DTU ProjectLab - User contributions [en-gb]

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-10-06T13:56:34Z

DI2009:

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|650px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
* Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A Project Management Process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book describes all of the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Talk:Six Sigma and its applications combined with the Project Management Book of Knowledge

2015-09-29T13:31:53Z

DI2009:

==Review 1, DI2009==
I just (29th of september) realized that I have review the wrong article (Project Integration Management), hope you have seen it anyway .

==Reviewer 2, s150793==

* Topic and length: I think that the topic should be more specific and you should explain how the tool is used. The length of the article is too short, just around 1000 words.

* Structure: I think that the structure of the article doesn’t really follow the “methods” structure. I would recommend to have a look at how this type of articles should be structured.

*Images and tables: I think that the use of images and tables will help the readers to understand better the article. Remember to indicate the sources of the figures and to reference them in the text.

*Writing style: Try to connect and relate the different ideas that you want to explain.

*References: If you try to use more high quality references such as books and articles, your article will be more accurate. You should also reference all the passages of the text to reflect the sources where the information comes from. Remember to write a brief summary of each source.

==Reviewer 3, Konspits==

I should review Project Integration Management as assigned in the excel file but your student number is there, so I make the guess that you changed the title of your article. If I am wrong, please let me know.

'''General Overview:''' The topic is nice to explore and you can find tons of literature about Six Sigma. As you are following the method article, you should improve the structure and include more subjects. For instance, tools used in Six Sigma; might be interesting to read how a set of tools can contribute to the implementation of this lean concept.
Format: No mistakes, and is easy to understand
Content: You can enrich it more in my opinion.
It would also be nice to use some illustrations and tables e.g for the methodology '''DMAIC''' - that way you will help your reader understand more about what this method does.

----

=Answer=

Thanks you for your valuable review. I've tried to follow and to accomplish all the points that you mentioned.
I've tried to improve topic, length, structure, images, writing and references, although I had a hard time using the codes for referencing, as I never did something like this. On the topics DMAIC and DMADV I used illustrations and tried to simplify the explanations to help the reader the most.
Thanks again!
Rafael

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T07:11:30Z

DI2009: /* Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|650px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
* Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A Project Management Process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book describes all of the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Talk:Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T07:09:36Z

DI2009:

Anna: As a feedback to your topic idea, I would suggest that you focus on a specific tool to deal with the issues related to cross cultural teamwork. This will help you narrow the scope and create a more tool oriented and specific article.
Remember that your article has fall into one of the two categories: method or case study.

=Reviewer 1 (s150793)=

I really like the topic that you have chosen because I find it very interesting. Here are my suggestions:

*Structure: For me, the structure of the article doesn’t really follow the “methods” structure. I would suggest to start with an Introduction (1) of the theme, as you have done, but in my point of view it should also include points 4 and 5, as they develop “Cross cultural teamwork” background. The next part could be the Application (2) of techniques to reduce “Cross cultural teamwork” problems. This could be analysed from the three perspectives that you have selected: Project Human Resource Management (2.1), Project Communication Management (2.2) and Project Stakeholder Management (2.3). The last part of the article (3) before the References (4), could talk about the limitations and drawbacks that “Cross cultural teamwork” have in Global Project Management.
*'''Response: ''' I have tried to understand this section of the review, and have tried to make my introduction more clear, describing the structure of the article.

*Length: The introduction that you have made is interesting but I would maybe reduce a bit the first points of your article and pay more attention in the application part. You already have around 2800 words and as you have indicated, you want to develop some points more. I would try to focus on the main ideas so that the article doesn’t end very long.
*'''Response: ''' I have erased some parts and focused more on how the ten principles can be applied in a GPM process as different activities.

*Images and tables: I think that the use of other images and some tables will help the readers to understand the main points. For example, your 4th point (Challenges faced in cross-cultural teamwork) could be more visual if you use a table.
*'''Response: ''' At the point of the review I had no tables or figures, I have added some illustrations and tables to give the reader overview and insight.

*Writing style: The text is easy to understand but maybe some sentences are a bit long.
*'''Response: ''' I have read the entire text through and corrected mistakes.

*References: If you try to use more high quality references such as books and articles, your article will be more accurate. You should also reference all the passages of the text to reflect the sources where the information comes from. Remember also to reference all the figures. You should also write a brief summary of each source.
*'''Response: ''' At the point of the article review this part was not fully developed. I have added references and made brief summaries.

=Reviewer 2 (Konspits)=

'''General overview''': Very good choice of topic! Communication is a real problem in terms of global project management and there is a lot to talk about. If you look in global multi–projects then it is also relevant from a portfolio point of view. As you state, it’s not yet complete but there are a few comments to be made.
*'''Response: ''' Figures and illustrations are added.

1. For me the topic is clear and interesting. Your structure looks good and you have a good starting point. The first impression is overall good when I read your abstract and introduction.

What is missing?
I’d like to see some figures, illustrations, tables – these small things can really transform your article and make it cool!
If you include in your article some real case examples, it could give to the reader a closer view in what you are researching and why cross cultural teamwork is relevant and important.

2. The table of contents makes sense; the chosen structure can be modified a little bit with regards to section 5. The flow is not so smooth at this part – Try to make it one section – “how culture affects an individual” can be integrated into the part “how it affects teamwork” as this is the core aspect of your article. “Cultural differences need to be explained – nice that you give example but maybe elaborate a bit more.
'''Section 4''': I would suggest writing a few introductory sentences. Then refer to your bullet points.
'''Section 6''': Well-written. If the rest of your article is like that in the end, you are on the right track!
'''Section 7''': Is the most important part as it will give the essence of your subject with regards to project management. Pay attention when writing it.
*'''Response: ''' I have developed part 7 the application to a GPM process. As well I have deleted some sections and added brief introductions to each section.

3. Virtual “coffee break” is a nice suggestion. Humor could also be an interesting factor to explore with regards to the virtual team meetings. A section about applicability of your topic. Who is more likely to use the global cross-cultural team, for what reasons? What kind of projects that used cross cultural team work came to your attention while researching the topic?
*'''Response: ''' I decided due to lack of space not to include real case examples.

4. I spotted a few typing “mistakes”, you should proofread before handing – in.
'''#diverse dashboard”''': sounds like a tool (incorporate Ana's suggestion) that these team can use in order to improve their communication and coordination processes. Why don’t you give an example of that, an illustration for example? Can be a small sub-section as well.
'''References''': Don’t forget about them, it’s important!
*'''Response: ''' References has been added. It should have said deliverables dashboard.

