Overview of Virtual Collaboration

Virtual Collaboration has far- reaching benefits Employee to Employee Employee to Employee R&D – Insights on regulatory processes, global formulations R&D – Insights on regulatory processes, global formulations Marketing – campaigns and promotions that worked well, product launch best practices Marketing – campaigns and promotions that worked well, product launch best practices Supply Chain – global sourcing insights Supply Chain – global sourcing insights Employee to Consumer Employee to Consumer Gain product insights and learn wants Gain product insights and learn wants Build brand loyalty through relationships Build brand loyalty through relationships Employee to Customer Employee to Customer Gain insights on promotions, special packs Gain insights on promotions, special packs Build loyalty through relationships Build loyalty through relationships

Some measurable results Shorter product/project cycle times Shorter product/project cycle times Greater leverage of existing intellectual capital Greater leverage of existing intellectual capital More successful promotions More successful promotions Decreased travel costs Decreased travel costs Increased productivity and organization effectiveness Increased productivity and organization effectiveness

Why We Really Need to Collaborate Virtually From Industrial Age to Information Age Me, Inc. Large companies Competitive advantage is gained by creating knowledge: -Intellectual property -Best practices -Process improvements -Trained or skilled workers (static) Independent contractors Competitive advantage is gained by creating optimal connections: -Networks -Teams or communities -Collaboration -Adaptable, self-learning workers (dynamic)

How do people collaborate? People share essentially two types of knowledge: Tacit knowledge – “what the knower knows, derived from experience, embodying beliefs and values” e.g., anecdotes, advice, intuition, Tacit knowledge – “what the knower knows, derived from experience, embodying beliefs and values” e.g., anecdotes, advice, intuition, Explicit knowledge – “represented by an artifact created with the goal of communicating with others”, e.g., books, documents, videos. Explicit knowledge – “represented by an artifact created with the goal of communicating with others”, e.g., books, documents, videos.

People have various definitions of what virtual collaboration means TacitTacitExplicitExplicit Conversations Meetings Q & A Interviewing Documenting Recording Library Search Archives Reading Training Watching Collaboration Knowledge Management This is often referred to as collaboration This is often considered knowledge management

Effective Collaboration Requires Balancing these Four aspects TacitExplicit Building relationships enables trust which enables learning from others Capturing experiences allows for easier dissemination and creates a public memory Finding artifacts allows access to multitudes of experience and expertise Learning is the process of internalizing and applying others’ experiences

Different tools support these processes TacitTacitExplicitExplicit Web conference Twitter Instant Messaging Social networks Web conference Social networks Web drives Document flow mgr Website Portal Web drive Shared drive Web conference eLearning Social networks Collaboration Knowledge Management

Some of the Tools Available Tacit Explicit

Keys to Successful Virtual Collaboration Explicit Tacit Attention Management - Easy to access - Easy to search - Easy to use (help available) - Alert to important updates Maintenance - Relevant, updated content - Version tracking - Archiving & history - Clean up Communications - Formal process & plan - Considers cultural differences - Impromptu methods - Scheduled - Monitored Relationship Building - Team dynamics - Facilitated discussions - Sub teams - Presence monitoring - Feedback Clear Mission and Purpose Shared Work Space Virtual Meetings

How do you know what to use? 1. Clearly define the mission and objectives of your team or project, including deliverables. 2. Envision how your team will work together. 3. Determine what types of knowledge need to be shared. 4. Determine how decisions will be made. 5. Choose the tools to support the processes above. 6. Define the practices and habits for using the tools and working together!

How we use Tools on our team If you want to…. Consider these tools… Share documents Shared drive, website, eRoom Edit documents collaboratively eRoom, Office change tracking Hold real-time discussions Outlook, Instant Messaging, telephone, eRoom chat Hold online discussions (asynchronous) eRoom, Outlook Hold real-time meetings NetMeeting, teleconference, WebEx, videoconference, Centra Hold and record meetings for later playback Centra Use voting or polls Outlook, eRoom

Typical Collaboration Maturity Document Posting Information Sharing Collaborating on Documents Decision Making High Performing Virtual Teams Technical Issues must be overcome Behavior Issues must be overcome

Tips for Leading a Virtual Team 1. Establish with your team your communication plan and practices (when, how). Consider cultural and time zone differences. 2. Maintain focus on the team’s mission and goals. Identify quick actions that can benefit the members. 3. Help team members connect with each other and frequently connect with them. 4. Role-model the use of technology for communication and collaboration. 5. Establish a process for recording and archiving the team’s memory. 6. Prepare team members for virtual work challenges. 7. Seek frequent feedback on what is working well and what can be improved.

In other words - Process, Process, Process Meeting Management Meeting Management Meeting Roles and Responsibilities Meeting Roles and Responsibilities Team Building and Dynamics Team Building and Dynamics Project Management Project Management Facilitation Facilitation Responsibility Charting Responsibility Charting Good process management is even more important for a virtual team than a face-to-face team.

Required Roles & Responsibilities Leader Advocate the use of collaboration tools Seek and implement best practices Collect feedback on improvements Administrator Update information Perform housekeeping Enforce best practices Help Offer training and ongoing support to help users use tools effectively IT Support: -Local-Global Resolve hardware and local network issues Resolve application issues and coordinate network issues

Tips for Team Members 1. Schedule time for team collaboration and visiting the web share on your calendar. 2. Keep the web share portal open on your desktop so that team members can reach you. 3. Use web share alerts to notify others of new files and discussions, rather than Use version or change tracking to maintain only one version of each document. 5. Add links to your portal for easy access. Success Lies in the Team’s Daily Work Habits

What to Expect The technology will not work perfectly the first time. The technology will not work perfectly the first time. If you build it, they don’t always come. If you build it, they don’t always come. It takes about 20 days to create or break a habit. It takes about 20 days to create or break a habit.

Adoption Quick Hit Use tools in between face-to-face meetings either as a substitute for a meeting or to accelerate meeting progress. Examples: Use tools in between face-to-face meetings either as a substitute for a meeting or to accelerate meeting progress. Examples: Get input on documents before meeting Get input on documents before meeting Use discussions to surface issues Use discussions to surface issues Use polls to gauge consensus on decisions Use polls to gauge consensus on decisions Use webconferencing for every other meeting Use webconferencing for every other meeting