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Advantages of Collaborative Online Teams
Online collaborations help to eliminate many challenges associated with tradition groups’ collaboration that bring together people in one room. These challenges include cancellation of meetings because of time incompatibility, poor communication among others.
Features of online collaboration such as teleconferencing solve distance problems and eliminate some of the traditional group challenges. First it reduces travel cost that team members would incur in traveling to a common meeting place.Secondly the time recovered by reducing travel time to meeting location can be used more positively in group activities. Web conferencing also allows greater interactivity among team members and therefore reduce distractions (Higgins, 2007, 1).
Another feature of online teams’ collaboration that offers a great advantage is instant messaging (IM). Through this feature it is possible to have real time communication. It is therefore possible for team member to chat with one another and know who is not connected. In addition members can chose how many members to chat with at a time. Advantages that can be acquired include immediate response and therefore time saving. In addition members can also maintain the size of their inbox (Higgins, 2007, 2).
Effective and Efficient Teams
A team can be able to attain efficiency objective if each member knows his roles, play it well and generally there are no delay in group performance. Larson &LaFasto1989 discussed several characteristics of an effective team. Competency in team members is one of the characteristic described and that can help a group to be efficient. As a team member you are supposed to know your role in the team and also how to fulfill the group’s expectations (9). Members require training to develop the necessary knowledge to be able to achieve the expected objectives. This can be realized by having external collaborations. Another characteristic that can help a group to be efficient is principled leadership. These are respected members of the team, person/s who demonstrate selfless effort for the common good of the group. They use the respect to cultivate similar selflessness in the group.
However, being efficient does not translate to being effective. There must be a motivation for individual member to feel like a team.This is where characteristics such as a unified commitment, comes into our mind. There should be a commitment towards the team and elimination of self. Having a team goal can be a good starting point. Through the team goal it can be easier for leaders to develop a climate of collaboration in the team.
Characteristics of Effective and Efficient Team Members
Experience that a team member brings into the team is an important attribute to show his effectiveness and efficiency. These are people who have faced the challenges and understand the cost of failure. In short they bring to the team analytical skills in problem solving as well as abundant technical knowhow.
Larson &LaFasto 1989, also talks of openness and supportiveness as characteristics of effectiveness and efficiency (11). Every team member is supposed to chip in his ideas for the common interest of the group. Encouraging diversity of opinions helps to build team trust. It also helps to bring perspectives that have not been considered to come to light. Each team member feels like he is a part of the team as opposed to an alien. Every team members is therefore able to trust others and speak his/her voice (Bakken, 2001, 3).
Coaching Tips for Participating on Effective and Efficient Teams
- Having clear expectations, this is where as team members there is a clear understanding of the team goals.
- Commitment in the team is the next tip. Here we look at the team members’ view about the organization and its importance. Like by being a member of our team, one will be able to learn more and share what they know.
- Team should bring in the right people into the team by analyzing potential members levels of competencies.
- Team members should also be positive to criticism. Retaining the openness we discussed and avoiding arguments.
References
Larson, C. E., LaFasto, F. M. J. (1989). Teamwork: what must go right, what can go wrong. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Higgins, J. (2007). Benefits of using online collaborative tools for project teams.Retrieved on 17 October 2011 from: http://www.collegiateproject.com/articles/Online%20Collaborative%20Tools.pdf.
Bakken, E. (2001). Twelve Ways to Build an Effective Team.Retrieved on 17 October 2011 from: http://cohesion.rice.edu/campusservices/humanresources/emplibrary/Twelve%20Ways%20to%20Build%20an%20Effective%20Team.pdf.
Heathfield, S. M. (n.d.). Human Resources. Retrieved October 17, 2011, from About.com: http://humanresources.about.com/od/involvementteams/a/twelve_tip_team.htm
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