University Malaysia Pahang - Department of Manufacturing Engineering
February 4, 2012
American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 9-14, 2012
Abstract: Problem statement: Although, literature proves the importance of the technology role in the effectiveness of virtual Research and Development (R&D) teams for new product development. However, the factors that make technology construct in a virtual R&D team are still ambiguous. The manager of virtual R&D teams for new product development does not know which type of technology should be used. Approach: To address the gap and answer the question, the study presents a set of factors thatmake a technology construct. The proposed construct modified by finding of the field survey (N = 240). We empirically examine the relationship between construct and its factors by employing the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). A measurement model built base on the 19 preliminary factors that extracted from literature review. The result shows 10 factors out of 19 factors maintaining to make technology construct. Results: These 10 technology factors can be grouped into two constructs namely Web base communication and Web base data sharing. The findings can help new product development managers of enterprises to concentratein the main factors for leading an effective virtual R&D team. In addition, it provides a guideline for software developers as well. Conclusion: The second and third generation technologies are now more suitable for developing new products through virtual R&D teams. Number of Pages in PDF File: 6 Keywords:Collaboration teams, questionnaires performance, cross-functional teams, product development, structural equation modeling, measurement model, literature review JEL Classification: L1,L11,L7, M11, M12, M1, M54, Q1, O1, O32, P42, P29, L17, Q31, Q32 Accepted Paper Series
Ale Ebrahim, Nader, Ahmed, Shamsuddin, Abdul Rashid, Salwa Hanim and Taha, Zahari, Technology Use in the Virtual R&D Teams (February 4, 2012). American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 9-14, 2012. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1999445
In a global and technology oriented world the requirements that products and services have to fulfill are increasing and are getting more complicated. Research and development (R&D) is becoming increasingly important in creating the knowledge that makes research and business more competitive. Companies are obliged to produce more rapidly, more effectively and more efficiently. In order to meet these requirements and to secure the viability of business processes, services and products R&D teams need to access and retrieve information from as many sources as possible. From the other perspective virtual teams are important mechanisms for organizations seeking to leverage scarce resources across geographic and other boundaries moreover; virtual collaboration has become vital for most organizations. This is particularly true in the context of designing new product and service innovation. Such collaboration often involves a network of partners located around the world. However at the R&D project level, dealing with such distributed teams challenges both managers and specialists. In new product development, it is necessary to put together the growing different capabilities and services with the goal, through cooperation between suppliers and customers, service providers and scientific institutions to achieve innovations of high quality. In this paper based on comprehensive literature review of recent articles, at the first step provides an primary definition and characterization of virtual R&D team; next, the potential value created by virtual R&D teams for new product development is explored and lastly along with a guide line for future study, it is argued that the establishing of virtual R&D teams should be given consideration in the management of R&D projects.
Comments:
6th IMC (International Management Conference). Tehran, Iran 2008
Dealing with Virtual R&D Teams in New Product Development
Nader Ale Ebrahim, Shamsuddin Ahmed and Zahari Taha MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Abstract: National and global collaboration in research and development (R&D) is becoming increasingly important in creating the knowledge that makes research and business more competitive. Multinational enterprises have increased their research and development (R&D) investment in different countries. These multiple sites encourage the development of more ideas, due to the varied international backgrounds in global networks and the knowledge spillovers. In order to secure the viability of business processes, services and products R&D teams need to access and retrieve information from as many sources as possible. From the other perspective virtual teams are important mechanisms for organizations seeking to control scarce resources across geographic and other boundaries. Moreover, virtual collaboration has become vital for most organizations. This is particularly true in the context of designing new product and innovative services. In this paper all the major aspects of Virtual R&D team are discussed in technical terms. The paper provides an integral definition and characterization of virtual R&D team. The potential value that is created by virtual R&D teams for new product development is explored. Lastly, pertinent practical guidelines and implications are presented. Keywords:Virtual R&D team; NPD; Technology management (search for similar items in EconPapers) JEL-codes:L6M12O32O14O1M11L2M1P23O3L15 (search for similar items in EconPapers) Date: 2008-05, Revised 2008-10 References:View references in EconPapersView complete reference list from CitEc CitationsView citations in EconPapers (1) Track citations by RSS feed Downloads: (external link) http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/27120/ Related works: This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title. Export reference:BibTeXRIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link:http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:27120 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Address: Schackstr. 4, D-80539 Munich, Germany Contact information at EDIRC. Series data maintained by Ekkehart Schlicht (schlicht@lmu.de). EconPapers: Dealing with Virtual R&D Teams in New Product Development
The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: Experiences of Malaysian SMEs
