cora systems ltd aviva stadium, dublin, 15 june 2012 dr. deasún Ó conchúir pmp...
Post on 29-Mar-2015
219 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
Tips for Supporting a Virtual Teamwork Culture
Cora Systems LtdAviva Stadium, Dublin, 15 June 2012
Dr. Deasún Ó Conchúir PMP deasun.oconchuir@scatterwork.com
+41 79 692 4735
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Virtual Teamwork - Culture and Communications
Virtual Teamwork◦ Commonplace and accepted,
particularly in the IT sector
◦ Operational and Strategic benefits
Communication◦ Remains fundamental to Virtual Teamwork
◦ Technology is also necessary, but should be “transparent”
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 2
Agenda Introduction Virtual Teamwork Communications Culture Tips for Virtual Teamwork Virtual Teamwork Applications Discussion & Conclusions
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 3
Please comment to
Twitter using
Hashtag:
#Cora_VirtTeam
Dr. Deasún Ó Conchúir PMP ◦ At Scatterwork GmbH, Switzerland
◦ Author of "Overview of the PMBOK Guide" published by Springer-Verlag
◦ Member of PMI Educational Foundation’s Engagement Committee for PMI Communities
Selected Clients
4
Collaboration Consultant
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Sign up for the Scatterwork Consulting Blog
Practical Experience Project Management and Consultancy experience
in over 30 countries
Research on Virtual Working applications at ETHZ(Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich)
6 virtual teams established as VP Education & Certifications of the PMI Switzerland Chapter
Experimental Virtual Team Development:www.scatterwork-consulting.com◦ Core team members in various parts of Switzerland◦ All interaction is virtual
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 5
Participant Profile Location? Virtual workload? Project or Process
oriented?
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 6
The Changing Environment
8
Geopolitics
Rise of BRIC
states
Climate Change
Globalisation
Aging Populati
on
Cloud Computi
ng
Free WLAN, e.g. in
BLT Tango trams
(Switzerland)
SaaS(software as
a service)
Banking Crisis
Smartphone &
Tablets
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Location independen
ce
Workplace Trends
9
Replicating old working methods is unlikely to work in the current environment
Increasing diversity increases risks
Awareness must be inclusive of different cultures and ways of thinking
Some solutions
are emerging
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Project, Procurement and Helpdesk Managemente.g. clients of Cora Systems
Industry and Professional Associations involving members in different companies
IT and Financial Services Sectors Construction Sector, especially for large projects Industry Sectoral Task Groups e.g. registration of
hazardous materials usage etc Management Consulting New Business Consortia during the early stages of
formation Company Merger Teams, together with their advisers
such as consultancy firms and banks Clinical Trials for pharmaceutical companies
Virtual Teamwork Scenarios
10© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
The Virtual Evolution inNon-IT Environments
11
Some traditional employees find the environment difficult to understand
If there are too many innovations, there is a danger of confusion
“Early Adopters” are also constrained to use existing documented procedures
The learning process will take society some years
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Acceptance ofVirtual Working
In◦ IT environments◦ Multinationals
Among◦ Smartphone users◦ Generation Y are:
Tech-Savvy: Family-Centric: Achievement-Oriented Recognition-seeking
Ref: Sally Kane
12
Greatest acceptance occurs where the tools are readily available.
Although the technology is essential, human communication remains indispensible.
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Trend Reversal from Commuting
Teleworking◦ Implies that the Individual works
directly with the centre◦ Assumes that the office does exist◦ Example: Executive agencies of the US Federal
Government must implement teleworking policies Co-working
◦ On-line Working Locations accessible by subscription
◦ Workers appreciate the company of others
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 13
Management by Wandering Around (MBWA) in Virtual Teamwork?
