You can’t open up a business magazine without reading about some new collaborative software launch, or new virtual team technology for video conferencing, screen sharing, file sharing, or online project management – all designed to help teams of employees in remote locations work effectively together.

Companies are dazzled by the technological advances and invariably purchase the new collaborative toys without hesitation.

And maybe all those new technologies do exactly what they say they’ll do. But it’s a little like putting the cart before the horse.

It might be wiser to first take a look at the best practices of the most effective virtual teams. What are the secrets to their success? What are their challenges? What new skills and behaviors are needed for virtual teams that teams in one location never had to think about? How important is face-to-face time in virtual team effectiveness?

The problem is that this research does not currently exist. Even though the use of virtual teams has increased over 800% in the past 5 years, there is no formal research data available to understand how effectively they operate. And yet companies – fueled by cost savings, advances in technology and increased globalization – continue to create virtual teams and count on them to achieve significant business results.

We want to close this gap. We want organizations to be able to make smart business decisions. And we want you to be a part of it

In our 10 minute online survey, we are asking the question – what are the key qualities of an effective virtual team and what challenges are holding them back? For the purposes of this research, a virtual team is defined as a group of individuals who interact through interdependent tasks guided by a common goal and who work across time, space, and organizational boundaries with their work supported by communication technologies.

Please take 10 minutes to support this valuable research. The survey will be open for a limited time, so please click here today.