5. I would suggest “A state-of the art report for efficient cross cultural teamwork and collaboration”. I like the existing as well for its simplicity.
*'''Response: ''' I chose to change the title.

Looking forward to reading the last part of your article! Good luck!
*'''Response: ''' Thank you, I hope you like it.

=Reviewer 3 (s141943)=

*Regarding to your questions:
1.: It is! Great topic, nice choice. However, it is a wide topic and I would suggest to specify more.
*'''Response: ''' some sections have been erased and the focus is now mostly on team members within a virtual cross-cultural team and not on all types of stakeholders.

2.: It makes sense, but it is too long I guess, also some parts are well structured, but on a level of a book, or longer study.
*'''Response: ''' the structure has been changed a bit, some parts are shortened and some have been elaborated on.

3.: I will write about this at the table of contents.

4.: To narrow it more and find a specific focus regarding the cross-cultural challenges. The topic is exciting, but it is to wide. The reader can easily loose the point. In the meantime, be aware to repeat cross-cultural issues and solutions for them to many time at different part of the article. Of course problems and solutions, which are relating to communication appear everywhere, but try to keep the whole text simple.
*'''Response: ''' stakeholders have been narrowed down to only within a cross-cultural virtual team.

5.: I would use Cross-cultural business management, or if you narrow it, Cross-cultural human resources management, etc.

*In general:
Really good and extremely relevant (in practice and in academic level as well) topic. The language and the grammar is good, however as you mentioned a read through will be good.
Take references and use some tables or maybe figures where they can save some space or explanations. Also because this topic is huge, the references can help for those who would like to go further after your article.
I guess it will be a really good article and I am curious about it.
*'''Response: ''' text has been read through and edited.

*Contents:
It is really structured I see and the points make sense definitely. However, I would suggest a more compact structure.

For example you have a nice abstract. And after the introduction as the first. Within the introduction the 5th and after as a subsection the 4th.
3+5 as intro: in here I would not use subsections that much, just explain roughly, why this problem come up as you did (GPM, outsourcing, etc) and which kind of issues come with it (section 5 here is integrated) and the 4th one can be a subsection.

Section 6 is a bit alone.. and it seems to me like general suggestions. So I would integrate this one under the following sections.

Section 7. It seems as a huge section. And so far your article is quite large. I would rather make it simple and mention the 7 areas and after narrow it to 2 or 1. For me the human resources management and the communication is the most exciting. Especially the HR. But this is the matter of taste.

Conclusion

References.
*'''Response: ''' structure has been changed a bit and conclusion has been added

*Abstract
Really good and nice appetiser for the article. If you make the article more compact and you narrow the topic, rewrite a bit.
*'''Response: ''' The abstract has been fitted to the new structure of the article

*Introduction:
As I mentioned above, I would suggest to change the structure and make this part rough, without that much details, maybe more tables and references to avoid to write down everything.
Also the very beginning of this part is realy good, but with more references it will be more professional.
*'''Response: ''' at the point of the review I had not included the references in the article. I have tried to divide the introduction into some parts.

As I said I would integrate section 5 into this introduction part. And here I would try to focus on how the various cultures meet with the organisational culture. Here there is a good point to mention some examples from 5.2. Later with one of the “solution”, which are try to get rid of these issues (sec. 7.1, 7.2 or 7.3) can refer back.

*Sec. 6.: I would make a table from the point or make it a bit rough, because it is more like a general guidance. Also it could be great to mention why GPM uses these virtual teams, and what they are. Just with some words.
*'''Response:''' I have made two tables one describing pros and cons and one describing the activities within a PM process.

*From section 7, If I were you I would rather chose the first, or the second, or this two together to detail.

*I would suggest a conclusion at the end, to highlight the main points.
*'''Response: ''' I have added a conclusion, which sums up the articles viewpoints.

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-28T07:01:05Z

DI2009:

new: [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Managing_a_Virtual_Cross-Cultural_Team_in_Global_Project_Management Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management]

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-28T07:00:20Z

DI2009:

new: [Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management]

Talk:Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-28T06:59:52Z

DI2009: Blanked the page

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-28T06:59:39Z

DI2009: Blanked the page

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:56:19Z

DI2009: /* Improving a PM Process in a GPM A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Desc...

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|650px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A Project Management Process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book describes all of the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Articles Fall Term 2015

2015-09-28T06:55:34Z

DI2009:

Please complete this table with your name, user name and the title of your article.

To create more lines in the table click '''Edit''' and use the following code to create more lines in the table and replace the example text with your own information:

<pre style="white-space: pre-wrap;
white-space: -moz-pre-wrap;
white-space: -pre-wrap;
white-space: -o-pre-wrap;
word-wrap: break-word;">
|Group Number
|Last Name
|First Name
|Username
|Link to Article
|-

Create a direct link by making square brackets around the title [[Title]] (Case sensitive)

The straight lines ( | ) create columns and the straight line with a dash ( |- ) creates a new row in the table.
( |} ) is only used at the very end to finish the coding for the table.
</pre>

