SHRM Survey Findings: Virtual Teams July 13, 2012

Definitions Virtual teams: A group of individuals who work across time, space and organizational boundaries and interact primarily through electronic communications. Project teams: Temporary teams whose members belong to different groups or functions and are assigned activities for the same project. Action teams: Teams brought together for brief performance events that require improvisation and performance in unpredictable, novel environments and circumstances. Service teams: Teams that use technology to generate products or services in assembly/manufacturing, maintenance, construction, mining, commercial airlines, sales and other industries. Quality control teams: Teams that identify products, services or processes that do not reach an organization’s minimum specified standards of quality. Top management teams: Teams of individuals at the highest level of organizational management who have the day-to-day responsibilities of strategy/mission planning.

Key Findings Are organizations using virtual teams? Almost one-half of organizations (46%) use virtual teams in their workplace. Organizations with multinational operations are more than twice as likely (66%) to use virtual teams compared with organizations with U.S.-based operations (28%). Why do organizations use virtual teams? Of organizations that use virtual teams, approximately one-half use them to include talent in different geographic locations (53%) and to boost collaboration among employees in different geographic locations (49%). Other reasons for using virtual teams include improving productivity (39%), minimizing costs for travel (39%), and collaborating more across global business units because work projects are becoming more global (37%). What are the most successful teamwork behaviors resulting from the use of virtual teams? Nearly three-quarters of organizations (72%) indicated that brainstorming solutions for problems or issues was the most successful behavior for virtual teams, followed by setting goals for team initiatives or projects (68%) and developing plans for team initiatives or projects (63%). What are the obstacles that prevent virtual teams from being successful? About one-half of organizations reported that building team relations (51%) and time differences (49%) were the top challenges for successful virtual teams. Organizations also indicated that additional challenges to using virtual teams were distribution of work (32%), differences in cultural norms (26%) and leadership of these types of teams (25%).

Does your organization use virtual teams? Note: n = 335. Respondents who answered “Don’t know” were excluded from this analysis.

Does your organization use virtual teams? Comparisons by organization sector Publicly owned for-profit and privately owned for-profit organizations are more likely than government agencies to use virtual teams. Comparisons by Organization Sector Publicly owned for-profit (50%) Privately owned for-profit (46%) > Government agencies (9%) Comparisons by organization operation type Organizations with multinational operations are more likely than organizations with U.S.-based operations to use virtual teams. Comparisons by Organization Sector Multinational operations (66%) > U.S.-based operations only (28%) Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.

Why does your organization use virtual teams? Percentage To include talent in different geographic locations 53% To boost collaboration among employees in different geographic locations 49% To improve productivity (i.e., spend less time on commuting/travel) 39% To minimize costs for travel Work projects are becoming more global (i.e., greater need for collaboration across global business units) 37% To allow for greater flexibility for employees 28% Emerging technological advancements (i.e., improved technology that makes virtual work easier) 26% Other 5% Note: n = 137. Only respondents whose organizations use virtual teams were asked this question. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.

Why does your organization use virtual teams? Comparisons by organization operation type Organizations with multinational operations are more likely than organizations with U.S.-based operations to use virtual teams because their work projects are becoming more global (i.e., greater need for collaboration across global business units). Comparisons by Organization Sector Multinational operations (53%) > U.S.-based operations only (23%) Organizations with U.S.-based operations are more likely than organizations with multinational operations to use virtual teams to improve productivity (i.e., spending less time on commuting/travel). Comparisons by Organization Sector U.S.-based operations only (54%) > Multinational operations (26%) Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.

Other capacities (e.g., conference calls, training) 8% Other teams* 7% For what formal or informal capacities does your organization use virtual teams? Percentage Project teams 79% Top management teams 52% Action teams 47% Service teams 37% Quality control teams 25% Other capacities (e.g., conference calls, training) 8% Other teams* 7% Do not use virtual teams in any of the above capacities 1% Note: n = 137. Only respondents whose organizations use virtual teams were asked this question. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options. An asterisk (*) indicates that this response option was developed from open-ended responses.

What are the most successful behaviors for virtual and on-site/traditional face-to-face teams in your organization? Note: n = 112. Only respondents whose organizations use virtual teams were asked this question. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options. Respondents were asked to select the top five options.

