A day in your office
Think about your workplace (if you are not part of a virtual team) and make a list of all the different interactions you have with different people in the office. Make a note of who, where, why, when/how often. These can be face-to-face interactions or phone, mail etc interactions.
e.g.
Phone
Calls to client A/ client B etc most days
Internal calls to department X, Y and Z daily
Calls to the staff canteen to order lunch

Face to face
Weekly update meetings with senior management
Team briefings daily
John and Marion for lunch on Thursdays
Jackie from accounts at least once a week
Whoever happens to be in the coffee room when I’m on a break
Staff social events – 3 or 4 times a year

Mail
Internal emails to about 20 different people regularly
Clients X, Y and Z on a regular basis via email and fax

etc etc etc
These interactions would not be possible in a virtual team.
Chatting with colleagues from different departments in my coffee break at the canteen.
Lunch with John and Marion
Calls to staff canteen
Daily team briefings
Staff parties
How could each of the following communication options help with the difficulties associated with virtual teams listed below?

e-mail                project website       video conferencing   phone conference     online forum

Communicating across time zones

Impossible to meet face to face

Isolation of team members

Lack of community feeling

e.g. E-mail is obviously great for communicating across time zones, although if you want some thing more immediate you might need to call a video conference to get everyone to meet at the same time in virtually the same place.....

 

      A project website allows team members to access a variety of different types of information about the organisation and the project itself. It allows for some social aspects e.g. a section on staff profiles with photos and details about each person – not just work info. This makes people feel part of a team and not so isolated.

      Phone conferencing works well if a video conference is not possible to set up and allows people to interact with all other team members in real time. Hearing other people’s voices also helps to bring people closer together and not feel so isolated.

      The community aspect can be developed on a website and/or a project online forum. This allows people to post messages to each other. Noticeboards can be set up and  social discussion sections can allow people to ‘chat’

Problems

 

[3.01] I seem to be getting very different responses from team members in different countries about the work schedules. Some seem perfectly fine but others seem quite unhappy even a little angry.

Advice B

[3.02] The team members don’t really seem to know each other very well. They don’t have much information about each other apart from job titles and things like that

Advice F

[3.03] I’ve got one guy who started off well but is missing deadlines all the time. What can I do?

Advice E

[3.04] I really need to see everyone to discuss an important development but its impossible to fly everyone over here for a meeting.

Advice D

[3.05] I keep getting the same work from two different people. I don’t understand why?

Advice C

[3.06] I have to create a virtual team for a new project. Any tips on how to get started?

Advice A

                       identify yourself          

Voice mail message checklist

 

A

Be concise – stick to the point and don’t add lots of 4.01unnecessary information. If necessary, write a script before you call to help you.

B

You are leaving a message not having a conversation. Keep it simple and clear but don’t 4.02 leave out any important details.

C

Don’t forget to leave your phone number. It 4.03 saves time and effort for the receiver – and they may not have it anyway!

D

Speak 4.04 slowly and clearly especially when you have to give important details such as statistics or phone numbers. Spell names if necessary.

E

Try to be as 4.05 natural as possible. Don’t hesitate or leave long pauses.

 

F

Make sure you leave 4.06 contact details  if you expect to be called back. This should include time/day, place (e.g. home/office) as well as the number.

G

4.07 Keep a copy of any important phone messages you receive just as you would with important e-mails.

H

Don’t say any more than you need to. Remember your message is being 4.08 recorded!

 

I

Always 4.09 identify yourself. Seems obvious but don’t forget to say who you are on your message. The receiver needs to know and may not recognise your voice.
Read the transcripts of some voice mail messages below and decide which of the tips in the previous activity the speaker did not follow.

4.10

{...by the way did you hear about John at XYZ Computers? He’s been sacked.} Anyway, back to business, could you send me the report by next Tuesday?

A – unnecessary information

4.11

Hi, Susan here. Could you give Tom Kaczynski, the Sales Manager at Abbot Recordings, a phone on 981 3456? Thanks.

D – spell unfamiliar names

4.12

Erm...well.........Ok, right, John here, erm, ...................... Could you....I mean when you get back....could you phone me at home on erm..............567 4321?

E – Not very natural, very hesitant, lots of pauses

4.13

Hi Kalpana, since we haven’t met yet would you like to meet next week to discuss the new training programme? Call me on 874 9992. Thanks.

