Yael Zofi's Blog, page 2
October 20, 2015
Virtual Teams Project Management Myth or Reality? Virtual Teams Can Function Best If Left Alone
Welcome to the final installment of the Five Myths and Realities of Virtual Teams Project Management. This week we explore Myth #5.
Virtual Teams Project Management Myth #5: Virtual teams can be left alone and will function appropriately.
Reality: Virtual teams need to establish ground rules around how and what is communicated, how minor conflicts are managed before they derail team efforts and what processes are in place to deliver results. For example, leaders should make clear that he, or she, expects regular updates around key milestones and when any important action is being planned. The flow of information is critical to the success of virtual teams, as managers and employees do not have the ability to pop into their coworker’s office and ask them a question directly. This may present a challenge if you work in Stockholm and your team is located across the world, but high performing virtual teams have planned for this type of situation.
Advice: One interviewee, a Virtual Manager at a Pharmaceutical Company, told me
“Having people in different locations is hard because you have no direct control. You need to be on top of it – push sometimes and be proactive, reach out, touch base with team on a regular basis. You must be very proactive. You can’t sit back and expect people to do things because virtual teams allow them to slack off because ‘out of sight, out of mind.”
Here’s another suggestion from a Virtual Manager at a Global Humanitarian Organization:
“Although things might be slower on virtual teams because you can’t walk down the hall and have a chat, people need to build allowances for their planning because they are virtual and they still have a team that needs to function. So don’t leave them alone! It is important to have a PURPOSE and DELIVER OUTCOMES.”
We hope you enjoyed the Five Myths and Realities of Virtual Teams Project Management!
For more myths and realities about the virtual business office, please check out the rest of this series:
Myth #1: Virtual teams are similar to onsite teams with people located in different places.
Myth #2: Virtual teams will work if they have the best people.
Myth #3: Technology on virtual teams is most important.
Myth #4: When you don’t see someone regularly, it is difficult to manage their career progression.
Myth #5: Virtual teams can be left alone and will function appropriately.
The post Virtual Teams Project Management Myth or Reality? Virtual Teams Can Function Best If Left Alone appeared first on Making virtual teams effective with Yael Zofi.
Virtual Teams Project Management Myth or Reality: Virtual Teams Can Function Appropriately If Left Alone
Welcome to the final installment of the Five Myths and Realities of Virtual Teams Project Management. This week we explore Myth #5.
Virtual Teams Project Management Myth #5: Virtual teams can be left alone and will function appropriately.
Reality: Virtual teams need to establish ground rules around how and what is communicated, how minor conflicts are managed before they derail team efforts and what processes are in place to deliver results. For example, leaders should make clear that he, or she, expects regular updates around key milestones and when any important action is being planned. The flow of information is critical to the success of virtual teams, as managers and employees do not have the ability to pop into their coworker’s office and ask them a question directly. This may present a challenge if you work in Stockholm and your team is located across the world, but high performing virtual teams have planned for this type of situation.
Advice: One interviewee, a Virtual Manager at a Pharmaceutical Company, told me
“Having people in different locations is hard because you have no direct control. You need to be on top of it – push sometimes and be proactive, reach out, touch base with team on a regular basis. You must be very proactive. You can’t sit back and expect people to do things because virtual teams allow them to slack off because ‘out of sight, out of mind.”
Here’s another suggestion from a Virtual Manager at a Global Humanitarian Organization:
“Although things might be slower on virtual teams because you can’t walk down the hall and have a chat, people need to build allowances for their planning because they are virtual and they still have a team that needs to function. So don’t leave them alone! It is important to have a PURPOSE and DELIVER OUTCOMES.”
We hope you enjoyed the Five Myths and Realities of Virtual Teams Project Management!
For more myths and realities about the virtual business office, please check out the rest of this series:
Myth #1: Virtual teams are similar to onsite teams with people located in different places.
Myth #2: Virtual teams will work if they have the best people.
Myth #3: Technology on virtual teams is most important.
Myth #4: When you don’t see someone regularly, it is difficult to manage their career progression.
Myth #5: Virtual teams can be left alone and will function appropriately.
The post Virtual Teams Project Management Myth or Reality: Virtual Teams Can Function Appropriately If Left Alone appeared first on Yael Zofi.
October 15, 2015
The Indian Curry to Cross Cultural Communication
Have you ever found yourself puzzled by cross cultural communication issues with customers, vendors, acquaintances, and colleagues in India or of Indian descent? Yes, there is widespread English fluency in India. But is that enough, especially if your interactions are mostly in the virtual space?
Only after moving to New York as a graduate student did I realize that some Indian norms may get lost in translation. Let me share with you – in no particular order – some of the more obvious behaviors that may be misunderstood. Do take my thoughts with a grain of salt as India is too large and too diverse a country for such generalizations to hold true in all situations. Indian society (especially the newer generation) is currently in a fascinating state of flux, as it straddles between traditional and modern expectations.