Nader Ale Ebrahim, Shamsuddin Ahmed, Salwa Hanim Abdul Rashid and Zahari Taha MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Abstract: The number of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), especially those involved with research and development (R&D) programs and employed virtual teams to create the greatest competitive advantage from limited labor are increasing. Global and localized virtual R&D teams are believed to have a high potential for SMEs growth. Due to the fast growing complexity of the new product, coupled with new emerging opportunities of virtual teams, a collaborative approach is believed to be the future trend. This research explores the effectiveness of virtuality in SMEs virtual R&D teams. An online questionnaire emailed to Malaysian manufacturing SMEs and 74 usable questionnaires were received, representing a 20.8 percent return rate. To avoid the bias that may result from pre-suggested answer, a series of open-ended questions asked from expertise. This study based on analyzing an open-ended question; extract four main themes among expertise recommendations on the effectiveness of virtual teams for SMEs growth and performance. These are suitable for SMEs new product design manager to realize the key advantage and importance of virtual R&D teams in the process of NPD, which lead to increase the effectiveness of the new product's procedure. Keywords:Virtual teams; New product development; Survey finding; Small and medium Enterprises. (search for similar items in EconPapers) JEL-codes:G14O32M12L7M11M1O3L15P4 (search for similar items in EconPapers) New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cse, nep-ent, nep-ino and nep-sea Date: 2010-06, Revised 2010-11 References:View references in EconPapersView complete reference list from CitEc CitationsTrack citations by RSS feed Downloads: (external link) http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/27368/ Related works: Working Paper: The effectiveness of virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: experiences of Malaysian SMEs (2011) This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title. Export reference:BibTeXRIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link:http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:27368 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Address: Schackstr. 4, D-80539 Munich, Germany Contact information at EDIRC. Series data maintained by Ekkehart Schlicht (schlicht@lmu.de). EconPapers: The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: Experiences of Malaysian SMEs
ALL TIME HITS (for all papers in SSRN eLibrary) TOP 10 Papers for Journal of IRPN: Innovation & Leadership (Topic) January 2, 1997 to December 26, 2012
Ranking Boards of Directors Martin J. Conyon, Mark R. Muldoon, University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School, University of Manchester - Department of Mathematics, Date posted to database: January 15, 2008 Last Revised: October 25, 2012
This article describes new perspectives in virtual teams’ collaboration, to underline the actual trends and to identify their future development. These will be used for product lifecycle projects management and to diminish/avoid risks, to harmonize team members’ competencies (compatibility issues) to attend success in project development. The tools used for communication and real time research-work will increase companies’ competitiveness by optimizing the resources dedicated to different projects, teams and management systems. To improve the productivity and to facilitate the communication between projects team members, the new approach of virtual teams is based on the use of complex software platforms to improve collaborative design, learning and work processes.
Ale Ebrahim, N., Ahmed, S., Taha, Z.: Virtual R&D Teams in Small and Medium Enterprises: A Literature Review. Scientific Research and Essay 4(13), 1575–1590 (2009) (retrieved January 18, 2011)
Draghici, A., Draghici, G.: New Business Requirements in the Knowledge Based Society. In: Cunha, M.M., Putnik, G.D. (eds.) Advanced Technology for Business Integration: Social, Managerial and Organizational Dimension, pp. 209–241. Idea Group Publishing, USA (2006)
Draghici, A., Matta, N., Molcho, G., Draghici, G.: Networks of Excellence as Virtual Communities. In: Putnik, G.D., Cunha, M.M. (eds.) Encyclopedia of Networks and Virtual Organizations, pp. 1022–1030. Idea Group Publishing, USA (2007)
Draghici, A., Izvercianu, M., Draghici, G.: Managing Intra-national Virtual Team. The Case of Romanian Research Network – INPRO. In: Rusu, C., Badea, N. (eds.) Proceeding of the 5th International Conference Management of Technological Changes, vol. 1, pp. 481–490. Democritus University of Thrace, Greece (2007)
Draghici, A., Izvercianu, M., Draghici, G.: Building Virtual Teams in Research and Development Field of Activity. The Case of INPRO Virtual Network. In: Rusu, C., Badea, N. (eds.) Proceeding of the 5th International Conference Management of Technological Changes, vol. 1, pp. 491–500. Democritus University of Thrace, Greece (2007)
Dragoi, G., Cotet, C., Rosu, L., Rosu, S.M.: Internet/Intranet/Extranet-based systems in the CESICED Platform for Virtual Product Development Environment. In: Advances in Integrated Design and Manufacturing in Mechanical Engineering II, pp. 293–307. Springer, Heidelberg (2007)CrossRef
Dragoi, G., Draghici, A., Rosu, S.M., Cotet, C.E.: Virtual Product Development in University-Enterprise Partnership. Information Resources Management Journal 23(3), 43–60 (2010)CrossRef
Gassmann, O., Von Zedtwitz, M.: Trends and Determinants of Managing Virtual R&D Teams. R&D Management 33(3), 243–262 (2003)CrossRef
Lipnack, J., Stamps, J.: Virtual Teams: Reaching Across Space, Time, and Organizations With Technology. John Wiley & Sons, New York (1997)
Michel, J.: The Many Facets of International Education of Engineers, Balkema, Rotterdam (2000)
Powell, A., Piccoli, G., Ives, B.: Virtual Teams: a Review of Current Literature and Directions for Future Research. In: The Data Base for Advances in Information Systems – vol. 35, p. 8 (Winter 2004)
Rosu, S.M., Dragoi, G.: VPN Solutions and Network Monitoring to Support Virtual Teams Work in Virtual Enterprises. Computer Science and Information System 8(1), 1–26 (2011)CrossRef
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z., (2009). "Innovation and R\&D activities in virtual team", European Journal of Scientific Research, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 297-307
Literature, Principle and the Basics of Network Value Creation in R&D: The Relationship with Economy 2008
Ale Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S & Taha, Z, 2008, 'Literature, Principle and the Basics of Network Value Creation in R&D: The Relationship with Economy', SSRN Electronic Journal.
