Virtual teams, whose
members may be freaged in interdependent tasks while geographically
dispersed, are highly prevalent workgroups within organizations today.
Because these global virtual teams must rely on technology to fulfill
team goals across time and space, they may warrant unique meeting styles
and structure. This chapter reviews the literature on virtual team
meetings, providing evidence regarding the factors that may aid in the
facilitation of such meetings based on existing research, and offers
practitioners and professionals guidelines for successfully facilitating
virtual team meetings. Drawing on previous meeting and global virtual
team research, we make the following recommendations: Select a
facilitator, select appropriate information and communication
technology, set meeting norms, set and reinforce team roles, acknowledge
time zone and cultural differences, and follow up with action items. ©
Cambridge University Press 2015.