Cross Cultural Communication: Points to Consider
Yes, I Will Nod when I speak to you and I have been teased about it. It is such a reflex for me to nod, that many times I am not even aware I’m doing it. Does that mean I agree with what you’re saying? Not always. It’s often a non-verbal acknowledgement that I hear and understand your words. Personally, I think it actually aids communication because it demonstrates effective listening.
Apart from acknowledging understanding, the ‘Nod’ can also be used to (1) convey uncertainty (‘Maybe’ or ‘Not Sure’) (2) a greeting, like ‘how are you? While context and familiarity will increase your understanding, do not hesitate to ask clarifying questions to make sure that all those involved in the conversation are on the same page.
It is Less About the Weather and More About Real Life: When I first moved to the US, I was pleasantly surprised that strangers in elevators or otherwise would engage in small talk about the weather and sometimes ask how my day was. Although Indians in general love to talk and argue once they get to know you or even in a business setting, engaging in small talk and smiling at strangers in stores or elevators are not the norm. The absence of such behaviors should not be thought of as rude. On the contrary, it is quite common to have long conversations on train journeys in India with strangers, who may exchange entire life stories. Rather than small talk, strangers or new acquaintances in India may sometimes immediately ask you about your marital status, reasons for not being married and details about your kids. This is not considered private information and the boundary between private and public life can often be blurred.
Is it a Yes, No or a Maybe: Generally, we (Indians) feel uncomfortable saying ‘No’ to requests. You will instinctively receive explanations and reasons as to why something is not possible or getting delayed. In the midst of such an explanation, sometimes the ‘No’ could be lost in translation , especially when the cross cultural communication is virtual. Sometimes, reading between the lines – or non-verbal cues (tone, facial expression) – may be required to understand exactly what is being said, particularly if the topic is uncomfortable. If you are used to communicating more directly, this may be difficult at first, so make sure you ask clarifying questions to understand the exact meaning.
By the same token, an unequivocal ‘No!’ (without any further explanation) may be perceived as rude or offensive. If you are invited to a social occasion and cannot attend, a small explanation as to why you cannot join is appropriate. Moreover, it is customary for your host to pressure you to stay and refuse to take ‘no’ for an answer even if you appear unwilling, especially if your host considers you to be more than an acquaintance.
Lack of Challenge May Not Always Mean Acceptance: The older generation is respected and considered to have a wealth of experience and wisdom. In the past, arguing with your elders was not considered acceptable. Although the younger generation is moving away from this ingrained attitude, it sometimes translates to a reluctance to challenge authority and voice a dissenting opinion at work. Consider encouraging your direct reports to disagree in an open, constructive manner and come up with alternate suggestions.
A Small Delay is Okay: Short delays, small interruptions, changes in schedule and slight time overruns during meetings are part of the social norm. Being ‘Zen’ about time orientation is quite common. In fact, slight delays are often expected, so don’t let it to get the better of you.
It is Polite to Take One Bite: During social occasions, even if you are not hungry, it is considered rude if you refuse to eat something you are offered. Another traditional norm is for the host to insist that a guest continue to eat even after he or she refuses – in fact, it’s considered impolite if the host doesn’t!
These types of pointers about any culture are helpful, but they are just a start. Human interactions exist on multiple levels, and the good news is that interactions between any two individuals are much more than any stereotype. I hope that this makes you reflect about your own cultural assumptions and norms and sheds some light on the Indian ‘curry’ in the cross cultural communications pot.
– Shreevi KR
Shreevi KR is an Organizational Development Intern at AIM Strategies® and is currently pursuing her masters in Social Organizational Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University.
The post The Indian Curry to Cross Cultural Communication appeared first on Yael Zofi.
October 8, 2015
Virtual Team Building
Welcome to Virtual Team Building Summer 2015 eNews!
For many colleagues across the globe it’s refreshing to step outside and see leafy trees where not long ago snow and ice covered the ground. Nature’s cycle of seasons offers renewal, and in some ways human activity mirrors this. Speaking of renewal I’d like to share some important insights about virtual team building, starting with refreshing your team.
In This Issue
Refresh Your Team!
Do A Tune-Up
Refuel
Put It in Park (Wrap Up)
Refresh at AIM Strategies!
About AIM Strategies®
Refresh Your Team!
Why is it important to do this? Remember, during a team’s natural life span changes occur as original goals may undergo revision, and the team’s makeup changes as new members join while others depart. Members need to remain connected in spite of these inevitable twists and turns, and the need for ongoing virtual team building exists throughout the life cycle of the team. Consider the lifeline of a virtual team as you would driving along a highway. Just as you need to shift gears, perform tune-ups and refuel on a long journey, so you must engage in virtual team building from time to time.The Refresh stage of virtual team building contains the following team building strategies: (1) doing a tune-up, (2) refueling, and (3) putting it in PARK.
Do A Tune-Up
Even stable virtual teams require the leader to periodically check in to make sure that members have weathered the bumps in the road. These tune-ups allow possible conflicts to surface early so that they do not fester and potentially derail the project. It’s also helpful to evaluate the technology in use on a regular basis to identify new ways to facilitate communication.