Anecdotal evidence of resistance toHome Office◦ Organiser of Cultural School Tours
Uses e-mail and telephone Required to drive 8 hours a week to and from office
◦ Small Consulting Company Owner resisted use of VPN server access because
of “network security” Everyone had to travel to work, even to check mails Network access used as tool of management
authority Traditional Manager can
◦ see how team is working◦ intervene at any time
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 14
Example Virtual Company: mySQL
Source
◦ Personal interview with the founder of mySQL, “Monty” Michael Widenius, 7 March 2011
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 15
Establishment & Growth
Started in 1995 by two friends who knew each other well:◦ one in Finland, the other in Sweden
Next addition to the team was in Germany, 4th in Yugoslavia
Team growth was slow, about 3 persons per year for the early years
16© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Very High Productivity◦ Working hours selected to suit personal rhythm◦ Lack of interruptions, which suits the problem solving◦ Very long working hours commonplace◦ Productive time not wasted by commuting or
generating greenhouse gases Huge choice of skills from global talent pool
◦ Experience is not lost when someone moves(e.g. spouse)
◦ No workspace needed◦ Rapid recruitment◦ Minimal direct costs for team member, which is
equivalent to a salary increase
Benefits of Virtual Workingat mySQL
17© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Human Challenges at mySQL
People still need to know each other◦ Twice yearly meetings in exotic and exciting places
Meeting Costs offset the lack office costs◦ Not a cheap solution
Essential to track each person’s activities◦ What have you done in the last week?◦ What do you plan to do next week?
Team members can leave very easily◦ You are training them for the competition
Working Conditions◦ Based on typical Finnish employment contracts ◦ Employees are owners and treated equally (notice,
holidays etc), to be fair and create trust
18© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Some Challenges from Experience at Scatterwork
Unless everybody delivers, nobody does Limited team spirit and poor morale among
members who have never met each other New communication tools can be confusing Technical failures, e.g. resulting in apparent
lack of responsiveness◦ Misspelling of person’s name influenced timely
communications◦ Lack of familiarity or comfort with the modern
“social” tools “Local” manager influences diverts effort from
project19© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
21
Establish anAtmosphere of Trust
The Essential Ingredient◦ Even a suspicion that trust is lacking is deadly to
the virtual teams When interacting with Team Members and
Stakeholders◦ Listen actively and stop ALL other activity
Deliver on promises ◦ Example: Start meeting at
agreed time Impact of changes on others
hard to evaluate
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Instil a Culture ofPersonal Responsibility
Each team member is personally responsible◦ For his or her own work and relationships◦ For clarifying requirements and deliverables◦ For ensuring adequate resources, information etc
In a traditional environment◦ Some of these functions may be provided by
management “input” Substandard, late or non-delivery of
deliverables affects colleagues◦ The effect of misunderstandings and plan changes
can put unexpected burden on colleagues
22© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Match Personal Contractsto the work
IBM Germany (Spiegel Online 2012, in German only)
◦ Employee Employment contracts replaced by Project Assignments without long-term engagement
◦ International contracts, specifically to circumvent restrictive practices in home country
Personal Payments Schedule, Scatterwork GmbH◦ Planning meeting identifies deliverables for (nominally
monthly) sprint◦ Personal payments are released on completion of all
planned sprint deliverables (not by calendar date)◦ Does not modify the amount payable, only the trigger
for payment◦ Designed to encourage teamwork
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 23
24
Build Team by developing Operational Guidelines
Written version of Team culture◦ Documents the basic rules of behaviour
Makes explicit what is implicit
The results belong to everybody◦ Develop interactively using
Teleconference & Wiki
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Global Team Simulator for Virtual Teambuilding
Functions: Participants get to know each other using virtual collaborative games and a project simulation
Participants develop:
◦ Virtual Team competence
◦ Multi-cultural collaboration
25
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Operational Guidelines – Interactions
How are meeting times agreed?
How are meeting start and finish times interpreted?
Response Time to messages, e-mail◦ Immediately? Today? This week? At all?
Tolerance and respect for out of hours contacts◦ How private are evenings, nights, weekends, holidays?◦ When and on which days does the weekend start and
finish?
