Lauren is assigned manager of a project with a cross-functional team. Lauren has reviewed the profiles of her six team members her boss gave her. Lauren is both intrigued and anxious when

SCENARIO:

"Lauren is assigned manager of a project with a cross-functional team. Lauren has reviewed the profiles of her six team members her boss gave her. Lauren is both intrigued and anxious when she sees that team members are geographically dispersed. 

Lauren works from the Atlanta office. One team member is in India; another is in Germany; and the rest live in the United States, but in different time zones. Two staff members are in the eastern time zone (Virginia and North Carolina) and two staff members are in the central time zone (Texas and Louisiana). 

Lauren has never managed a virtual team and is unsure what special skills it will take to be successful. What competencies are necessary for virtual team leaders and members? She studies the team member profiles and creates a matrix to evaluate each member’s strengths and weaknesses from the perspective of working virtually. She includes herself because she realizes she needs to evaluate her own strengths and weaknesses. Lauren thinks about the challenges and opportunities she will face managing this virtual team."

© 2008 SHRM. Frankie S. Jones, Ph.D. 

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