Culture Matters

STRATEGIES AND COMPETENCIES FOR MANAGING GLOBAL VIRTUAL TEAMS

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Working together at a distance.

Marion Cliff was baffled and frustrated with the way that people were working in her virtual teams. After much contemplation, it dawned on her that there were some important differences between working with her teams on-site in Taiwan and her teams in the Texas office. For instance, what about having to wait up late or into the wee hours to have a Skype meeting with your colleagues in another continent when you have already devoted a good 9–10 hours at the office that day? Working with people who miss deadlines regularly because they perceive time as flexible and feel that timelines can be adjusted and stretched based on their schedule? Working ...