Question

What are the differences between the leadership of virtual teams and the leadership of traditional teams or face-to-face contact and what should a leader do to make virtual teams effective?

Answer 1

Answer: There is a wide difference between the leadership of a virtual team and a traditional team as in virtual team; there is no direct face to face contact as in the traditional team. The following are some of the major differences that exist

1. The leaders of the virtual teams need to be technologically advanced particularly in digital and information technology
2. The leaders of the virtual teams need to delegate more authority and responsibility as compared to traditional teams
3. The leaders of the virtual teams need to have more trust as their subordinates are separated by time and distance and cannot be controlled easily
4. The virtual teams need a different type of motivation which is more intrinsic as there is no close supervision and leaders need to motivate subordinates in a different manner

The following are some things that the leaders can do to make virtual teams more effective

1. The expectations from the team members should be clearly set
2. Clear goals and objectives should be defined
3. Use multiple tools for establishing communication
4. Organize team meets frequently and at times if possible organize a physical meeting
5. Fix clear roles and responsibilities and regularly follow the progress