Identifying areas for improvement, making new role assignments, and acquiring new members may further signal the need for additional training to keep knowledge and skills current. For example, a client company added Social Media postings to its online offerings, and the entire marketing team attended webinars on SEO optimization. Training should build upon prior learning from the group’s experience, incorporating best practices and insights on better ways to accomplish goals. In addition, if new tools and techniques have been created since the team’s inception, then all members should be trained in those areas appropriate for their own responsibilities. At this point, the team should reestablish norms or create new ones that reflect the team’s growth.
Refuel
The more time spent on a team, the greater the possibility of dips in team members’ energy and commitment level. Virtual team leaders must be sensitive to people’s need to recharge their batteries, but within limits and in ways that are suitable to the organizational culture.
For example, team members can engage in happy hour, virtual style. Although gathering after work for dinner or drinks is not possible, VT members can agree on a specific time to instant-message (IM) each other for informal chats of a non-business nature, or engage in video chats. At first, questions can be scripted; then, as participants’ comfort level increases, these formal interactions should give way to natural conversation. Often, one or more members are congenial and enjoy bringing a social dimension to the group. Virtual leaders should stay alert to this possibility and encourage those who seek to energize colleagues.
Put It in Park (Wrap Up)
Many times virtual teams disband when a project is completed. At this point it is helpful for the leader; the team members, and the organization to formally debrief the team’s work experience. Documenting team results, accomplishments, and lessons learned is a public way to acknowledge individual efforts and record best practices for future assignments.
As a final step in the Refresh stage of virtual team building, it is useful to ask team members what they would change if given a chance to redo the experience. This has a twofold purpose: It can help people formulate ideas for a future virtual team experience, and their insights can help you improve your own skills with virtual team building.
Refresh at AIM Strategies!
In AIM’s world, we are pleased to announce an upcoming update of http://www.yaelzofi.com/. For easier access to our comprehensive suite of resources, AIM’s blog and store will soon be integrated into our website. This improved functionality means a seamless experience for our users. Please click here and see for yourself.
Yaelzofi.com is not the only thing AIM is refreshing. Interest in two of our assessments, the People Management Assessment (PMA) tool and the TOPS Managing Up Survey has spiked.
PMA is a 360 feedback assessment that provides a checkpoint for people management action planning. We recommend it for managers transitioning from technical positions to people management roles, which often occurs when subject matter experts are chosen to lead teams.
The TOPS Managing UP Survey highlights similarities and differences in work styles of managers and direct reports as well as manager’s preferences. When employees align their work styles with their manager’s, friction is reduced and project milestones are more easily met. This survey identifies improvement areas such as communication and personality differences; dealing with these behaviors helps employees to ‘manage up’ .
Speaking of ‘managing up’, Ebay and Paypal, two leading digital enterprises, know how critical this is to business success. Yael’s practical TOPS Managing Up Booklet is an integral tool in their training sessions about how to improve employee-manager relationships. Click here and check it out for yourself.
About AIM Strategies®
AIM Strategies® Applied Innovative Management® is a results-driven Human Capital Consulting firm specializing in the areas of: Global Leadership Development, Co-located and Virtual Team Facilitation, Cross Cultural Communications, and Change Integration Services. To request information about AIM’s experiential learning methods (5D’s™ Consulting/Proprietary Training Methodology and ACT™ Coaching Process), please email info@aim-strategies.com. In upcoming issues of this newsletter, we’ll update you on tips and techniques related to raising your innovative management IQ. We are confident that the solutions we develop fit your needs and culture. Please forward this newsletter to your colleagues and visit www.aim-strategies.com to learn more about how our services unlock the people potential of your organization!
The post Virtual Team Building appeared first on Yael Zofi.
July 22, 2015
Building a Virtual Team One Step at a Time
I’m sure you’ve asked yourself, ‘What do I need to do to ensure I’m building a virtual team the best way to set us up for success?‘
I know that when some colleagues join small virtual teams (with only 2 or 3 members) they may assume that just because each team member is easily reachable via phone or a quick email/text, then everyone is on the ‘same page’. Yes, it’s true that the right technology can greatly aid virtual teams, but that is not enough to ensure high performance.
For all virtual teams one of the most important team building strategies is having a Team Code (please see paragraph below) to guide team members’ interactions. This is particularly important when virtual members are from different cultures. There’s danger in assuming that just because your colleagues share business goals and agree on the timeline for key deliverables that you share an understanding of unwritten rules of functioning on a virtual team.
But what exactly does Team Code mean? Yael Zofi , in her latest book, A Manager’s Guide to Virtual Teams explains Team Code as norms around (1) communications, (2) deadlines, (3) decision making, (4) conflict management, and (5) information sharing.
Here are some practical strategies about setting up a Team Code that were discussed in previous blog posts (‘Setting Your Team Code’ and ‘Setting Your Team Code: Questions to Explore – Part 2’ ).
Building a Virtual Team of Two!
Let’s look at this example: June is an Asian-American senior professional located in the U.S. who was recently asked to head the Japanese operations of her corporate group – from the U.S. Toma is an experienced senior Japanese professional who was recently recruited as her direct report to ramp up the Japanese operations from his part of the world. ‘Lucky for me,’ June told herself. ‘I don’t have to spend much time on building a virtual team since it’s just the two of us. We’re both professionals and we’ll do fine.’