=Overview of 2015 Wiki Articles=

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Fall 2015 Wiki Articles
|-
!Group Number
!Last Name
!First Name
!User Name
!Link to article
|-
|Group 1
|Nguyen
|Michael
|Michaelnguyendtu
|[[Leading an offshore team]]
|-
|Group 12
|Gkatzalas
|Nikolaos
|s141569
|[[The Gantt chart and the usage nowadays]]
|-
|Group 6
|Lymperis
|Konstantinos
|s142330
|[[Risk Management in Oil and Gas Industry]]
|-
|Group 3
|Filis
|Charalampos
|Ch.filis
|[[Project Risk Management and Project Risk Management Processes]]
|-
|Group 11
|Larsen
|Leonora
|s112910
|[[Gantt Charts as a Tool for Project Management]]
|-
|Group 10
|Sala Vilar
|Lluís Ròmul
|s141586
|[[Portfolio Management in a Startup]]
|-
|Group 14
|Pitsavas
|Konstantinos
|Konspits
|[[Modularisation: A modern process for project management]]
|-
|Group 2
|Kampianakis
|Andreas
|s150912
|[[Financial Portfolio Optimization Methods]]'''
|-
|Group 13
|Penzes
|Balint
|s141943
|[[Product development and portfolio management processes at LEGO]]
|-
|Group 6
|Hozmache
|Mihaela
|s146898
|[[PRINCE2 - For successful Project Management]]'''
|-
|Group 14
|Le Corre
|Damien
|Damien
|[[Game theory in project management]]'''
|-
|Group 14
|Bertrand
|Fabien
|150477
|[[Multi project management]]'''
|-
|Group 9
|Cassel
|Sara
|Sarac
|[[The benefits of systems engineering]]'''
|-
|Group 13
|Sergi
|Gibaja Musachs
|S141926
|[[Manage Extreme Projects with Rapid Methodology]]'''
|-
|Group 14
|Poza
|María
|s150793
|[[Integrated Cost and Schedule Control]]'''
|-
|Group 6
|Kulikova
|Nataliia
|s140767
|[[SCRUM Method]]
|-
|Group 4
|Pekala
|Adam
|Adam.pekala
|[[Critical Path Method in Construction Industry]]
|-
|Group 10
|Garnotel
|Gaëtan
|gaetangarnotel
|[[V-Model]]
|-
|Group 4
|Ghanizada
|Naweed
|S103745
|[[PRINCE2, A Project Management Methodology]]
|-
|Group 1
|Jacobsen
|Martin
|MistaJacob
|[[Mindfulness and Cognitive Biases in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 6
|Ferraresi
|Fabrizio
|S150905
|[[Projects in Controlled Environments, a process-based approach for project management]]
|-
|Group 5
|Tanghus
|Bjarke
|S113815
|[[Location Based Scheduling]]
|-
|Group 9
|Højgaard Hindhede
|Daniel
|S143352
|[[Construction modularization from a lean perspective]]
|-
|Group 10
|Gayot
|Charles-Henri
|s141074
|[[Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RACI Matrix)]]
|-
|Group 12
|Thorp Sørensen
|Anders
|s103183
|[[The Gantt Chart]]
|-
|Group 3
|Makris
|Dimitrios
|Dimak
|[[Benchmarking in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 7
|Greiling
|Lea
|Lea
|[[Lean in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 8
|Latorre Duque
|Ana
|Ana
| [[Modularity and Black-Boxing]]
|-
|Group 7
|Almanzi
|Stefano
|S141530
|[[ Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)]]
|-
|Group 12
|Montagner
|Giacomo
|S150821
|[[Scrum Methodology in Agile Software Development]]
|-
|Group 14
|Ruiz Muñoz
|Gustavo Adolfo
|S121408
| [[Lean 6 Sigma in project management]]
|-
|Group 3
|Kalmus
|Thomas
|S141938
| [[Program evaluation and review technique (PERT) ]]
|-
|Group 12
|Gudmundsson
|Arnar Gauti
|S141543
|[[Management of risk]]
|-
|Group 5
|Jacobsen
|Ian Thobias
|S113735
|[[Story Points Estimation]]
|-
|Group 11
|Boesgaard
|Katrine
|KB1991
|[[Gantt Chart]]
|-
|Group 5
|Sorth-Olsen
|Rasmus
|Sorth90
|[[Lean as a project management tool]]
|-
|Group 13
|Salling
|Stephanie
|StephSalling
|[[E. Pihl & Søn A/S from a management perspective]]
|-
|Group 6
|Ruina
|Jessica Linda
|Jejenji
|[[Scheduling techniques in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 4
|Gjerstrup
|Jacob
|s113440
|[[Fault tree analysis]]
|-
|Group 11
|Lynge
|Jane
|s997303
|[[Theory of Constraint]]
|-
|Group 8
|Palmerini
|Alessandro
|alex161
|[[Effective Communication in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 2
|Tvedt
|Ida Marie
|IMT
|[[Risk Profile in Turnkey Projects]]
|-
|Group 2
|Søndenaa
|Mathilde Hanssen
|s150621
|[[Critical chain project management (CCPM)]]
|-
|Group 9
|Helassalo
|Antti
|s141506
|[[Development phase of idea to project]]
|-
|Group 9
|Thorning-Schmidt
|Nanna
|Nannats
|[[Earned Value Management]]
|-
|Group 10
|Bureika
|Edvinas
|s141931
|[[Communication in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 1
|Rasmussen
|Marie-Louise
|DI2009
|[[Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management]]
|-
|Group
|Lara Hoces
|Fernando
|s131882
|[[The Oticon Case: the Spaghetti organisation]]
|-
|Group 13
|Christos
|Stamatis
|S145170
|[[Olympic Games London 2012: When the client strives for innovation (The London model)]]'''
|-
|Group 5
|Moe
|Elizabeth Lindhard
|113129
|[[Contracting as a PM]]
|-
|Group 3
|Lessis
|Vasileios
|lessisv
|[[Rational Unified Process (RUP)]]
|-
|Group 8
|Klibo Buur
|Christian
|Buurbuur
|[[Project Execution Model (PEM)]]
|-
|Group 8
|Bachmann
|Thomas
|s117318
|[[Lean Tools in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 11
|Vilar Bustos
|Alberto
|s142581
|[[Minimizing Risk and Uncertainties in Construction Projects]]
|-
|Group 1
|Trap Wiegandt
|Sissel
|s112195
|[[The Critical Path Method (CPM)]]
|-
|Group 2
|Christensen
|Britt Marie Lekven
|brittmch
|[[Lean in building and construction industry]]
|-
|Group 5
|Vestergaard Andersen
|Andreas
|AndreasAndersen
|[[Management of Project Change ]]
|-
|Group 7
|Ann-Elise
|Gustavsen
|Alise
|[[Stakeholder Analysis and Matrices ]]
|-
|Group 2
|Krogh
|Daniel
|DanielKrogh
|[[Managing Uncertainty and Risk on the Project]]
|-
|Group 7
|Fabio
|Labrini
|s142911
|[[Critical Chain Project Management to cope with uncertainty]]
|-
|Group 1
|Viig
|Oliver Johannes
|s102935
|[[BIM as a project management tool on construction projects]]
|-
|Group 8
|Federico
|Sbernini
|s141573
|[[The Failure Mode and effects analysis (FMEA) in product development projects]]
|-
|Group 12
|Augustin
|Bouet
|s142823
|[[Metra Potential Method]]
|-
|Group 7
|Eva Schultz
|Hansen
|s112960
|[[A method to analyze visualizations in project management as boundary objects]]
|-
|Group 13
|Otiv
|Peter
|s145166
|[[Private Finance Initiative]]
|-
|Group 4
|Juhasz
|Bianka Zsuzsanna
|Biankajuh
|[[Changing conversations based on the Stacey matrix]]
|-
|Group 3
|Rodrigues
|Rafael
|s150931
|[[Six Sigma and PMBOK]]
|-
|Group 9
|Søren
|Thomsen
|s140046
|[[Organisational resilience with mindfulness]]
|-
|Group 8
|Schrøder
|Niklas
|Faker
|[[Theory of Constraints]]
|-
|Group 11
|Herreros
|Maria
|s142597
|[[Early warning signals in project management]]
|-
|Group 3
|Larsen
|Martin T
|s103128
|[[Risk Identification]]
|-
|Group 9
|Hoier
|Lasse Rasmus
|Lassehoier87
|[[Application of Antifragility in Project Management]]
|-
|Group 4
|Shapel
|Sarah Groot
|s152093
|[[Leadership styles]]
|-
|Group 4
|Hammer
|Jonas
|s113665
|[[The best milestone plan is simple but with depths!]]
|-
|Group 2
|Flataukan
|Camilla
|s150801
|[[Risk Profile in General Contracting]]
|-
|Group 10
|Marazaki
|Ilektra
|s142899
|[[Portfolio Management and complexity in organizations]]
|-