Literature, Principle and the Basics of Network Value Creation in R&D: The Relationship with Economy 2008
Ale Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S & Taha, Z, 2008, 'Literature, Principle and the Basics of Network Value Creation in R&D: The Relationship with Economy', SSRN Electronic Journal.
Models for Component Commonality in Multistage Production Oct-2011
Wazed, M, Ahmed, S, Nukman, Y & Ale Ebrahim, N, 2011, 'Models for Component Commonality in Multistage Production', Applied Mechanics and Materials, vol. 110-116, pp. 258-266.
Models for component commonality in multistage production: Applied Mechanics and Materials 2012
Wazed, M.A. and Ahmed, S. and Nukman, Y. and Ale Ebrahim, N., (2012). "Models for component commonality in multistage production", Applied Mechanics and Materials, vol. 110-116, pp. 258-266
Modified Stage-Gate: A Conceptual Model of Virtual Product Development Process
ALE EBRAHIM, N., AHMED, S. & TAHA, Z. 2009. Modified Stage-Gate: A Conceptual Model of Virtual Product Development Process. African Journal of Marketing Management, 1, 211-219.
Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S & Taha, Z, 2009, 'SMEs and virtual R&D teams: A motive channel for relationship between SMEs', 2009 International Conference for Technical Postgraduates (TECHPOS), IEEE, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, pp. 1-7.
SMEs and virtual R&D teams: A motive channel for relationship between SMEs: International Conference for Technical Postgraduates 2009, TECHPOS 2009 2009
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z., (2009). "SMEs and virtual R\&D teams: A motive channel for relationship between SMEs", International Conference for Technical Postgraduates 2009, TECHPOS 2009
SMEs; Virtual research and development (R&D) teams and new product development: A literature review: International Journal of Physical Sciences 2010
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z., (2010). "SMEs; Virtual research and development (R\&D) teams and new product development: A literature review", International Journal of Physical Sciences, vol. 5, no. 7, pp. 916-930
The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: Experiences of Malaysian SMEs Jun-2011
Ale Ebrahim, N, Abdul Rashid, S, Ahmed, S & Taha, Z, 2011, 'The Effectiveness of Virtual R&D Teams in SMEs: Experiences of Malaysian SMEs', Industrial Engineering and Management Systems, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 109-114.
Virtual Collaborative R&D Teams in Malaysia Manufacturing SMEs Jan-2012
Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S, Rashid, S, Wazed, M & Taha, Z, 2012, 'Virtual Collaborative R&D Teams in Malaysia Manufacturing SMEs', Advanced Materials Research, vol. 433-440, pp. 1653-1659.
Virtual R & D teams in small and medium enterprises: A literature review: Scientific Research and Essays 2009
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z., (2009). "Virtual R \& D teams in small and medium enterprises: A literature review", Scientific Research and Essays, vol. 4, no. 13, pp. 1575-1590
Virtual R&D Teams for NPD in SMEs: Past, Present and Future Trend 2010
Ale Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S & Taha, Z, 2010, 'Virtual R&D Teams for NPD in SMEs: Past, Present and Future Trend', SSRN Electronic Journal.
Virtual R&D teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration: 2010 2nd International Congress on Engineering Education: Transforming Engineering Education to Produce Quality Engineers, ICEED2010 2010
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Abdul Rashid, S.H. and Taha, Z., (2010). "Virtual R\&D teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration", 2010 2nd International Congress on Engineering Education: Transforming Engineering Education to Produce Quality Engineers, ICEED2010, pp. 7-9
Virtual R&D teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration
Ebrahim, N, Ahmed, S, Abdul Rashid, S & Taha, Z, 2010, 'Virtual R&D teams: A potential growth of education-industry collaboration', 2010 2nd International Congress on Engineering Education, IEEE, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, pp. 7-9.