With that in mind June flew to Tokyo for a one day face-to-face meeting with Toma, during his first week on the job, to brief him about his role; one month later he came to New York for a couple of days to meet senior directors – – and that was the extent of their face time. However, they agreed on communicating with each other for periodic updates as follows: (1) weekly phone calls between them and (2) a biweekly email summary from Toma to keep her informed about the latest developments.
Now, several weeks into this arrangement, June has concluded that what seemed like a good plan was not working out and her idea of not spending much time on building a virtual team was not well thought out. First, Toma’s biweekly update emails were not as comprehensive as needed, which meant that she had to send Toma additional emails to follow up on certain issues that he did not address. June really became concerned when Toma did not respond to her ‘need your update’ emails. In addition, as the operation rolled out, June and Toma are now disagreeing about the best way to motivate the team, in spite of tight budgets.
Unfortunately, with every expense scrutinized, Toma’s idea of taking eight of his key managers to an elaborate thank you dinner was not something June could sign off on. While she was not happy about refusing Toma’s request, she fully expected him to understand and plan another way to thank his team (even though he had already told them about the dinner). But Toma did not want to go back on his word to his subordinates and held the dinner at his own expense. When June’s boss learned what Toma did he insisted that the company pay Toma back. June was doubly troubled. Not only was this setting a dangerous precedent, it seemed to her that Toma was rewarded for defying her.
‘Toma has to feel free to air his disagreements with me,’ she told herself, ‘but if something has already been decided, I expect him to act accordingly.’
What should June do now? Can she salvage the situation?
Now June is trying to figure how to have a slightly uncomfortable conversation with Toma about team norms. She has several things to keep in mind. ‘First and foremost, I can’t dampen his enthusiasm and his drive to bring in more clients. Now I’m questioning whether the fact that I’m a woman makes it hard for Toma to think of me as an authority figure, namely his boss. He’s a Japanese male, and I wonder if that makes it difficult for him to be subordinate to a woman, one with Chinese ancestors.’ It’s true that cross cultural norms and historical conflicts may have had a role to play here, but I know from my consulting practice that had June developed a Team Code when Toma first joined her team, she would have avoided a lot of trouble. The good news is that it’s still not too late to resolve the situation.
Does this sound familiar? Have you ever faced a similar situation?
Regardless whether you are building a virtual team of 2 or 20 and whether they all belong to the same culture or not, developing a Team Code and setting the course for the virtual team’s operation (even for 2 members) plays a crucial role in reducing misunderstandings, conflicts, trust breakdowns, shifting priorities, and the loss of resources.
How did June Resolve This Situation?
She arranged an in-person meeting for a realignment conversation where they came to an agreement about Team Code. Before this meeting she thought about the best strategy to ensure this conversation would go well. ‘I can’t make him feel like I’m evaluating his behavior, that I’m judging him. I have to frame it that this is a second chance to sit together and strategize about how we will succeed as a team – – all of us together.’
Fortunately, June was able to put her feelings aside, focus on building a virtual team and deal with the personal preferences and cultural differences that often derail situations like hers. While there are still bumps along the way, June stays sensitive to Toma’s way of thinking and often anticipates issues that could grow into major disagreements. It takes constant vigilance on her part, but June is the first to say it’s worth the effort.
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Yael Zofi regularly acts as a consultant to global and local teams to get organized and helps team leaders establish operating principles for the team to follow in terms of ground rules, accountability measures and feedback loops. Check out Yael’s website for more details about the Strategic Guidance & Consultation services in this regard.
Building a Virtual Team One Step at a Time
For Virtual Teams Both Large and SmallI’m sure you’ve asked yourself, ‘What do I need to do to ensure I’m building a virtual team the best way to set us up for success?‘
I know that when some colleagues join small virtual teams (with only 2 or 3 members) they may assume that just because each team member is easily reachable via phone or a quick email/text, then everyone is on the ‘same page’. Yes, it’s true that the right technology can greatly aid virtual teams, but that is not enough to ensure high performance.
For all virtual teams one of the most important team building strategies is having a Team Code (please see paragraph below) to guide team members’ interactions. This is particularly important when virtual members are from different cultures. There’s danger in assuming that just because your colleagues share business goals and agree on the timeline for key deliverables that you share an understanding of unwritten rules of functioning on a virtual team.
But what exactly does Team Code mean? Yael Zofi, in her latest book, A Manager’s Guide to Virtual Teams explains Team Code as norms around (1) communications, (2) deadlines, (3) decision making, (4) conflict management, and (5) information sharing.
Here are some practical strategies about setting up a Team Code that were discussed in previous blog posts (‘Setting Your Team Code’ and ‘Setting Your Team Code: Questions to Explore – Part 2’).
Building a Virtual Team of Two!
Let’s look at this example: June is an Asian-American senior professional located in the U.S. who was recently asked to head the Japanese operations of her corporate group – from the U.S. Toma is an experienced senior Japanese professional who was recently recruited as her direct report to ramp up the Japanese operations from his part of the world. ‘Lucky for me,’ June told herself. ‘I don’t have to spend much time on building a virtual team since it’s just the two of us. We’re both professionals and we’ll do fine.’