|}

Talk:Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:54:04Z

DI2009: Created page with "Anna: As a feedback to your topic idea, I would suggest that you focus on a specific tool to deal with the issues related to cross cultural teamwork. This will help you narrow..."

Anna: As a feedback to your topic idea, I would suggest that you focus on a specific tool to deal with the issues related to cross cultural teamwork. This will help you narrow the scope and create a more tool oriented and specific article.
Remember that your article has fall into one of the two categories: method or case study.

=Reviewer 1 (s150793)=

I really like the topic that you have chosen because I find it very interesting. Here are my suggestions:

*Structure: For me, the structure of the article doesn’t really follow the “methods” structure. I would suggest to start with an Introduction (1) of the theme, as you have done, but in my point of view it should also include points 4 and 5, as they develop “Cross cultural teamwork” background. The next part could be the Application (2) of techniques to reduce “Cross cultural teamwork” problems. This could be analysed from the three perspectives that you have selected: Project Human Resource Management (2.1), Project Communication Management (2.2) and Project Stakeholder Management (2.3). The last part of the article (3) before the References (4), could talk about the limitations and drawbacks that “Cross cultural teamwork” have in Global Project Management.
*'''Respond: ''' I have tried to understand this section of the review, and have tried to make my introduction more clear, describing the structure of the article.

*Length: The introduction that you have made is interesting but I would maybe reduce a bit the first points of your article and pay more attention in the application part. You already have around 2800 words and as you have indicated, you want to develop some points more. I would try to focus on the main ideas so that the article doesn’t end very long.
*'''Respond: ''' I have erased some parts and focused more on how the ten principles can be applied in a GPM process as different activities.

*Images and tables: I think that the use of other images and some tables will help the readers to understand the main points. For example, your 4th point (Challenges faced in cross-cultural teamwork) could be more visual if you use a table.
*'''Respond: ''' At the point of the review I had no tables or figures, I have added some illustrations and tables to give the reader overview and insight.

*Writing style: The text is easy to understand but maybe some sentences are a bit long.
*'''Respond: ''' I have read the entire text through and corrected mistakes.

*References: If you try to use more high quality references such as books and articles, your article will be more accurate. You should also reference all the passages of the text to reflect the sources where the information comes from. Remember also to reference all the figures. You should also write a brief summary of each source.
*'''Respond: ''' At the point of the article review this part was not fully developed. I have added references and made brief summaries.

=Reviewer 2 (Konspits)=

'''General overview''': Very good choice of topic! Communication is a real problem in terms of global project management and there is a lot to talk about. If you look in global multi–projects then it is also relevant from a portfolio point of view. As you state, it’s not yet complete but there are a few comments to be made.
*'''Respond: ''' Figures and illustrations are added.

1. For me the topic is clear and interesting. Your structure looks good and you have a good starting point. The first impression is overall good when I read your abstract and introduction.

What is missing?
I’d like to see some figures, illustrations, tables – these small things can really transform your article and make it cool!
If you include in your article some real case examples, it could give to the reader a closer view in what you are researching and why cross cultural teamwork is relevant and important.

2. The table of contents makes sense; the chosen structure can be modified a little bit with regards to section 5. The flow is not so smooth at this part – Try to make it one section – “how culture affects an individual” can be integrated into the part “how it affects teamwork” as this is the core aspect of your article. “Cultural differences need to be explained – nice that you give example but maybe elaborate a bit more.
'''Section 4''': I would suggest writing a few introductory sentences. Then refer to your bullet points.
'''Section 6''': Well-written. If the rest of your article is like that in the end, you are on the right track!
'''Section 7''': Is the most important part as it will give the essence of your subject with regards to project management. Pay attention when writing it.
*'''Respond: ''' I have developed part 7 the application to a GPM process. As well I have deleted some sections and added brief introductions to each section.

3. Virtual “coffee break” is a nice suggestion. Humor could also be an interesting factor to explore with regards to the virtual team meetings. A section about applicability of your topic. Who is more likely to use the global cross-cultural team, for what reasons? What kind of projects that used cross cultural team work came to your attention while researching the topic?
*'''Respond: ''' I decided due to lack of space not to include real case examples.

4. I spotted a few typing “mistakes”, you should proofread before handing – in.
'''#diverse dashboard”''': sounds like a tool (incorporate Ana's suggestion) that these team can use in order to improve their communication and coordination processes. Why don’t you give an example of that, an illustration for example? Can be a small sub-section as well.
'''References''': Don’t forget about them, it’s important!
*'''Respond: ''' References has been added. It should have said deliverables dashboard.

5. I would suggest “A state-of the art report for efficient cross cultural teamwork and collaboration”. I like the existing as well for its simplicity.
*'''Respond: ''' I chose to change the title.

Looking forward to reading the last part of your article! Good luck!
*'''Respond: ''' Thank you, I hope you like it.

=Reviewer 3 (s141943)=

*Regarding to your questions:
1.: It is! Great topic, nice choice. However, it is a wide topic and I would suggest to specify more.
*'''Respond: ''' some sections have been erased and the focus is now mostly on team members within a virtual cross-cultural team and not on all types of stakeholders.

2.: It makes sense, but it is too long I guess, also some parts are well structured, but on a level of a book, or longer study.
*'''Respond: ''' the structure has been changed a bit, some parts are shortened and some have been elaborated on.

3.: I will write about this at the table of contents.