Virtual collaborative R&D teams in Malaysia manufacturing SMEs: Advanced Materials Research 2012
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Rashid, S.H.A. and Wazed, M.A. and Taha, Z., (2012). "Virtual collaborative R\&D teams in Malaysia manufacturing SMEs", Advanced Materials Research, vol. 433-440, pp. 1653-1659
Virtual teams: A literature review: Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences 2009
Ebrahim, N.A. and Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z., (2009). "Virtual teams: A literature review", Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 2653-2669
Nader Ale Ebrahim, Academic Collaboration Centre for Publication Promotion, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Abstract
The advent of the virtual teams has facilitated the emergence and formation of new companies within the Net Economy which called e-Entrepreneurship. The terms of e-Entrepreneurship and virtual teams still are new in the scholarly papers. Therefore, this introductory presentation focuses on different aspects of virtual teams and e-entrepreneurship.
Suggested Citation
Nader Ale Ebrahim. "Virtual Teams and e-Entrepreneurship" Academic Collaboration Centre for Publication Promotion. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Dec. 2012. Available at: http://works.bepress.com/aleebrahim/68 "Virtual Teams and e-Entrepreneurship" by Nader Ale Ebrahim
Xiaodong Zhang1, Yingzi Li1, Shuo Zhang1, Christopher M. Schlick2
1Dongling School of Economics and Management, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China 2Institute of Industrial Engineering and Ergonomics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
Abstract
Collaborative Product Development (CPD) process is characterized by autonomous task control, dynamic task sequence, and frequent team collaboration, which endow the process with high flexibility and uncertainty. To make the process predictable and improve process efficiency, it is essential to model, simulate, and analyze the process by considering all these characteristics. As most CPD models are developed to simulate task structures and task-flow process, our work focuses on studying the human working behaviors in CPD process by agent-based simulation, which we think is the main source of process uncertainty and flexibility. In this paper, the local task scheduling behavior of designer agents and the resource conflict resolution behavior of the manager agent are studied under the framework of agent-based simulation. In the simulation, the designer agent schedules his local tasks according to his personal priority, and the manager agent resolves resource conflicts according to collective utility function. To make the process more efficient, a collective utility function is developed for the manager agent, in which task priority, spare resource, and waiting time are considered simultaneously. To validate the effectiveness of the collective utility, simulation experiments are designed and carried out among entire-waiting utility, entire-replacement utility, and collective utility strategy. The simulation results indicate that the proposed utility strategy can effectively shorten the project total time and cost of the case. There are two engineering applications of this approach. First, by simulating and evaluating different task scheduling and resource conflict resolution behaviors of the agents, designers and managers can adopt suitable scheduling strategies at the planning stage of the CPD project. Second, in the executing process of the CPD project, the proposed scheduling priority and utility functions can be used in the dynamic scheduling by developing software agents in the CPD management systems.
Knowledge Management Research & Practice advance online publication 17 December 2012; doi: 10.1057/kmrp.2012.57
An integrative model for knowledge transfer between new product development project teams
Alejandro Germán Frank1 and José Luis Duarte Ribeiro1
1Industrial Engineering Department, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
Correspondence: Alejandro Germán Frank, Industrial Engineering Department, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Av. Osvaldo Aranha, n. 99, 5o Andar, CEP 90035-190, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. Tel: +55 51 3308 3490; Fax: +55 51 3308 4007; E-mail: agerfrank@producao.ufrgs.br
Received 21 March 2012; Revised 31 May 2012; Accepted 18 October 2012 Advance online publication 17 December 2012
Knowledge transfer (KT) between new product development (NPD) project teams is considered by many authors as a process. A variety of works in literature have proposed models to elucidate such a KT process and its stages. However, the nomenclature used to describe these models and the proposed KT stages present large heterogeneity. Researchers from different fields have studied the KT processes; hence, there have been different interpretations or approaches for the same problem. This study presents a comparison of 14 KT models organized in two main research approaches: the emergent approach (which considers the dynamics and integration of the team) and the engineering approach (which considers the organization and management of knowledge). The comparison is based on content analysis. The main contribution of this paper is the proposition of a new model for KT between NPD project teams, integrating the previous models so as to provide a more complete and consistent KT framework.
