Teams constructed for a specific project or they are task-focused groups and are based on collaborative principles, which are the collective work of two or more individuals with a sense of shared purpose and direction (Paloff & Pratt, 2006 AU28: The in-text citation "Paloff & Pratt, 2006" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. ).
Published in Chapter:
Collaborative Approach to Successful Virtual Team Leadership
Maureen Ellis (East Carolina University, USA) and Eric Kisling (East Carolina University, USA)
Copyright: © 2017
|Pages: 16
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-1049-9.ch005
Abstract
Due to the changing nature of organizations to meet decreased travel budgets, a globalized economic recession, and increased travel costs, multicultural virtual teams are rapidly growing (Hardin, Looney, Fuller, & Schechtman, 2013). Virtual teams are dynamic typically constructed for a specific project or task-focused group. Based on collaborative principles using state-of-the-art communication technology to support collaboration, virtual teams are often faced with several challenges: distance, time, technology, culture, trust, leadership, and social loafing, which can occur when group performance is less than the sum of the individual's efforts (Robbins, 1995). Einstein and Scott (2001) consider social loafing a result of team members putting forth less effort than they would on an individual assignment/task, leading to discourse and loss of synergy. This chapter describes best practices utilizing experiential learning activities for students on virtual teams can enable students to learn, practice, and hone their virtual team skills to be effective workers in the 21st century workplace.