subject: Engaging your Virtual Team by Helping them Recognize Their Potential [print this page] Engaging your Virtual Team by Helping them Recognize Their Potential
In today's economy, a team leader needs to make sure their virtual team is engaged and working at their full potential. When an employee becomes disengaged, it is usually due to two factors; they are feeling insecure about their future within the company and/or under appreciated by management. Education and communication with your virtual team members are the keys to guiding your team to recognizing their full potential, which in turn will keep them engaged and loyal to the team and company.
Educate your virtual team members by:Clearly defining what their responsibilities are and what is expected of them. This is essential for virtual team members, because they don't have the instant feedback that an on-site team member does.When a virtual team comes together make sure you establish clear and well-defined goals that are understood by everyone Encourage them to think outside the box. If a solution or task is too easy, then there is no real challenge and they disengage. If you make a task too complicated, they will get discouraged and frustrated and become disengaged.Communication with your virtual team is equally important. In a poll by Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton, 65% of North Americans in the previous year felt they hadn't received recognition for contributions made to their companies; 79% of those employees that left their jobs did so because they felt under appreciated. A lack of communication is the cause of team members feeling under appreciated or not feeling recognized for their contributions. This is even more likely to happen with virtual team members.Keep the lines of communication open:Give open and honest feedback during and at the end of a project. Don't wait until performance review time to tell your team members how they are doing. Instead, schedule regular teleconference meetings to provide one on one support and mentoring with each of your team members. This will help build a connection with your virtual team members and will allow you to assess if there are any potential challenges before they become costly problems. Establish ground rules with your team regarding protocols for how you will communicate, make decisions, manage conflicts and how you will function in meetings. To learn more about ground rules for virtual teams contact us at info@virtualteambuilders.com with ground rules in the subject line.Taking time to communicate frequently with your virtual team will ensure they have a long and successful career with your company.http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/engaging-your-virtual-team-by-helping-them-recognize-their-potential-3853675.html
