Leading Dispersed Teams

Launching a Dispersed Team

Every dispersed team starts out with a purpose—a problem or new product or other project that needs the support of a worldwide team. But as with more traditional local teams, effectiveness doesn’t just happen. Right from the start, it’s important for leaders to consider two critical issues. The first of those is the readiness of the organization to launch and support such a team to the extent that it can be successful. The second is the setup and implementation of the team’s first meeting. That first meeting may be the leader’s most important step toward promoting membership and trust, establishing communication channels, ...