With that in mind June flew to Tokyo for a one day face-to-face meeting with Toma, during his first week on the job, to brief him about his role; one month later he came to New York for a couple of days to meet senior directors – – and that was the extent of their face time. However, they agreed on communicating with each other for periodic updates as follows: (1) weekly phone calls between them and (2) a biweekly email summary from Toma to keep her informed about the latest developments.
Now, several weeks into this arrangement, June has concluded that what seemed like a good plan was not working out and her idea of not spending much time on building a virtual team was not well thought out. First, Toma’s biweekly update emails were not as comprehensive as needed, which meant that she had to send Toma additional emails to follow up on certain issues that he did not address. June really became concerned when Toma did not respond to her ‘need your update’ emails. In addition, as the operation rolled out, June and Toma are now disagreeing about the best way to motivate the team, in spite of tight budgets.
Unfortunately, with every expense scrutinized, Toma’s idea of taking eight of his key managers to an elaborate thank you dinner was not something June could sign off on. While she was not happy about refusing Toma’s request, she fully expected him to understand and plan another way to thank his team (even though he had already told them about the dinner). But Toma did not want to go back on his word to his subordinates and held the dinner at his own expense. When June’s boss learned what Toma did he insisted that the company pay Toma back. June was doubly troubled. Not only was this setting a dangerous precedent, it seemed to her that Toma was rewarded for defying her.
‘Toma has to feel free to air his disagreements with me,’ she told herself, ‘but if something has already been decided, I expect him to act accordingly.‘
What should June do now? Can she salvage the situation?
Now June is trying to figure how to have a slightly uncomfortable conversation with Toma about team norms. She has several things to keep in mind. ‘First and foremost, I can’t dampen his enthusiasm and his drive to bring in more clients. Now I’m questioning whether the fact that I’m a woman makes it hard for Toma to think of me as an authority figure, namely his boss. He’s a Japanese male, and I wonder if that makes it difficult for him to be subordinate to a woman, one with Chinese ancestors.’
It’s true that cross cultural norms and historical conflicts may have had a role to play here, but I know from my consulting practice that had June developed a Team Code when Toma first joined her team, she would have avoided a lot of trouble. The good news is that it’s still not too late to resolve the situation.
Does this sound familiar? Have you ever faced a similar situation?
Regardless whether you are building a virtual team of 2 or 20 and whether they all belong to the same culture or not, developing a Team Code and setting the course for the virtual team’s operation (even for 2 members) plays a crucial role in reducing misunderstandings, conflicts, trust breakdowns, shifting priorities, and the loss of resources.
How did June Resolve This Situation?
She arranged an in-person meeting for a realignment conversation where they came to an agreement about Team Code. Before this meeting she thought about the best strategy to ensure this conversation would go well. ‘I can’t make him feel like I’m evaluating his behavior, that I’m judging him. I have to frame it that this is a second chance to sit together and strategize about how we will succeed as a team – – all of us together.’
Fortunately, June was able to put her feelings aside, focus on building a virtual team and deal with the personal preferences and cultural differences that often derail situations like hers. While there are still bumps along the way, June stays sensitive to Toma’s way of thinking and often anticipates issues that could grow into major disagreements. It takes constant vigilance on her part, but June is the first to say it’s worth the effort.
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————–
Yael Zofi regularly acts as a consultant to global and local teams to get organized and helps team leaders establish operating principles for the team to follow in terms of ground rules, accountability measures and feedback loops. Check out Yael’s website for more details about the Strategic Guidance & Consultation services in this regard.
The post Building a Virtual Team One Step at a Time appeared first on Yael Zofi.
July 2, 2015
MANAGING VIRTUAL PROJECT TEAMS
What happens when a key point of contact or link within your virtual team quits? Managing virtual project teams in stressful times is comparatively more challenging than leading an onsite team. Being geographically scattered means there is no face time to informally catch up and build relationships. Cultural differences amongst the virtual team members could add to the chaos. The latest AIM Strategies® eNews discusses ways and means to REFRESH and RECHARGE your virtual team.
Managing virtual project teams is essential in the following scenarios:
SITUATION: Perhaps a replacement to the key virtual team member (who just quit) is yet to be found or has just been appointed but is a lateral hire and completely unfamiliar with the existing Team Code . How does the change in the virtual team composition impact existing Context Communication roles and responsibilities?
SUGGESTION: Besides assigning a ‘buddy’ to the new team members, other virtual team members can regularly check-in to bring him up to speed. Remember that out of sight should not lead to out of mind. If roles and responsibilities are changing, all virtual team members need to be updated regarding business shifts and changes and not just the individuals involved.
SITUATION: A few virtual team members may have had no client contact throughout the process. Maybe it’s because the client changed previous timelines and several virtual team members had little collaboration. It could be that the client’s position or priorities have shifted or the client has new team members in place that wants different deliverables. How do you keep the client updated and your team members engaged and connected?