Keywords:
knowledge transfer; new product development; project teams; team integration
Ale Ebrahim, Nader Ahmed Shamsuddin Abdul Rashid, Salwa Hanim Taha, Zahari
Issue Date:
7-Jun-2012
Citation:
[Journal:] Scientific Research and Essay [ISSN:] 1992-2248 [Publisher:] Academic Journals [Place:] Nairobi [Volume:] 7 [Issue:] 21 [Pages:] 1971-1985 [DOI/URN:] doi:10.5897/SRE10.1005
Abstract:
At present, the existing literature shows that the factors which influence the effectiveness of virtual teams for new product development are still ambiguous. To address this problem, a research design was developed, which includes detailed literature review, preliminary model and field survey. From literature review, the factors which influence the effectiveness of virtual teams are identified and these factors are modified using a field survey. The relationship between knowledge workers (people), process and technology in virtual teams is explored in this study. The results of the study suggest that technology and process are tightly correlated and need to be considered early in virtual teams. The use of software as a service, web solution, report generator and tracking system should be incorporated for effectiveness virtual teams.
Subjects:
Virtual teams collaboration questionnaires cross-functional teams integration performance product development. communication
Firms make increasingly use of independent professional teams, i.e. teams that are staffed with self-employed experts with high levels of entrepreneurial orientation. As independent professional teams are regularly self-managed, they rely on all team members sharing leadership responsibilities. Existing theory on shared leadership silently assumes that team members always welcome influence by their fellow team members. However, we argue that independent professionals make conscious decisions regarding whether or not to adhere to other team members’ influence attempts. According to social exchange theory, individual behavior is contingent on rewarding actions from others. In this vein, adherence to social influence by other team members has to be seen as rewarding for followership to occur. Applying social exchange theory, we thus point to the importance of taking a leader, a follower and a relationship perspective to understanding shared leadership effectiveness (i.e. actual social influence) in independent professional teams. From a leader-perspective, it is perceived responsibility for team outcomes driving individual influence attempts. From a follower-perspective, on the other hand, it is the appreciation of such attempts leading to their acceptance. Jointly, influence attempts and influence acceptance increase shared leadership effectiveness. Finally, from a relationship-perspective, there are three stages of relationship quality development, i.e. calculus-, knowledge-, and identification-based relationship that contribute to shared leadership effectiveness.
Highlights
► Independent professionals are a new form of collaboration in many enterprises. ► Leadership in this field has focused on leader-centered approaches. ► Team-based approaches, such as shared leadership are new in the field. ► Applying social exchange theory, we show how and why independent professionals engage in shared leadership behavior.
MARTIN HOEGL (MBA, Washington State Univ.; Ph.D., Univ. of Karlsruhe, Germany; Habilitation, Technical University of Berlin, Germany) is Head of the Institute for Leadership and Organization at Ludwig-Maximilians-Univ. Munich. His main research interests include leadership, collaboration and innovation in organizations. Professor Hoegl has published in leading international journals including the Academy of Management Journal, Decision Sciences, Human Resource Management, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Management, Journal of Management Studies, Research Policy, and others.
MIRIAM MUETHEL (BSc in Information Management, MSc in Business Administration, PhD in Management) holds the Chair of Organizational Behavior. The 2011 Handelsblatt ranking of business professors at universities in German-speaking Europe shows Professor Muethel to be among the 100 top business researchers in the category ‘Current Research Productivity of Young Academics’. Before joining WHU, Dr. Muethel worked for over two years as a business consultant at Volkswagen in the area of international project management.
Note to users: Corrected proofs are Articles in Press that contain the authors' corrections. Final citation details, e.g., volume/issue number, publication year and page numbers, still need to be added and the text might change before final publication. Although corrected proofs do not have all bibliographic details available yet, they can already be cited using the year of online publication and the DOI , as follows: author(s), article title, journal (year), DOI. Please consult the journal's reference style for the exact appearance of these elements, abbreviation of journal names and use of punctuation. When the final article is assigned to an issue of the journal, the Article in Press version will be removed and the final version will appear in the associated published issue of the journal. The date the article was first made available online will be carried over.
Manish Gupta (Department of Management Science and Systems, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA), Sung Jin (Department of Management Science and Systems, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA), G. Lawrence Sanders (Department of Management Science and Systems, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA), Barbara A. Sherman (Buffalo State College, Buffalo, NY, USA) and Anand Simha (Department of Management Science and Systems, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, USA)
Virtual worlds have emerged as important socio-technical artifacts in contemporary society. They have enabled unique business models in the digital economy. This paper presents a rich account on how virtual worlds have transformed modern society and how they have been presented as having outstanding benefits and promise, with examples of successes and failures. The goal is to synthesize the research and demonstrate an accurate understanding of this novel artifact and its multi-facet consequences. In addition, and more importantly, this review proposes a research agenda for the information systems discipline and assists in identifying critical issues on virtual world technologies and strategic management practices. The objective of this study is to establish a foundation for research on virtual worlds.
