Improving Communication Pathways When Establishing Virtual Teams (cont.)

5. Strategically align your team - Just as with any team, it is critical to ensure that every team member is a brand ambassador, regardless of their location. Team leaders should also seek regular feedback from all team members in order to ensure strategic alignment to the organization's missions, values and goals.

6. Address technical challenges - Ensure that those who are experiencing technical difficulties receive the training and support needed to ensure success. Assign a tech-savvy team member the role of expert and praise noticeable signs of improvement.

7. Be familiar with cultural and generational challenges - Make note of the various language, regional, cultural and generational differences amongst team members and their approaches to communication, and take a proactive role to anticipate any communication-related issues that may arise well in advance.

8. Be available - Ensure an open-door policy by communicating how your team members can reach you. This includes communicating your schedule regularly to all team members and by utilizing virtual technologies to alert team members of your current status of availability. Communicate to your team members your preferred method of communication for particular circumstances to ensure consistency.

As virtual teams are increasingly becoming the norm, people will eventually become adjusted to spending more time communicating to others throughout the day, regardless of their location. Taking into account the above best practices will improve the efficiency of virtual teams as frequent and timely communication is typically a recipe for success. This transition, however, will take some time, and it may not necessarily be homogenous as regionalism will likely have a varying impact on communication in a virtual environment. Nevertheless, as best practices are adopted globally, what was once considered a minor inconvenience will become a regular part of daily life.