4.: To narrow it more and find a specific focus regarding the cross-cultural challenges. The topic is exciting, but it is to wide. The reader can easily loose the point. In the meantime, be aware to repeat cross-cultural issues and solutions for them to many time at different part of the article. Of course problems and solutions, which are relating to communication appear everywhere, but try to keep the whole text simple.
*'''Respond: ''' stakeholders have been narrowed down to only within a cross-cultural virtual team.

5.: I would use Cross-cultural business management, or if you narrow it, Cross-cultural human resources management, etc.

*In general:
Really good and extremely relevant (in practice and in academic level as well) topic. The language and the grammar is good, however as you mentioned a read through will be good.
Take references and use some tables or maybe figures where they can save some space or explanations. Also because this topic is huge, the references can help for those who would like to go further after your article.
I guess it will be a really good article and I am curious about it.
*'''Respond: ''' text has been read through and edited.

*Contents:
It is really structured I see and the points make sense definitely. However, I would suggest a more compact structure.

For example you have a nice abstract. And after the introduction as the first. Within the introduction the 5th and after as a subsection the 4th.
3+5 as intro: in here I would not use subsections that much, just explain roughly, why this problem come up as you did (GPM, outsourcing, etc) and which kind of issues come with it (section 5 here is integrated) and the 4th one can be a subsection.

Section 6 is a bit alone.. and it seems to me like general suggestions. So I would integrate this one under the following sections.

Section 7. It seems as a huge section. And so far your article is quite large. I would rather make it simple and mention the 7 areas and after narrow it to 2 or 1. For me the human resources management and the communication is the most exciting. Especially the HR. But this is the matter of taste.

Conclusion

References.
*'''Respond: ''' structure has been changed a bit and conclusion has been added

*Abstract
Really good and nice appetiser for the article. If you make the article more compact and you narrow the topic, rewrite a bit.
*'''Respond: ''' The abstract has been fitted to the new structure of the article

*Introduction:
As I mentioned above, I would suggest to change the structure and make this part rough, without that much details, maybe more tables and references to avoid to write down everything.
Also the very beginning of this part is realy good, but with more references it will be more professional.
*'''Respond: ''' at the point of the review I had not included the references in the article. I have tried to divide the introduction into some parts.

As I said I would integrate section 5 into this introduction part. And here I would try to focus on how the various cultures meet with the organisational culture. Here there is a good point to mention some examples from 5.2. Later with one of the “solution”, which are try to get rid of these issues (sec. 7.1, 7.2 or 7.3) can refer back.

*Sec. 6.: I would make a table from the point or make it a bit rough, because it is more like a general guidance. Also it could be great to mention why GPM uses these virtual teams, and what they are. Just with some words.
*'''Respond:''' I have made two tables one describing pros and cons and one describing the activities within a PM process.

*From section 7, If I were you I would rather chose the first, or the second, or this two together to detail.

*I would suggest a conclusion at the end, to highlight the main points.
*'''Respond: ''' I have added a conclusion, which sums up the articles viewpoints.

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:41:20Z

DI2009: /* Further Reading */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A Project Management Process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book describes all of the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:40:53Z

DI2009: /* Further Reading */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book describes all of the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:39:53Z

DI2009: /* Further Reading */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:37:10Z

DI2009: /* Definition of Culture */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:36:56Z

DI2009: /* Definition of Culture */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:36:18Z

DI2009: /* Definition of Culture */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

'''National culture''': “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
'''Culture at a workplace''': “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
'''Organizational culture''': “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:35:30Z

DI2009: /* Definition of Culture */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;

’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.

’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”

’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:33:55Z

DI2009: /* IntroductionBinder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompe...

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where GPM mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:32:30Z

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The [http://apppm.man.dtu.dk/index.php/Project_Management_Body_of_Knowledge PMI standard of project management] (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:30:09Z

DI2009: /* Further Reading */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within a project management process.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Managing a Virtual Cross-Cultural Team in Global Project Management

2015-09-28T06:29:09Z

DI2009: Created page with "Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geogra..."

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types <ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>
<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T21:19:32Z

DI2009: /* Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?articl...

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

<div><ul>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]] </li>
<li style="display: inline-block;"> [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]] </li>
</ul></div>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T21:16:38Z

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:59:36Z

DI2009:

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-27_kl._22.52.01.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-27 kl. 22.52.01.png

2015-09-27T20:56:26Z

DI2009:

File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-25 kl. 14.56.41.png

2015-09-27T20:54:16Z

DI2009: DI2009 uploaded a new version of "File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-25 kl. 14.56.41.png"

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:38:05Z

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|600px]]
<br clear=all>

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:37:24Z

DI2009: /* Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management */

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|800px|thumb]]

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:32:22Z

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|800px|thumb]]

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:31:36Z

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png|1000px|thumb]]

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:28:46Z

DI2009:

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/ '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png]]

Initialising Planning Manage and control
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities Consider off-shoring and outsourcing Acquire members

Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork.
Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision etc.
Coach, give feedback etc.

Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences.

Project Communication management Decide for communication channel.
Keep the communication rhythm.
Consider culture differences influence on the communication.

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:23:56Z

DI2009:

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture]. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. [http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc]. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T]. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf] '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf] '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/]. '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf]. '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png]]

Initialising Planning Manage and control
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities Consider off-shoring and outsourcing Acquire members

Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork.
Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision etc.
Coach, give feedback etc.

Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences.

Project Communication management Decide for communication channel.
Keep the communication rhythm.
Consider culture differences influence on the communication.

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/]. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm]. '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/]. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/]. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-27T20:19:18Z

DI2009:

Cross-culture, language and geographical diversity are some challenging areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team. Such a team is where the members are geographically outspread and do not communicate face-to-face. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of differences influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with throughout the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To grow as a large company with an international arena, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service. This could be done in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well, the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper.
As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. In order to make a team work ten principles could be followed.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas. A project manager will have to master these throughout the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing the project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The remaining seven areas will not be addressed in this article.

==Definition of Culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
Cambridge Dictionary<ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture]. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> defines culture in different ways;
’’’National culture’’’: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
’’’Culture at a workplace’’’: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
’’’Organizational culture’’’: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describe culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influences the way a person thinks, feels and acts.