The first step in devising the best incentives to support innovation is to investigate factors that affect the development of innovations. This article contributes to exploring such factors in small food industries in the rural areas of Tehran province, Iran. Using a census sampling method, 111 managers of 60 active firms were interviewed. The results showed that in general the level of technological innovation is low in the studied firms. The managers do not find the technological changes successful in bringing benefit to their firms. Even though correlation analysis indicated a complex association matrix between independent variables, only the firm's capacity of production was associated with technological innovation as a dependent variable. Furthermore, the regression analysis revealed that factors which influence technological innovation are the firm's age, formal research and development, fixed capital, and capacity of production. The results of this study were used to derive practical suggestions for managers and policymakers to increase technological innovation in the studied industry.
Abstract: This practice analysis focuses on a project arising from a training event provided for 15 geographically dispersed occupational therapists in England. They wanted to continue the collaborative opportunities afforded by spending time together and it was suggested that an online space might be useful. Although enthusiastic about virtual teamworking, the therapists did not engage meaningfully with the online space. This unsuccessful outcome has been analysed in relation to three of the five paradoxes inherent in virtual teams, resulting in an understanding of the reasons for the project's failure and suggestions for others undertaking a similar initiative.
Nader Ale Ebrahim, Shamsuddin Ahmed and Zahari Taha MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Abstract: In the competitive market, virtual teams represent a growing response to the need for fasting time-to-market, low-cost and rapid solutions to complex organizational problems. Virtual teams enable organizations to pool the talents and expertise of employees and non-employees by eliminating time and space barriers. Nowadays, companies are heavily investing in virtual team to enhance their performance and competitiveness. Despite virtual teams growing prevalence, relatively little is known about this new form of team. Hence the study offers an extensive literature review with definitions of virtual teams and a structured analysis of the present body of knowledge of virtual teams. First, we distinguish virtual teams from conventional teams, different types of virtual teams to identify where current knowledge applies. Second, we distinguish what is needed for effective virtual team considering the people, process and technology point of view and underlying characteristics of virtual teams and challenges they entail. Finally, we have identified and extended 12 key factors that need to be considered, and describes a methodology focused on supporting virtual team working, with a new approach that has not been specifically addressed in the existing literature and some guide line for future research extracted. Keywords:Virtual team; Literature review; Effective virtual team (search for similar items in EconPapers) JEL-codes:L11O32M12L1L7O1M11M54P42O3 (search for similar items in EconPapers) Date: 2008-12, Revised 2009-01 References:View references in EconPapersView complete reference list from CitEc CitationsView citations in EconPapers (6) Track citations by RSS feed Published in Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences 3.3(2009): pp. 2653-2669 Downloads: (external link) http://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/27001/ Related works: Working Paper: Virtual Teams: a Literature Review (2009) This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title. Export reference:BibTeXRIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link:http://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pra:mprapa:27001 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in MPRA Paper from University Library of Munich, Germany Address: Schackstr. 4, D-80539 Munich, Germany Contact information at EDIRC. Series data maintained by Ekkehart Schlicht (schlicht@lmu.de).EconPapers: Virtual teams: A literature review
Introduction Review of available literatures indicates that business leaders need to develop the skills to harness the potentials of diverse teams because they are more creative, innovative and productive as a result of their multi-dimensional perspectives (Chartered Management Institute 2012). The fast-paced global market environment underpins the imperativeness of diverse teams in organisation regardless of size and location. The benefits of diverse teams are far greater than its drawbacks. Developing the skill set to harness the full potentials of diverse teams is a must have for managers and leaders. Analysis A team is a collection of two or more people coming together for the purpose of accomplishing one or more task (Fulk, Bell and Bodie 2011). A diverse team consist of visible and non-visible differences such as sex, age, background, race, disability, personality, work style, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, education, work experience, income etc. Harnessing these differences will create a productive environment in which every employee feels valued, talents are utilised and organisational goals met (Mullins 2010: 434). However, valuing differences are easier said than done. This is where management (Getting work done through the efforts of other people – Mullins 2010) and leadership (the process of influencing others to understand and agree about what needs to be done and how to do it– Yukl 2010: 26) becomes imperative. Theory and Model Tuckman and Jensen (2012) have provided managers and leaders a model for team development which emphasizes the need for teams to go through forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning stages to enable them blend to achieve organisational goals. Benefits of diverse teams Companies that are able to recruit from the widest talent pool and can cater for the diverse needs of its staff is more likely to retain them, saving on knowledge loss and cost of recruiting new staff, improved morale and job satisfaction leading to greater productivity, enjoy