After I gave my final exam this week, one of my students came up to me and said that one of his takeaways from my course was his discovery of the Internet as a tool for learning. I use the videos and latest news posted on the Internet to make my courses more relevant and to also show how the… Read more →
According to Harvard’s Richard Hackman, a leading expert on teams, there is a widespread belief that teams make us more productive and creative and that they are the best way to get a job done. In a May 2009 Harvard Business Review interview, Professor Hackman cautions us that problems with coordination, motivation, and competition often cause a team to perform… Read more →
Surinder and I are currently conducting research on the use of online media such as virtual worlds for education and training. In my readings I came across an interesting article about the perceptions of social presence, or the feeling of being with others in an online environment, and perceived learning and satisfaction in an online course. In this study,… Read more →
The Washington Post recently featured an article about how the new system upgrades for Microsoft and Apple (due out likely towards the end of the year in time for the holidays) might impact those in the market for new computers. Although the article is directed at individual consumers performing “typical” tasks, businesses and those working on virtual teams might… Read more →
We have said often and heard from others that maintaining positive social communication and relationships and creating opportunities for socialization are important for effective and satisfying work in virtual teams (e.g. see New Year Resolution: Be Happy ; Spread Your Virtual Smile, Really). Even though team members are often communicating over geographical distances, personal interaction and forming bonds with distant… Read more →
The April 2009 issue of the Communications of the ACM, a highly respected journal, published an article by Jay F. Nunanamker, Bruce A. Reining, and Robert O. Briggs on ‘Principles for Effective Virtual Teamwork.’ The authors derived these principles from their decade long experience of working with hundreds of virtual teams. I present these principles and also provide links to… Read more →
A while back, Betsy blogged about paradoxes in virtual work. Yesterday’s NY Times had an interesting article that illustrates another paradox. Basically, virtual work can both decrease and increase visibility. Since virtual workers can be located anywhere, they are not visible to their managers. However, since virtual workers conduct a significant part of their work on or via information and… Read more →
Second Life has been in the news again recently. Despite recent changes in upper management and a recent stagnation in new users, the popular virtual world seems to be on an upswing again. Second Life is looking to corporate participation as a key element in their future business (see this CNET article).
Last week’s Time had an article on how President Obama is using the science of change to transform the country. Specifically, President Obama and his economic team are relying on findings in behavioral economics to make people break old habits and adopt behaviors that are better for them and society. Unlike traditional economics which assumes that human rationality, self-interest, and… Read more →