SUGGESTION: Broadcast (either a newsletter or a video) regular updates about the progress of the project frequently to all team members. Acknowledge the contributions of otherwise Silent Riders. Consider setting a virtual meeting to take a status check before moving forward and utilize technology mediums such as online chat rooms for communicating between sub teams.
SITUATION: How can an organization implement new technologies or business policies across a globally dispersed workforce?
SUGGESTION: Undertake virtual team training by way of videos. Set up a transition portal page with FAQs and possibly a helpline to assist in the implementation.
SITUATION: Sometimes changes may not be as monumental. The virtual team project could be a long series of implementation steps, and virtual team members may be in their own areas working along a predetermined path. How do you make certain that the team members do not get mired in their own individual work products and lose sight of the ultimate goal?
SUGGESTION: At periodic intervals, virtual team members should be invited to present about their contributions in virtual video conferences and via telecommunication forums.
SITUATION: At the end of a project how do you disband on a good note? How do you ensure that lessons learned from ‘departing members’ are passed on?
SUGGESTION: It is important to record and discuss the insights in a virtual team meeting and then record it in an accessible place for the next virtual team project.
During key changes or even just along the way, the virtual team manager should take stock of the situation and make sure that all the virtual project team members are on the same page, get the new big picture, understand their role and maintain cohesiveness. Not taking the time to refuel your virtual teams may lead to entrenchment of existing disagreements and an adverse impact on the output of the team. While it is easy to talk about collaboration and more effective virtual teams, it is crucial to think about and engage in practical virtual team building strategies from time to time.
The latest AIM Strategies® eNews discusses ways to refresh your virtual team. Check it out!
Managing Virtual Project Teams
What happens when a key point of contact or link within your virtual team quits? Managing virtual project teams in stressful times is comparatively more challenging than leading an onsite team. Being geographically scattered means there is no face time to informally catch up and build relationships. Cultural differences amongst the virtual team members could add to the chaos. The latest AIM Strategies® eNews discusses ways and means to REFRESH and RECHARGE your virtual team.
Managing Virtual Project Teams is essential in the following scenarios:
SITUATION: Perhaps a replacement to the key virtual team member (who just quit) is yet to be found or has just been appointed but is a lateral hire and completely unfamiliar with the existing Team Code. How does the change in the virtual team composition impact existing Context Communication roles and responsibilities?
SUGGESTION: Besides assigning a ‘buddy’ to the new team members, other virtual team members can regularly check-in to bring him up to speed. Remember that out of sight should not lead to out of mind. If roles and responsibilities are changing, all virtual team members need to be updated regarding business shifts and changes and not just the individuals involved.
SITUATION: A few virtual team members may have had no client contact throughout the process. Maybe it’s because the client changed previous timelines and several virtual team members had little collaboration. It could be that the client’s position or priorities have shifted or the client has new team members in place that wants different deliverables. How do you keep the client updated and your team members engaged and connected?
SUGGESTION: Broadcast (either a newsletter or a video) regular updates about the progress of the project frequently to all team members. Acknowledge the contributions of otherwise Silent Riders. Consider setting a virtual meeting to take a status check before moving forward and utilize technology mediums such as online chat rooms for communicating between sub teams.
SITUATION: How can an organization implement new technologies or business policies across a globally dispersed workforce?
SUGGESTION: Undertake virtual team training by way of videos. Set up a transition portal page with FAQs and possibly a helpline to assist in the implementation.
SITUATION: Sometimes changes may not be as monumental. The virtual team project could be a long series of implementation steps, and virtual team members may be in their own areas working along a predetermined path. How do you make certain that the team members do not get mired in their own individual work products and lose sight of the ultimate goal?
SUGGESTION: At periodic intervals, virtual team members should be invited to present about their contributions in virtual video conferences and via telecommunication forums.
SITUATION: At the end of a project how do you disband on a good note? How do you ensure that lessons learned from ‘departing members’ are passed on?
SUGGESTION: It is important to record and discuss the insights in a virtual team meeting and then record it in an accessible place for the next virtual team project.
During key changes or even just along the way, the virtual team manager should take stock of the situation and make sure that all the virtual project team members are on the same page, get the new big picture, understand their role and maintain cohesiveness. Not taking the time to refuel your virtual teams may lead to entrenchment of existing disagreements and an adverse impact on the output of the team. While it is easy to talk about collaboration and more effective virtual teams, it is crucial to think about and engage in practical virtual team building strategies from time to time.
The latest AIM Strategies® eNews discusses ways to refresh your virtual team. Check it out!
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March 24, 2015
Cultural Diversity Training for Working Across Cultures Part 2
This week’s post continues with another cultural diversity training for improving your intercultural communications and cross cultural interactions at work. If you are already a virtual manager, you probably may have faced similar issues and had to put in place related systems in place that enable your cross-cultural (and usually global) team to better interact, connect and communicate via a Diversity Management Plan.
Keeping the communication clean so that things don’t get ‘Lost in Translation’ is one of your key responsibilities, especially when business English is the ‘part time’ language of many team members. You must be well adapted to the cultural cues, and their solutions. This post continues with two kinds of cultural diversity training that I usually use to coach managers to help them lead diverse teams. These suggestions are summarized below.