positive public image in the community and marketplace, access to untapped market because diverse workforce would potentially be able to facilitate ideas and initiatives relating to new target markets and be seem as an ethical organisation (Chartered Management Institute 2012). Global companies are leveraging on talents and expertise of diverse virtual teams to reduce impact of time and space barrier to improve performance (Ebrahim, Ahmed, and Taha 2009). Drawbacks of diverse teams Despite the benefits diverse teams are prone to dysfunction because the diversity that promotes creativity and high performance can also create communication barriers. Conventional team building activities are inadequate for diverse teams because of their one-size- fits-all approach to team cohesion. This approach fails to appreciate distinct team member’s strengths and weaknesses (Polzer 2008). For virtual diverse teams, cultural, individual and personality differences create tensions and trust between team members may be difficult to build because of geographical dispersion and lack of physical interaction. Language barrier may be a major challenge which may have negative impact on interpersonal relationships and work culture within the team (Kerber and Buono 2004). Examples of diverse teams The leadership composition of Nokia group consists of thirteen diverse team members- three women, one non-white, six Finns, four Americans, one Canadian, one British and one Australian. Three were born in the ‘50s, one in the 70’s and the rest in the ‘60s. Their work experience covers Europe, North American and East Asia and their educational backgrounds include engineering, technology, psychology, law, economics and finance from a variety of institutions while the team members represent many functions (Financial Times 2012). Vodafone group uses diverse virtual work streams to execute projects in its global supply chain management (GSCM) where teams focus on initiatives relevant for success, working in joint and collaborative activity in the transformation process (Ibbott and O’Keefe 2004). Conclusion The fast-paced global market environment underpins the imperativeness of diverse teams in organisation regardless of size and location. The benefits of diverse teams are far greater than its drawbacks. Developing the skill set to harness the full potentials of diverse teams is a must have for managers and leaders. List of reference Chartered Management Institute (2012) Embracing Diversity: Guidance for managers [online] available from [27 December 2012] Ebrahim, N. A., Ahmed, S. and Taha, Z. (2009) Virtual Teams: a Literature Review. Australian Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences [online] 3(3), 2653-2669. Available from academic source complete database [2 December 2012] Financial Times (2012) Diverse teams: Financial Times Lexicon [online] available from [6 December 2012] Fulk, H. K., Bell, R.L. and Bodie, N. (2011) Team Management by Objectives: Enhancing Developing Teams’ Performance: Journal of Management Policy & Practice [online] 12(3), 17-26. Available from business source complete database [4 December 2012] Ibbott, C. and O’Keefe, R (2004) Transforming the Vodafone/Ericsson Relationship: Long Range Planning [online] 37(3), 219-237. Available from academic source complete database [2 December 2012] Kerber, K. W. and Buono, A. F. (2004) Leadership Challenges in Global Virtual Teams: Lessons from the Field: Sam advance management journal [online] 69(4), 4 – 10. Available from business source complete database [4 December 2012] Mullins, L. J. (2010) Management and Organisational Behaviour. 9th edn. Harlow: Pearson Education Polzer, J. T. (2008) Making Diverse Teams Click: Harvard Business Review [online] 86(7/8), 20 – 21. Available from business source complete database [27 December 2012] Tuckman, B. W. and Jensen, M. A. C. (2012) Stages of Small-Group Development Revisited: Group Facilitation: A Research & Applications Journal [online] 10, 43-48. Available from business source complete database [4 December 2012] Yukl, G. A. (2010) Leadership in Organizations, 7th edn. Harlow: Pearson Education Diversity and its impact on Teams | ihekwemb
Dealing with Virtual R&D Teams in New Product Development| Show Abstract | Download | The 9th Asia Pacific Industrial Engineering & Management Systems Conference and the 11th Asia Pacific Regional Meeting of the International Foundation for Production Research, December 3-5, 2008, Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia Accepted Paper Series
Ale Ebrahim, Nader
University of Malaya - Department of Engineering Design and Manufacture, Faculty of Engineering
If you were to pick one word that would describe the single most important mandate for a manager of virtual teams what would it be? There are plenty of choices. Some would choose words relating to relationships and community. Others would side with cultural sensitivity or efficiency. For me, the choice is easy: overcommunicate. (By the way, it’s a valid single word. I looked it up! ) Scores of papers have been written about how important communication is for teams in general; in fact, for relationships in general. But this importance soars as soon as the participants are separated by time, culture, and distance. If there is a situation where it would be important to communicate with a team, then overcommunicate if it is a virtual team. And once you are done overcommunicating then overcommunicate some more. Overcommunicate in this case isn’t just about time and volume. It is also about how you interact with the members of the team. Here are five ideas that will help you overcommunicate: 1. Repeat in different forms - When a message is important it should be delivered in several different forms. This might include sending content in an email, posting it on a team website, and then sending and posting the same message in video form. After that the leader might present the information using video conferencing followed by individual team meetings where the individual managers present the same message. Does this seem like a bit much to you? It isn’t. Overcommunicate. Just like physical transmissions fade with increasing distance, human message also tend to get lost along the way. If you have a large team and do all the kinds of things I’ve noted above then the odds are the someone will still miss the message.
