A framework for improving the effectiveness of distributed project teams

Abstract

Introduction: The focus of this work is on improving the effectiveness of distributed project teams - adopting a widely accepted definition of team as described in "Virtual Teams" as: "A team is a collection of individuals who are interdependent in their tasks, who share responsibility for outcomes, who see themselves and who are seen by others as an intact social entity embedded in one or more larger social systems, and who manage their relationship across organizational boundaries.' (Cohen & Bailey, 1997, p. 241). This definition is general enough to capture traditional as well as virtual teams while precisely identifying the defining features of a team: its unity of purpose, its identity as a social structure, and its members' shared responsibility for outcomes." (Powell et al., 2004).