Create Cross Cultural Collaboration
Creating commonalities is challenging when working across cultures and time zones. How to do that? One way is to subdivide an overriding goal into smaller goals that can be worked on by some members across the team. Provide clear and specific direction, with support and encouragement. Here is an example: “We have colleagues all over Europe. Before new members join us we send basic information about their culture to the rest of the team, and we send them a PowerPoint presentation with details about every culture represented on our team. We also ask them to email everyone on the team two things: (1) what one thing – personal or professional – do they want colleagues to know about them, and (2) what their favorite holiday is, and why. We do this so that people can begin to build connections and we encourage them to dialog among themselves. In order to avoid any misunderstanding, we give clear and univocal instructions and we repeat them via mail, phone or internal IMs.
When working across cultures and time zones, it is paramount to (despite the differences, time zones and nationalities) it is important to create commonalities across your team. What cultural diversity training can help this? One way is to create shared goals across your team, provide clear and specific direction and provide support and encouragement.
“In order to avoid any misunderstanding, we give clear and univocal instructions. If something is not clear, we repeat the instructions (via mail, phone or internal instant messaging). And before integrating multi-cultural team members, we take care of providing basic information about the other cultures” – Partner, Accounting Firm, Belgium
Besides putting communication routines in place and constantly checking on your virtual team, what other kind of cultural diversity training can create cross cultural commonalities? As one virtual manager from a Litigation Consulting Firm told me,
“It is just a matter of finding that connection with people; finding the common piece that connects us as human beings, and it always starts with respecting people and their experiences and discovering new ways for linking people.”
Yes virtual manager, your greatest contribution to your team is to enable connection across time and space and maintain the human interaction vibrant across your team.
Become a True Manager of Cultures
Whether local or global, look at the landscape beyond the horizon, recognizing that events at one location impact another. I call this type of Visionary Leadership VISTA-leadership . It requires advanced understanding, visioning, and a hyper-openness to how people interact in different cultures. As so beautifully put by a client who led a global team at a Healthcare Solutions Company,
“When it comes to becoming a manager of cultures, you need to know that you don’t know. There are so many unknowns and you have to manage and look for them; people don’t speak exactly what they mean. They maintain distance, and when you are a global manager who is not from their side [location] you need to understand them.”
These strategies for getting “UN-lost in Translation” will help you translate English to English across your own teams. If you are interested in getting more specific cultural information, see “Communicating Through a Global Lens” 2nd Edition. In it I offer several suggestions to help you gain perspective and achieve a high comfort level when interacting with individuals from other cultures.
“Communicating Through a Global Lens” 2nd Edition describes the different dimensions of cultural differences and provides tips ‘how to’ strategies to work with these perspectives. This quick guide also consists of a short questionnaire to gauge your current skill level at communicating across cultures and provides practical pointers for handling global business relationships. If you need to build your personal action plan and want to increase your cross cultural communication skills, this interactive book will give you suggestions on how to do that.
Remember, quality business relationships grow through better understanding, and I will continue to help you raise your multicultural awareness by sharing my consulting, coaching and cultural diversity training experiences with you in the coming weeks/months.
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March 20, 2015
E-Newsletter Template
Happy Summer!
Summer starts with fireworks, a surge of independence, and the Fourth of July, a favorite holiday of mine because it speaks to values I admire. On this day we celebrate a national community as we set aside differences to focus on more connected common goals—pride, gratitude and the right to pursue happiness. In this spirit, I’d like to update you on upcoming items while continuing the discussion on executive coaching.
Wishing you all a terrific summer.
In This Issue
Shout Out to the AMA
Something to Talk About
Assessment Downward Trend?
Assess the Situation
Upcoming Events
About AIM Strategies®
Shout Out To The AMA
At AIM® we are often remiss in thanking our supporters; the organizations that believe in our mission and provide us with opportunities to share our message. One such organization is the American Management Association (AMA). A longtime supporter of Yael’s work, Amacom (Publishing Division of AMA) not only published “A Manager’s Guide to Virtual Teams”, but has engaged Yael’s educational expertise to teach several courses. Two popular courses, “Successfully Managing People” and “Collaborative Leadership Skills for Managers” are offered in-person or through live online web presentations.
Click here to learn more about other programs available through the AMA, which many of you know is a well-respected institution with many resources for managers and executives to grow critical business skills. Continue to access AIM Digest, eNews and Blog Newsroom for information on course dates and new subjects Yael will teach in the near future.
Something To Talk About
Yael just returned from a great experience at the IMA’s 2014 International Conference held in Minneapolis, June 20-25. She presented a keynote session on networking skills to over 200 management accountants and financial professionals. Attendees noted how relevant the content was to the issues they face in a world that now requires more out-front leadership and analytical engagement from them rather than traditional back office transaction-based approaches. We expect to hear more from this population as we assist them in adapting to these changes.
Are Assessments Seeing A Downward Trend?