2. Be overly explicit and overly clear - One of the biggest killers in virtual team execution is misunderstanding. I happen to wear hearing aids. You’d think that my biggest problem is that I don’t hear things. It isn’t. The biggest problem is that occasionally I hear things that someone didn’t say. Misunderstanding something that you think you heard correctly is a killer problem. Simple misunderstanding can cause huge problems in a virtual team. This is especially true because the separation of the team members often allows a misunderstanding to remain in place for much longer than it would for a local team. To avoid misunderstanding you should overcommunicate by making sure that all important interactions are very clear and explicit, even if the result sounds a little odd to you. Some people resist doing this because they feel that the resulting language is overlay formal or even unfriendly. Others resist because they think that it is insulting to their teammates by assuming that they are “not that bright.” The reality is that it isn’t unfriendly or insulting. It is designed simply to make sure that no misunderstanding occur.
3. Avoid communication-killing cultural references - Everyone knows that you should be careful to avoid any comments that could be offense as it relates to race, culture, religion, etc. That isn’t really what I have in mind here. What I’m thinking of here are comments or references that can only be fully understood by someone who is very familiar with your cultural base. The classic example is the use of sports analogies. To my fellow Americans: overcommunicate by overavoiding all baseball analogies. I say that in part because one of the things I’ve learned by traveling to almost 90 countries is that people all over the world are driven crazy by Americans use of baseball analogies. “You’re in the bottom on the ninth with two down” may communicate a lot to your fellow New Yorker but may not mean as much to someone from Uzbekistan. Suppose you hear someone say, “It’s just like launching the attacker from the tramp.” That might mean a lot to a Belgian who plays a lot of Bossaball (http://www.bossaballsports.com/) but probably not to the rest of us. Saying, “you’re up the bog without your snorkel” may be very clear to those at the bog snorkelling championships in Wales (http://tinyurl.com/5pahbc) but it’s not very universal. If you happen to be using illustrations based on extreme ironing (http://tinyurl.com/c8l2yab) then you should probably not bother to overcommunicate. You should probably just give it up and find another line of work.
4. Select a victim or two for each meeting - For each meeting or interaction select one or two team members that you plan to highlight during the conversation. Be sure to specifically ask them to give their input. There are some cases where this will make the “victim” feel uncomfortable, but if simply ask for their opinion most will appreciate it, even if they decline to share an opinion. Follow up after the meeting by writing them an email or giving them a call to thank them for their input and to comment on some of their input. The point here is to establish clear connection to a specific member of the team. At the next meeting choose a different victim. After even a few meetings you will begin to feel much more connected to the team on the other end and communication will be much more effective in the future. One note of caution: only do this if you are doing it sincerely. Faking interest is both disingenuous and ineffective.
5. Demonstrate respect of culture - One of the most important areas where you can overcommunicate is in regard to demonstrating respect for culture and differences. If you are on a team with members from a location and culture that is very much different from your own then it is important to go out of your way to demonstrate true respect for that culture. This is especially important if the other culture is located at what is thought of as the “distant” office and you are located at the “home” office. But here’s a hard question: HOW, exactly, do you demonstrate respect? The answer is that you show respect by demonstrating changed behavior. We’re not talking about giant behavioral changes here (for example, going from a bank robber to a model citizen). We’re talking tiny little observable signs that say that you care enough about someone’s culture to take the time to learn something about it and to become at least a little part of it. That might mean learning to pronounce “unusual” names correctly. It might mean learning at least a few words in the language and going out of your way to use them. It might mean learning the very basic history of a country and perhaps learning to recognize the three most important national heroes.
All of this is a part of “overcommunicating” because it isn’t something that most people do naturally. In many of these cases you have to go out of your way and do things that may not feel natural. There will be situations that feel over-the-top and downright weird. But in the end you need to think of yourself as an actor in a live play rather than as an actor in a film. All actors have to communicate well – just like all members of teams need to learn to communicate well. But if you an actor playing live on a large stage to a big audience you need to exaggerate your facial expressions and movements – to overact – if want the people in the cheap seats to share in the show. In the same way, you need to consciously overcommunicate if you want your virtual team to be successful. One last comment about all of this “learning to communicate and respect cultures.” I’ve had this discussion with quite a few people and I enjoy listening to the reactions. Some people enjoy working with global virtual teams in part because it allows them to meet amazing people from all over the world and to learn at least a little bit about each one. They find this to be interesting because they have a basic curiosity about people and how they live in different places in the world. If you aren’t one of those people then what I’ve written here may drive you crazy. It can become very tiring and very annoying. If you find that you HATE doing all this stuff, and the prospect of having to learn a few words of Cantonese drives you up a wall that isn’t really a crime. But it probably does mean then you aren’t in the right job. In this case you probably really should quit and go home – and start looking to find a better fit that you would enjoy much more. For those who do enjoy it, go out and be that actor on a live stage – and overcommunicate to make sure that everyone in every seat can see the whole show.
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