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 26
27
Operational Guidelines – Exploit Multiple Time Zones Reduce need for simultaneous availability
◦ Maximize the simultaneous business hours e.g. taking calls from home before travelling to work
◦ Improve the simultaneous communications for maximum effectiveness, e.g. IM (instant messenger)
Increase the effectiveness ofnon-simultaneous communications◦ e.g. Replace call by access to report database◦ Document and agree the communications plan
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Operational Guidelines – Issue Resolution
Issue Resolution Preferences◦ Talk first or write first? Depends on:
Time zones (Foreign) Language competence (from the individual’s
point of view)
Use of Mood Messages, Smilies, Status & Presence Signs◦ In a co-located project teams, judgement of mood
depends on the observer
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 28
29
Check yourCultural Assumptions
Brainstorm regularly tocheck/ identify culturalassumptions
Misunderstandings andbad decisions arise fromincorrect assumptions◦ Conscious◦ Subconscious
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Cultural Diversity Characteristics
Personal◦ Life experience◦ Attitudes◦ Contacts
Cultural◦ Ethnicity◦ Language◦ Religion
Geographical◦ Location◦ Time zone
30© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
• Multiple cultures increase the challenge
• Each different characteristic complicates relationships
Hofstede‘s Cultural Dimensions
Power Distance (PDI)
Individualism versus Collectivism (IDV)
Masculinity versus Femininity (MAS)
Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI)
Long-Term Orientation (LTO)
31
Ref: Professor Geert Hofstede
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Cultural Dimensions:USA, India, France
32
Ref: Professor Geert Hofstede
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Cultural Dimensions: Switzerland, Ireland
33
Ref: Professor Geert Hofstede
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Exponentionally more difficult as diversity factors multiply
Promote shared:
Avoid Unproductive Diversity
Single Country Currency
Time zone Taxes
Common Team Language in which members can express their feelings
Legal and Commercial Environment (e.g. EU)
Definition of weekend Culture (company and national)
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 34
Eliminate E-mail for Projects and Assignments
Use Task Management Application◦ Context-oriented collaborative
comment streams for discussion◦ Workspaces manage who is
associated with which projects◦ Thumbnail photographs help
team visibility Reports of up to 30% reduced
network traffic Examples
◦ Podio, LumoFlow,IBM Connections
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 36
Eliminate E-mail for repetitive Processes
Use BPMN (Business Process Modeling Notation)◦ Intuitive graphical process descriptions◦ Automatic message routing generated from
flowchart
Examples◦ IBM Blueworks Live, Questetra, RunMyProcess
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 37
Example: BPMN Workflow
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 38
Process capture and implementation:
www.scatterwork-consulting.com
Swim lanes indicate
assignments
Typical Project Processes
Collect requirements Hold Meetings
◦ Tracking◦ Phase Review
Create WBS Report Progress Estimate costs Issue new Document version Develop Schedule Train new Employee Monitor & Control Project Work Distribute information Analyse stakeholders Update Website etc etc
Your examples of repetitive
processes (even if not
documented)?
39© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Significant Advantages of BPMN(also apply to co-located teams)
Retention of a critical competitiveCompany Know-How◦ Individuals may get ill, retire, change job etc.
Facilitates Continuous Improvement (Kaizen) Best practice can be duplicated Process Documentation drives improvements
◦ Shorter latency (=waiting) times The team can easily be scaled up or down,
depending on the capacity demand
40© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Risks of Undocumented Processes
Rework and waste Inability to restart
after severe disruption such as flooding or fire
Difficulty in replicating key processes in multiple locations and teams
• Key production worker reaches retirement age
• Unwilling to hand over experience
41© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
How to implement Processes with BPMN
1. Capture the process flow graphically◦ Subject Expert & Application Expert working
together
2. Review the Process with others who are familiar with the environment
◦ Adopt improvements and document graphically
3. Launch the draft process◦ Complete the process cycle, identifying possible
improvements◦ Incorporate improvements after the cycle
4. Launch the revised process◦ After some cycles, the adjustments should stabilise
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 42
Review and Response toParticipant Contributions
Tame your “Most Problematic Process”!
Complimentary BPMN Starter Consultations
to the first four (4) comers at http://bit.ly/LyIAiW
43© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
Summary
The transition to multi-locationproject environments took place long ago◦ Usage is still evolving and will take some time:
Culture Tips for Virtual Teamwork◦ Establish an atmosphere of Trust◦ Instil a Culture of Personal Responsibility◦ Match Personal Contracts to the work◦ Build Team by developing Operational Guidelines
and/or Global Team Simulator◦ Check your Cultural Assumptions◦ Eliminate e-Mail
Projects and AssignmentsRepetitive Processes
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012 44
Dr. Deasún Ó Conchúir PMP
E-mail deasun.oconchuir@scatterwork.com
Tel.+41 79 692 4735
Profile
Web www.scatterwork-consulting.com
Book ”Overview of the PMBOK Guide” published by Springer-Verlag
Join the Scatterwork Consulting Mailing List at http://eepurl.com/ePHug
45
Collaboration Consultant
© Scatterwork GmbH 2012
top related