The ebb and flow of what’s in and what’s not occurs across all industries. Though not as obvious as shifting hemlines, human capital professionals can sense changing preferences in the twin arenas of business management and leadership assessment. In the past few years I have observed what I hope is a short-lived phase. It seems that senior management sees declining value in working with skilled assessors. Is this due to the lack of experience some practitioners bring to their contracts or to an inflation of their services? Here is my take on this issue.
As an executive coach with more than 25 years and dedicated hours of experience toward this profession, I can truly say I’ve seen it all—the good, the bad, and the downright ugly. And by good, I mean GREAT, but more on that later.
Let’s first address the latter two: the bad and the ugly.
When it comes to noting the bad (the inexperienced) and the ugly (the unscrupulous) some practitioners have marred my profession. With organizations shedding many HR staffers, I don’t blame any HR professional who, in search of sustainable employment, turns to consulting as a stop gap. However, I take exception to those who have a “How hard can it be?” attitude, hanging a shingle soon after losing a job, without proper training and/or boots on the ground experience. These individuals don’t fully realize their impact on a client’s livelihood and professional choices—and that is cause for concern. As for the unscrupulous, namely consultants who pad their fees, there’s nothing to say except this: I do believe in Karma.
So what about the GREAT? Let’s begin our focus with a little background:
The mid 20th century was an especially stimulating time in the Organizational Development (OD) field, with Kurt Lewin and W. Edwards Deming researching group dynamics and quality control respectively. By the time Douglas McGregor and Dick Beckhard coined the term “OD”, performance improvement was also the subject of research and fresh ideas. Then, Margulies and Raia propelled OD forward by defining its humanistic values, thereby clarifying OD’s purpose—to help organizations via an intricate meshing of behavioral sciences. And, in the case of OD’s offshoot profession, executive coaching, managers define and solve their own problems through a productive coach-client relationship.
Acttm Coaching: Assess The Situation
What does it take for the coach and client to ensure a successful engagement? Some years ago, to help me in my own coaching work, I devised the ACT™ process [comprised of the three phases: Assess, Coach and Transform].
You may recall that the last eNews contained an article on ‘Choosing Your Coach’. What follows is an explanation of the A in ACT™- How to ‘Assess The Situation’.
The first step in the coaching process is the Assessment. We can define an assessment as a series of evaluations of behaviors and attitudes based on gathering and analyzing data (provided by subject and possibly manager, peers and subordinates). A feedback loop follows, and finally, a development plan is created.
THE ASSESSMENT
Data Gathering may include: in-depth interviews, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or other Style or Type Tools, 360° Feedback Reviews, Leader Behaviors Surveys and various Questionnaires.
Participant creates a development plan that includes: (1) specific behavioral changes, (2) the means to achieve them, and (3) specific results.
At planned sessions, coach and participant review actionable results.
Just as construction on a building could not begin without a blueprint, it is not possible to create a successful coaching engagement without a well-thought out assessment. The input from all relevant sources to the coaching client is essential to creating the report, which serves as the foundation for the coaching work.
Therefore, my advice is to choose your assessments carefully and make sure to balance three different perspectives – individual, team and organization.
Upcoming Events
Join Yael Zofi and the AIM team for our upcoming events. For more information, visit the Blog Newsroom or contact us at 718-832-6767 / 6699.
JULY 2014
Article: High Performing Virtual Teams Have 8 Key Attributes
Ask Yael Series: “Coaching Virtual Teams”
AMA Live Online Seminar “Successfully Managing People” – July 21, 23, 28, 30
AMA Seminar “Internal Consulting” – July 22
AMA Seminar “Collaborative Leadership Skills for Managers” – July 31
AUGUST 2014
AMA Seminar “Collaborative Leadership Skills for Managers” – August 1
AMA Seminar “Successfully Managing People” – August 6-8 NYC
Webcast: Leadership Styles: Applied Leadership Skills for Business Managers Webcast – Aug. 14
Webcast: Work Your Network: Making Impactful Business Connections Webcast – Aug. 14
Lunch & Learn Series: “Is Your Virtual Team Traditional, Transformed or Transformational?”
SEPTEMBER 2014
AMA Live Online Seminar “Successfully Managing People” – Sept. 8, 10, 15, 17
AIM Featured at Columbia University Meet The Firms Event – Sept. 18
Yael presents at NYS SHRM Conference in Buffalo: Bringing Reality to Your Virtual Team – Sept. 29
Lunch & Learn Series: “Motivate Your Team From A Distance”
About AIM Strategies
AIM Strategies® Applied Innovative Management® is a results-driven Human Capital Consulting firm specializing in the areas of: Global Leadership Development, Co-located and Virtual Team Facilitation, Cross Cultural Communications, and Change Integration Services. To request information about AIM’s experiential learning methods (5D’s™ Consulting/Proprietary Training Methodology and ACT™ Coaching Process), please email info@aim-strategies.com. In upcoming issues of this newsletter, we’ll update you on tips and techniques related to raising your innovative management IQ. We are confident that the solutions we develop fit your needs and culture. Please forward this newsletter to your colleagues and visit www.aim-strategies.com to learn more about how our services unlock the people potential of your organization!
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