== Culture’s Influence on a Person and a Team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. [http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc]. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in figure 1. E.g. all humans by nature eat when they are hungry. Culture could affect which spices they add to their food. Personality could influence what the person likes or does not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category. Personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual. [[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. Figure 2 illustrates Lewis’ model of cultural types. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T]. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and Cons in Global Project Management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. [http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf] '''Summary:''' Article describes the challenges which has been seen in cross-cultural virtual teams</ref>==
In many big companies such as Coca-cola, Toyota etc. cross-cultural virtual team work is inevitable. As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons of GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will go easier and could help in giving the company a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties within the team; Issues with pronunciation of words as well as understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people use words for communicating and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in their own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as having more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Different cultures have different work ethics and rules. Structure, punctuality, needed clarification of tasks etc.
Personal needs and what is seen as important varies. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.

Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.

Geography Possibility to hire specific skilled workers living in other countries. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, feeling of belonging, team spirit etc.

Possible to work around the clock. Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings.

Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Development and production can be done in a country with lower labour cost.
Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.

<ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf> '''Summary:''' The article describes trust building witin a virtual team and which communication medias could be used in this process.</ref>

=Ten Principles of Making Virtual Teams Work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. '''Summary:''' The article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process. However to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles, can be taken into account.

'''1. Early Face-to-Face Meeting '''
In communication theory it is commonly known that different types of communication media is richer than others, meaning some channels are more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting. “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked” <ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. '''Summary:''' The article discuss communication medias used within an organization </ref> More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships. It is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work at the beginning. As well, meeting annually or more frequently improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align Roles within the Team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the Communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements as possible, it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations are established. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. Also interruptions or a noisy ambience can be very disturbing for the communication flow.

'''4. Deciding for the Best Possible Communication Channels '''
Communication programs on the market are constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the programs. However it is important not to be blinded with all these options. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest. It might be that it is too advanced for some members, the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and Maintaining Team Rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings regularly. Also the meeting time could be unfortunate for some members due to times differences. Make sure not to burden the same members every time, by changing the times regularly.

'''6. Create Common Language Understanding and Use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meanings could be shared among the team members.

'''7. Creating Room for a Virtual “Coffee Break” '''
When working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what is challenging. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and Tracking Commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do that. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment an online dashboard on deliverables can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks. Allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keep them responsible for finishing their tasks on time.

'''9. Engage Team by Sharing Leadership '''
Using shared leadership, as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual Coaching and Leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.

=Improving a PM Process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary: ''' Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context. The ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a cross-cultural virtual team. However many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the knowledge areas might overlap which means that one activity in human resource management could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

[[File:Skærmbillede_2015-09-25_kl._14.56.41.png]]

Initialising Planning Manage and control
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities Consider off-shoring and outsourcing Acquire members

Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork.
Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision etc.
Coach, give feedback etc.

Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences.

Project Communication management Decide for communication channel.
Keep the communication rhythm.
Consider culture differences influence on the communication.

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these two knowledge areas there are four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
* Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where the needed skills are available. It might be that the most qualified people who have the required knowledge within a specific area live in another country. Just like as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention off-shoring or outsourcing could have disadvantages, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.

'''Acquire a Project Team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop a Team '''
* When developing a team it is important to consider interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools like [http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf attitudinal surveys], [http://www.belbin.com belbin test], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. That can also lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
* Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier, face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. '''Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
* Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team-building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. '''Summary:''' Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
* Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on each team member, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
* Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
* Make a resource calendar to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing a Project Team '''
* As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans, ensuring that every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
* Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
* Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
* In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to the project: Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary: ''' Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very differently on conflicts. Some cultures are very willing to confront, take criticism as a way to improve, whereas some are more likely to avoid the conflict and confrontation in order not to get the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. '''Summary: ''' Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project Communication Management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan Communication '''
* Determine appropriate [http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/ channels for communication], and be aware that it might not be the newest technology that your team will benefit the most from. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
* Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and Control Communication '''
* As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is within a cross-cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose. Is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating, there is always some background noise which can disturb the receiver’s perception of the message. Too much information could give an overload meaning that some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message. Language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc <ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver and the receiver’s feedback. In a cross-cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, and therefor might interpret the message differently. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned. However the manger can control or influence this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and focus on appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. '''Summary:''' This article describes cross cultural communication</ref>.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there are many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However, by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Further Reading=
In this article many of the aspects are very briefly described. Some of the references go much more in depth. In order to get more information on this topic I would recommend the following literature:

'''Global Project Management: '''
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print.
This book goes in depth with a lot of global project management aspects. It describes different communication tools, culture across the world and much more.

'''A project management process: '''
This books describes all the teen knowledge areas within project management.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-25 kl. 14.56.41.png

2015-09-25T13:09:17Z

DI2009: DI2009 uploaded a new version of "File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-25 kl. 14.56.41.png"

File:Skærmbillede 2015-09-25 kl. 14.56.41.png

2015-09-25T13:07:33Z

DI2009:

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:51:17Z

DI2009:

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:''' Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.
[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:''' Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. '''Summary:''' The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:'''</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf> '''Summary:''' .</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. '''Summary:''' Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. '''Summary:''' Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:''' Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. '''Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:''' </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. '''Summary:''' Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. '''Summary:''' </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:49:00Z

DI2009:

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. '''Summary:''' Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. '''Summary:’’’ Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:’’’ The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.
[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 2:’’’ Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. '''Summary:’’’ The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf '''Summary:'''</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf> '''Summary:''' .</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. '''Summary:’’’ Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. '''Summary:’’’ Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. '''Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. '''Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. '''Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. '''Summary:’’’ </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. '''Summary:’’’ Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. '''Summary:’’’ </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:39:07Z

DI2009: /* Project communication management Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ */

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.
[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|‘’’Figure 2:’’’ Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf ‘’’Summary:’’’</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |600px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:37:49Z

DI2009: /* IntroductionBinder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofste...

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.
[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|‘’’Figure 2:’’’ Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf ‘’’Summary:’’’</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]
=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:35:59Z

DI2009: /* Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 ...

