, How about we get to know what advantages it has over conventional work environment.
Saves Resources
When team is working virtually from the comfort of home, one saves cost of electricity, computer, internet and other admin services and facilities.One may think how much one save can by this. But if you think about it, furniture, computer, electricity, internet expense, a good place for people to sit comfortably, then admin charges like I-cards, canteen, lunch room will add up to considerably large amount
Wide Availability of talent
If you are not bound by one geography to look for talent then too many avenues open up and one can get excellent talent from around the world. One can look for the most cost effective resources and earn lots of profit too.
Low attrition rate
Employees enjoy working from home as they get freedom; they have a good work life balance and at the same time a satisfaction towards their work. A higher level of satisfaction makes employees to stay in company for a very long time and hence benefitting the company. Company saves a lot on recruiting and training costs and has a skillful resource working for them.
Avoids wastage of time
Very often companies or rather teams have too many unnecessary meetings which wastes the precious resources and time. The communication and coordination between the team and having pleasantries and discussion of agenda etc eats away lots of time. Virtual teams discuss precisely and work very fast.
Reduces cost of travelling
Everyone is tired of traffic, pollution and bad weather conditions. Travelling in train or bus in summers and in heavy traffic drains half of the energy. It takes lots of time to be able to work efficiently post one reaches the office. In virtual team the time, efforts and money of commuting to workplace is saved.
Increased productivity
Employees often face distractions from gossip, unnecessary comments, office politics and the like. These distractions are ruled out in virtual team and hence help to have higher productivity.
24*7 work possible
If company hires virtual teams from different time zones then they can work 24*7 and thereby giving a huge boost to the company revenue.
So the conclusion?
According to the social psychologists, human relationships draw their strength from the physical proximity of the individuals. Due to the fact that virtual team members have limited or, no face-to-face interactions, it throws a myriad of challenges. For the success of virtual teams, it is important to overcome the cultural differences, communication barriers, power struggles and conflict to build trust, collaboration and commitment among the individuals. Though it sounds difficult but can certainly be achieved through effective leadership. With the right strategies, processes and tools in place, organizations can benefit greatly from this new-age trend of virtual teams.
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