Reference no: EM132289486
Company Apex is a mid-size international agricultural company that uses virtual global teams. The company is headquartered in the Midwest of the United States but has operations located in Guam, Japan, and Italy. The company has experienced steady growth within the last 10 years and is on track to continue that growth for the next 10-20 years. The vice president of international operations is a newly appointed woman, aged 35, with 10 years of experience working in the agriculture industry and 5 years in the international field. The company has decided there is a need to use virtual global teams but has encountered two challenges – communication and access.
Challenge A: Communication is a challenge in traditional agile environments, but that challenge is made even more difficult among distributed teams. The primary reason is that distributed teams are limited in their communication channels. For example, while co-located teams face each other in a stand-up meeting, distributed teams often face a speakerphone. Given that so much of communication is nonverbal, the distributed teams are disadvantaged by their circumstances. Because of this lack of communication, the relationships are hindered, and members have not developed the trust required to speak sincerely during meetings.
Evaluate Challenge A and any underlying issues. Devise a plan to solve all issues from a leadership perspective.
Challenge B: A critical issue for teams distributed across time zones is having access to each other with regards to core hours and communication tools. Core hours can be tricky—the greater the time differential, the more difficult the effort. Offshore teams that cannot establish overlapping hours will likely have a lower average velocity. By way of example, just the act of taking on additional tasks becomes a one-day event. Members in different areas are beginning to complain that other members are not “pulling their weight” in a timely manner.
Assess Challenge B for the main challenge and any underlying issues. Devise a solution(s) for all issues.