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|‘’’Figure 2:’’’ Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf ‘’’Summary:’’’</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]
=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T08:35:43Z

DI2009:

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]

To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

[[File: Culture’s_part_of_a_persons_thinking_and_behaving.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 1:''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving]]

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

[[File:Lewis’_model_of_cultural_types.png|400px|thumb|right|‘’’Figure 2:’’’ Lewis’ model of cultural types]]

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf ‘’’Summary:’’’</ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Figure 3 shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>. ‘’’Summary:’’’ </ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

[[File: Shannon_and_Weaver_Model_of_Communication.png |400px|thumb|right|'''Figure 3:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication]]
=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

File:Lewis’ model of cultural types.png

2015-09-25T08:29:22Z

DI2009:

File:Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication.png

2015-09-25T08:22:37Z

DI2009:

File:Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.png

2015-09-25T07:59:10Z

DI2009:

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T07:53:50Z

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' [https://flic.kr/p/arFTXS Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]]
To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. Summary: Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

'''Figure 1: ''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. Summary: The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf </ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. Summary: Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. Summary: Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm
Table 2: Considerations and activities, which can be applied within each step of the GPM process

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. Summary: Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. Summary: Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. Summary: Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. Summary: Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print.</ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. Summary: Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Model XX shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>.</ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

'''Figure 2:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T07:47:36Z

DI2009:

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
[[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]
To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. Summary: Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

'''Figure 1: ''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. Summary: The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf </ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. Summary: Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. Summary: Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm
Table 2: Considerations and activities, which can be applied within each step of the GPM process

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. Summary: Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. Summary: Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. Summary: Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. Summary: Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print.</ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. Summary: Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Model XX shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>.</ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

'''Figure 2:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T07:47:08Z

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>= [[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Picture 1:''' Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]
To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. Summary: Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

'''Figure 1: ''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. Summary: The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf </ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. Summary: Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. Summary: Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm
Table 2: Considerations and activities, which can be applied within each step of the GPM process

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. Summary: Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. Summary: Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. Summary: Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. Summary: Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print.</ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. Summary: Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Model XX shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>.</ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

'''Figure 2:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T07:46:06Z

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies.
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article. [[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|300px|thumb|right|Picture 1 Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. Summary: Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

'''Figure 1: ''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. Summary: The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf </ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. Summary: Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. Summary: Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm
Table 2: Considerations and activities, which can be applied within each step of the GPM process

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. Summary: Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. Summary: Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. Summary: Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. Summary: Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print.</ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. Summary: Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Model XX shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>.</ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

'''Figure 2:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

<references/>

Cross cultural teamwork

2015-09-25T07:45:49Z

DI2009:

Cross-cultural, languages and geographical challenges are some of challenge areas that can influence the work of a global virtual team, meaning a team where the members are geographical spread out and do not have face-to-face communicate. The team members might have different cultural backgrounds, language barriers or may be located in different time zones. These types of challenges influence the communication and the understanding within the team, which can lead to misunderstandings or disagreements. In project management this is something to consider in project management process, when trying to predict, manage and control possible issues and delays within the work as well as the execution of the work, in order to make the process as smooth as possible. To use the global project management as an advantage it is important to be aware of the differences, understand where the different stakeholders or members of the team come from and use the differences to your advantage. This article focuses on the challenges, which should be dealt with through out the process of managing a global project. Three of the project management knowledge areas within a project management framework will be discussed with focus on a virtual teamwork. The areas in focus are; project human resource, communication and stakeholder management.

=Introduction<ref>Binder, Jean. "Chapter 1." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 21-42. Print. Summary: Introduction to culture in GPM. Description of Hofstede’s and Thrompenaars’ cultural dimensions and the impact on GPM</ref>=
To become a large company with an international business plan, teamwork across different countries is inevitable. Focus on global project management (GPM) is important when dealing with larger projects on a global scale. The company might want to outsource or offshore parts of the developing of the product or service, in order to save cost and time, make the process more effective or acquire certain skills. E.g. local people could do the market analysis, the exploration and the sale of the product/service. As well the production or parts of it could take place either close to where the raw materials are extracted, in the country where the product is to be sold or in a country where the labour is cheaper. As a project manager you have to be able to handle different stakeholders; within your project team, the market, suppliers and possible collaborating companies. [[File:Illustrating_a_team_with_different_backgrounds.png|300px|thumb|right|Picture 1 Illustrates a team with different backgrounds]]
The PMI standard of project management (PM) <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref> framework entails ten main knowledge areas that a project manager has to master in the five project process stages: initiate, plan, execute, monitor and control and closing project. This article will consider the areas where global project management (GPM) mainly differ from “regular” PM. The three areas in focus in this article are; Project Human Resource, Communication and Stakeholder Management. The other seven areas will not be approached in this article.

==Definition of culture==
To see how culture influences a team it is important to understand what culture is.
In Cambridge Dictionary <ref>"Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary." Culture Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2015, 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/culture. Summary: Cambridge online dictionary. Definitions on culture</ref> culture has different definition:
National culture: “the way of life, especially the general customs and beliefs, of a particular group of people at a particular time”.
Culture in at a workplace: “the ideas and ways of working that are typical for an organization, and that affect how it does business and how its employees behave”
Organizational culture: “the types of attitudes and agreed ways of working shared by the employees of a company or organization”

These definitions all describes culture as something that is shared by a group of people, whether it is in a company or a nation, and that culture influence the way a person think, feel and act.

==Culture’s influence on a person and a team <ref>Hofstede, Geert. "Dimensionalizing Cultures: The Hofstede Model in Context." Online Readings in Psychology and Culture 2.1 (2011): n. pag. Web. <http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1014&context=orpc>. '''Summary:''' The article is a brief description of the six dimensions of national cultures of Hofstede’s model</ref>==
How a person thinks and behaves are influenced by the human nature, culture and personality as seen in Figure 1. E.g. meaning all human by nature eats when they are hungry. Culture could affect what they choose to eat. Personality could influences what you like or what you do not like to eat. The human nature is universal and inherent. The culture is acquired by a specific group or category and the personality is inherent and acquired and is specific to the individual.

'''Figure 1: ''' Culture’s part of a persons thinking and behaving.

In a cross-cultural team the members can have very different cultural backgrounds, which can affect their thoughts, behaviours and how they interact with others. If the members have very different ways of doing things this can lead to disagreements and conflicts. In the next section these differences as well as language barriers and location will be discussed.

<ref> Lubin, Gus. "The Lewis Model Explains Every Culture In The World." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.businessinsider.com/the-lewis-model-2013-9?IR=T>. Summary: The article describes Lewis’ model of all the cultures in the world. The idea is to give an overview of cultures plotted in three categories; Linear-active, multi-active and reactive.</ref>

==Pros and cons in global project management (GPM) <ref>Oertig, Margaret, and Thomas Buergi. "The Challenges of Managing Cross‐cultural Virtual Project Teams." Team Performance Management Team Performance Management: An International Journal 12.1/2 (2006): 23-30. ResearchGate. Jan. 2006. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Thomas_Buergi/publication/235263716_The_challenges_of_managing_cross-cultural_virtual_project_teams/links/00b7d51e3d0081be81000000.pdf </ref>==
In many big companies cross-cultural virtual team work is a inevitable, to mention some companies; Toyota, As described in the previous section culture, language and geography can have a great influence on project management. In Table 1 the pros and cons with GPM are described.