Comparisons by Organization Sector Comparisons by Organization Sector What are the most successful behaviors for on-site/traditional face-to-face teams in your organization? Comparisons by organization operation type Organizations with U.S.-based operations are more likely than organizations with multinational operations to indicate monitoring the performance of other team members as one of the most successful behaviors for on-site/traditional face-to-face teams in their organization. Comparisons by Organization Sector U.S.-based operations only (32%) > Multinational operations (15%) Organizations with U.S.-based operations are more likely than organizations with multinational operations to indicate brainstorming solutions for problems or solutions as one of the most successful behaviors for on-site/traditional face-to-face teams in their organization. Comparisons by Organization Sector U.S.-based operations only (61%) > Multinational operations (40%) Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.

What are the most challenging behaviors for virtual and on-site/traditional face-to-face teams in your organization? Note: n = 112. Only respondents whose organizations use virtual teams were asked this question. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options. Respondents were asked to select the top five options.

Comparisons by Organization Sector What are the most challenging behaviors for virtual teams in your organization? Comparisons by organization operation type Organizations with multinational operations are more likely than organizations with U.S.-based operations to indicate maintaining team morale during initiatives or projects as one of the most challenging behaviors for virtual teams in their organization. Comparisons by Organization Sector U.S.-based operations only (54%) > Multinational operations (34%) Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.

What are the top challenges to the success of virtual teams in your organization? Note: n = 106. Only respondents whose organizations use virtual teams were asked this question. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.

Comparisons by Organization Sector What are the top challenges to the success of virtual teams in your organization? Comparisons by organization operation type Organizations with multinational operations are more likely than organizations with U.S.-based operations to indicate time difference as a top challenge to the success of virtual teams in their organization. Comparisons by Organization Sector Multinational operations (60%) > U.S.-based operations only (38%) Note: Only statistically significant differences are shown.

Demographics: Organization Sector Note: n = 296. Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.

Demographics: Organization Staff Size

Demographics: Organization Industry Percentage Health care and social assistance 18% Educational services 17% Finance and insurance 13% Manufacturing 11% Public administration 9% Professional, scientific and technical services 8% Transportation and warehousing 6% Accommodation and food services Arts, entertainment and recreation 5% Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services 4% Information, publishing industries 3% Note: n = 301. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.

Demographics: Organization Industry (continued) Percentage Construction of buildings; heavy and civil engineering construction; specialty trade contractors 3% Retail trade Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting 2% Religious, grant-making, civic, professional and similar organizations Utilities Wholesale trade Repair and maintenance Real estate, rental and leasing 1% Mining Management of companies and enterprises Personal and laundry services Note: n = 301. Percentages do not equal 100% due to multiple response options.

Demographics: Other Does your organization have U.S.-based operations (business units) only, or does it operate multinationally? Is your organization a single-unit organization or a multi-unit organization? Single-unit organization: An organization in which the location and the organization are one and the same. 21% Multi-unit organization: An organization that has more than one location. 79% U.S.-based operations only 73% Multinational operations 27% n = 307 n = 320 What is the HR department/function for which you responded throughout this survey? For multi-unit organizations, are HR policies and practices determined by the multi-unit corporate headquarters, by each work location, or by both? Corporate (companywide) 68% Business unit/division 18% Facility/location 14% Multi-unit headquarters determines HR policies and practices. 50% Each work location determines HR policies and practices. 2% A combination of both the work location and the multi-unit headquarters determines HR policies and practices. 47% n = 252 n = 251 Note: Percentages may not total 100% due to rounding.

SHRM Survey Findings: Virtual Teams Methodology Response rate = 13% Sample composed of 379 randomly selected HR professionals from organizations with 500 or more employees. Margin of error +/- 5% Survey fielded December 8, 2011 – January 3, 2012 For more poll findings, visit www.shrm.org/surveys Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/SHRM_Research Project leaders: David Geller, SHRM Knowledge Development Christina Lee, SHRM Research Project contributors: Alexander Alonso, Ph.D., SPHR, director, SHRM HR Thought Leadership Mark Schmit, Ph.D., SPHR, vice president, SHRM Research Evren Esen, manager, SHRM Research Copy Editor: Katya Scanlan, SHRM Knowledge Center