I – identify yourself!

4.14

Marco, it’s Janice here. Please call me.

 

F – contact details
Now re-word each example to make it more appropriate.

4.15

e.g. Hi Val, Andrew here. Just wanted to remind you about the Scott account. Could you send me the report by next Tuesday?

4.16

e.g.
Hi, Susan here. Could you give Tom Kaczynski, that’s K-A-C-Z-Y-N-S-K-I, the Sales Manager at Abbot Recordings, a phone on 981 3456? Thanks.

4.17

 Hi Barry, John here. Could you give me a phone on 567 4321 when you get back. Thanks.

4.18

Hi Kalpana, this is Manda Green from HR. Since we haven’t met yet, would you like to meet next week to discuss the new training programme? Call me on 874 9992. Thanks.

4.19

Marco, it’s Janice here. Please call me. Try me at home on 561 7456 or on my mobile 981112349876. Bye, speak to you later.
Read the statements about writing effective e-mails and decide if they are true or false.

 

T/F

5.01

Use abbreviations to save time and space.       [False. Only use abbreviations if you are 100%                                                                     sure they will be understood by the receiver]

F

5.02

Don’t leave the subject line (Re: ) blank.
For tracking purposes it’s important also some people will delete emails with no subject as potential spam

T

5.03

CAPITAL letters and exclamation marks are good for highlighting important details.
NO IT LOOKS LIKE YOU ARE SHOUTING!!!!

F

5.04

Always reply to an e-mail instantly.
No. Sometimes you need to consider your response carefully. However, don’t leave it too long before replying. If you need time to think of an appropriate response, send a courtesy email thanking the sender for their message and saying you will get back to them soon.

F

5.05

Don’t write long e-mails; use attachments for lengthy explanations, statistics or graphs.
Yes. You can say much more in an attachment and it can be filed.

T

5.06

Don’t underline words; it looks like a hyperlink.
This can be confusing

T

5.07

Check the address; don’t send it to the wrong person.
Obvious but it happens a lot!

T

5.08

Keep the most important content for the end.
No start with the main points, don’t hide them in less important details.

F

5.09

Keep it simple and clear; your reader shouldn’t have to guess the details.
Exactly.

T
Look at these two emails. Which do you think is more effective? Why?

5.10
B – it is much clearer. The style is appropriate. It is short and simple and gives all the relevant details in a way that is easy for the reader to understand. Polite and concise. Good clear subject entry.
5.11There are several mistakes in it. Can you identify the mistakes and then rewrite the email correctly?

To...

sandy@britcouncil.org

To...

 

Cc...

 

Cc...

 

Subject:

Re:

Subject:

Re:

Dear Andrew

The CSS [what does CSS mean?]visit is coming up and there are quite a few things I want you to do before the VVIPs [who are V VIPs – Very Very Important Persons] arrive.

This is VERY IMPORTANT!! [CAPITAL LETTERS – shouting!]

Dear Sandy

The Customer Satisfaction Survey (CSS) visit is coming up and there are quite a few things I want you to do before the Senior Management team arrives next Tuesday.

This is obviously a very important visit, so we will need to work together very closely on the preparations.


BTW funding has been cut and your team’s contract will not be renewed next month!!! Don’t tell anybody [don’t underline – it looks like a hyperlink] yet.

[This final paragraph is totally inappropriate for this message. This should be dealt with separately]

Regds

Bob


I would like us to meet tomorrow morning at 9am in my office to go over the main points. Could you please confirm that you will be able to attend?

Regds

Bob

 
In this lesson you have:
looked at how a virtual team is different to a team based in one location
looked at the advantages and disadvantages of virtual teams
considered different ways of communicating among members of a virtual team – email, video conferencing, phone, project website, forums.
focused on effective email correspondence
worked on ways to improve voice mail messaging
In this study block – Work: Team Development – you have looked at several important interpersonal skills that can have a great impact on efficiency in the workplace. An awareness of leadership and teambuilding skills can lead to a more productive working environment and at the same time create a positive atmosphere where colleagues feel at ease and can work well. As more and more people work in geographically dispersed teams it’s crucial to consider factors that can improve the efficiency of this new way of working.
The next LearnEnglish Professionals e-m@il lessons study block focuses on how to give effective presentations.