What: Computerworld article on telecommuting Posts to Which it is Related: Confessions of a Telecommuter, So You Think You’d Like to Telecommute? Bottom Line: This article is about how to be aware of and avoid some possible problems with implementing a plan for telecommuting. In order to avoid sending workers out into the world of telecommuting without the proper tools,… Read more →
A project leader recently asked me how to promote cooperation among members of his virtual team who are at different locations. This is a common issue that virtual team leaders struggle with. Virtual teams often consist of subgroups of team members located in separate locations. This division of team members can give rise to social categorization within the team (i.e., those who… Read more →
What: David Pogue’s NY Times Blog Post on basic technology tips. Posts to Which it is Related: Improving Virtual Team Leadership Using Technology Bottom Line: A significant contributor to a virtual team’s success is members’ familiarity with technology. Many virtual team leaders tend to assume, oftentimes inaccurately, that team members possess basic computer skills which would allow them and the… Read more →
This week I read an interesting research article (Perceived Proximity in Virtual Work: Explaining the Paradox of Far-but-Close) that talked about perceived proximity. The authors (Wilson, O’Leary, Metiu, and Jett) define perceived proximity as two or more individuals having the feeling of being close, regardless of physical distance between them. Often, one assumes that physical proximity and perceived proximity are highly correlated, but the… Read more →
What: Study that showed that people are prone to lying more in email than through written communication Posts to Which It Is Related: The Reason Why Email Should Not Be Used For Collaboration, Freeing Yourself From Email Bottom Line: A study conducted by Rutgers and DePaul Universities studied how email affected communications among 48 graduate students. Students were given… Read more →
The WSJ published an interesting article on Monday (September 29, 2008) about Preston Fosback, a 16-year old, who engaged people all over the world to monitor, via the Internet, the Obama-Biden sign outside his front yard to make sure it wasn’t stolen. The people who monitor the sign essentially form a virtual community or a virtual group who are unlikely to ever… Read more →
What: Information Week article about the evolution of Second Life. Posts To Which It Is Related: Bottom Line: This is a great article for the look it takes at the business side and the evolution of Second Life. Despite the “hype bubble” and its subsequent burst, Second Life is intriguing because of its novelty and potential. Perhaps figuring out how to make… Read more →
Every once in a while, you come across something that defies the conventional wisdom that you need face-to-face contact to build strong social relationships (see a recent article that relies on this wisdom). A New York Times article “After Blogger’s Plane Crash, Virtual Becomes Personal” that was published on September 6, 2008 is one such item. In this post, I… Read more →
What: NYTimes article about Peek, an email-only mobile device. Posts To Which It Is Related: Time to Think Differently About Collaboration in Virtual Worlds Bottom Line: This article is mostly a review of Peek, a mobile device that is relatively limited since it only does no-frills email. However, what’s more interesting than the review is the author’s mention of a… Read more →
What: Researchers have found that racial bias exists in virtual worlds according to an article in ITNews Posts To Which It Is Related: The Mind Has A Body Of Its Own Bottom Line: A study done in the virtual world There.com suggests that the psychological implications of race in the real world also impact the virtual space. When a study… Read more →