As the building blocks of global organizations, virtual teams can provide a company access to diverse skill sets and expertise, knowledge and wisdom about emerging markets, and round-the-clock business hours for efficiency. However, effectively managing these dispersed teams requires overcoming difficult hurdles.
This primary research study addresses the micro view of global teams, versus the macro view of overall global organizational design, including how to help people work together more smoothly and efficiently.
Vice presidents, directors and managers associated with organizational effectiveness can use the valuable insights and supporting quantitative data to restructure the internal organization of global teams, adjust resources such as budget and headcount, and assess and implement best practices for communicating and working together.
BENCHMARK CLASS
Industries Profiled:
Pharmaceutical; Diagnostic; Consumer Products; Chemical; Health Care; Medical Device; Telecommunications; Consulting; Shipping; Aerospace; Biotech; Energy; Manufacturing; Professional Services; Computers; Automobile; Utilities; Diversified; Financial Services; Biopharmaceutical; Computer Software; Service; Technology; Government; Computer Hardware; High Tech; Transportation
Primary research was conducted through an online survey instrument with 59 representatives from 56 companies. Respondents have an average of 11 years of experience in working with global teams or in helping people work better together globally.
Key topics include:
Why companies establish global teams
How companies measure progress toward globalization
Tools and practices that accelerate progress
Practices that facilitate working with other cultures, time zones and workplaces
How progress of individual global teams is measured
Top improvement objectives for global teams
Key lessons learned for managing global teams
The biggest pitfalls to avoid in global team management
Key metrics include:
Practices to accelerate progress towards becoming a global organization
Global team operating mechanisms most successful in working with other cultures, other time zones and conflicting workplace practices
Technologies found to be successful in enabling a global work environment
Percentage of companies that formally measure performance of global teams
Metrics used by benchmarked companies to evaluate the performance of global teams
Biggest pitfall to avoid in global teams management
KEY FINDINGS
Sample Key Findings
Participants say their most important lesson learned is to communicate. From simple tasks, like clarifying roles, to complex tasks, such as understanding the needs of global team members with respect to cultural differences, listening and communicating are keys to global team success.
More than 50 percent of the tools, practices and techniques participants listed that accelerate progress toward becoming a global organization involve establishing and following common global team processes such as: Annual meetings, Open communications, Project management.
VIEW TOC AND LIST OF EXHIBITS
Table of Contents
Project Overview
Key Insights
Why companies establish global teams
How companies measure progress toward globalization
Tools and practices that accelerate progress
Practices that facilitate working with other cultures, time zones and workplaces
How progress of individual global teams is measured
Top improvement objectives for global teams
Key lessons learned for managing global teams
The biggest pitfalls to avoid
Detailed Findings
List of Charts & Exhibits
Top three goals or objectives in setting up global teams
Years taken to “go global” from the time benchmarked company began the global organization effort in earnest
Metrics used to measure company’s progress towards becoming a global organization
Three practices, tools, or techniques that have helped most to accelerate the benchmarked company’s progress towards becoming a global organization
Three global team operating mechanisms or processes that enable an effective global working environment
Global team operating mechanisms found to be most successful in working with other cultures
Global team operating mechanisms found to be most successful in working with other time zones
Global team operating mechanisms found to be most successful in working with conflicting workplace practices
Technologies found to be successful in enabling a global work environment
Best practices discovered to manage virtual team meetings
Top five training techniques used to help prepare individuals for working in global teams and their effectiveness ratings
Techniques or practices that have proved most successful in managing global team communications
Percentage of companies having a formalized program for measuring the performance of global teams
Metrics used by benchmarked companies to evaluate the performance of global teams
Three top improvement objectives in global team operations planning
Area of greatest success/disappointment throughout the progress period
Most important lesson learned from the work in global team management
Biggest pitfall to avoid in global teams management