Pros Cons
Language If research is done in the country where the researcher is from the communication or understanding of the surveyed will give a greater insight. Communication issues: Languages difficulties; Pronunciation and understanding of idioms and words both written and spoken. Jargon, how people communicate and what is allowed to say and what is not.
Culture Researchers who research in own country know the customs and know how to approach those interviewed or observed. As well as have more insight and understanding of the culture. Misunderstandings within the team due to differences: Cultures have different work ethics and “rules”. Structure, punctuality, clarification of tasks etc.
Personally needs and what is seen as important. In some cultures relationship is a high priority where in others individualism and self-dependence is crucial.
What different cultures priorities and expectations, short or long term view.

Hard to make time schedules, due to different national holidays and traditions.
Difference in ways of handling conflicts and dealing with disagreements. Some cultures do everything to avoid conflicts, some are very willing to discuss issues.
Geography Possible to hire specific skilled workers living in another country. No day-to-day face-to-face interaction. Need for communication channel, makes it harder to create trust, team spirit etc. <ref>
Blomqvist, Kirsimarja, and Kaisa Henttonen. "Managing Distance in a Global Virtual Team: The Evolution of Trust through Technology-mediated Relational Communication." Strategic Change (n.d.): n. pag. ResearchGate. Mar. 2005. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Kirsimarja_Blomqvist/publication/227903160_Managing_distance_in_a_global_virtual_team_the_evolution_of_trust_through_technologymediated_relational_communication/links/54a8e51f0cf257a6360be3d4.pdf>.</ref>
Possible to work around the clock Time difference can make it hard to find a time to schedule virtual meetings
Production, research and marketing can be done on site, meaning less need for shipping and travelling over long distances. Production can be done in a country with lower labour. Harder for manager and all team members to see the final outcome, which can give lack in motivation, feeling of responsibility and ownership.
Table 1: pros and cons in GPM

=Ten principles of making virtual teams work <ref>Watkins, Michael. "Making Virtual Teams Work: Ten Basic Principles." Harvard Business Review. N.p., 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://hbr.org/2013/06/making-virtual-teams-work-ten/>. Summary: Article describes ten principles which can help in improving in teamwork in a virtual team.</ref>=
As described before the company can have different reasons for off-shoring or outsourcing parts of the process but to keep up the efficiency it is important to be ready for issues that can occur. In order to avoid or deal with some of the issues, which can arise in a virtual team ten principles can be taken into account.

'''1. Early face-to-face meeting '''
In communication theory it is common known that different types of communication media is richer than others meaning some channels is more effective than others.
On the top of the list of most effective communication media is face-to-face meeting “Face-to-face is the richest medium because it provides immediate feedback so the interpretation can be checked”.<ref> Daft, Richard L., and Robert H. Lengel. "ORGANIZATIONAL INFORMATION REQUIREMENTS, MEDIA RICHNESS AND STRUCTUR." Management Science (1986): n. pag. CNDLS. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <https://blogs.commons.georgetown.edu/cctp-745-spring2010/files/organizational-information-requirements.pdf>. Summary: Article </ref>More than just being a communication media, meeting people in real life is also more effective when building relationships and is important for a team to establish an essential foundation for the further work. As meeting annually or more often improves the feeling of connections and enhances the shared vision.

'''2. Align roles within the team '''
In the global team with no day-to-day meetings it is crucial to have detailed clarification of the different roles, tasks and responsibilities to make it easier to coordinate the work. As well reviewing the work is important to keep track of the time, cost etc.

'''3. Structure the communication '''
In order to have effective communication with as few misunderstandings or disagreements it is a good idea to make a communication charter, where the norms are established, conversation rules, which media to use in which situations. E.g. using emails for reply could be inefficient in some cases but very practical in other. As well interrupting or sitting in a room with a lot of noise when on a videoconference can be very disturbing.

'''4. Deciding for the best possible communication channels '''
Which communication programs are on the market is constantly changing, and developers add new features, new names etc. to the program. However it is important not to be blinded with all these possibilities. Maybe the best possible media is not the newest, if some members can not use it or the connection is slow, the reliability is low and so on. It is important to include all team members on the platform to not impair the communication.

'''5. Creating and maintaining team rhythm '''
To enable coordination of work tasks, regular communication is needed. When being a virtual team with rare face-to-face meetings and with no daily interaction it is easy to loose contact. It is important to make some routines and schedule meetings, e.g. by having videoconferences every Monday at 1 pm etc. As well if the meeting time is unfortunate for some members due to time difference make sure to not burden only some members, but maybe change the time of day every second week.

'''6. Create common language understanding and use '''
In a cross-cultural team, members might not all have the same mother tongue. Therefore it is important to agree on the communication language within the team and also decide what specific important words mean. A list of words and meaning should be share among the team members.

'''7. Creating room for a virtual “coffee break” '''
When team working with people in the same building or at the office next door it is easy to socialize and build a relationship. When having a virtual team, it is important to still have focus on this aspect. A way of doing it is by having each meeting starting with checking in on each team member, what is going well and what the challenges are. Other ways are to use online networking platforms or make virtual team building exercises.

'''8. Ensuring and tracking commitment '''
It is easy for a project manager to keep track and know if the team members are up to date with their tasks when he meets the members on a daily basis. However when managing a virtual team it is harder to do this. To keep milestones and to engage in commitment e.g. a deliverables dashboard can be used. With this tool the project manager is able to plot the tasks and allowing all members to see the board makes it possible for them to see where they should be and keeps them responsible for finishing the task on time.

'''9. Engage team by sharing leadership '''
Using shared leadership as a way of engaging the members can be useful in a virtual team. Smaller tasks such as facilitating a team building exercise or helping a new team member getting to know the routines can help engaging team members and letting them take part in the leadership.

'''10. Individual coaching and leading '''
To enhance productivity and commitment one-to-one meetings between project manager and team members are important and should be a part of the weekly routines. In this meeting the members should give updates, get feedback but also be reminded on their role in the project and the common vision.
=Improving a PM process in a GPM <ref>A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide). 5th ed. Pennsylvania: Project Management Institute, 2013. Print. Summary: Project Management Institute’s standard for Project Management. Describes a project management process and ten knowledge areas within this process</ref>=
In this section the knowledge areas; Project Human Resource Management, Project Stakeholder Management and Project Communication Management will be discussed in a GPM context and the ten principles as well as theory on cultural differences will be addressed in the context. To narrow it down this section will focus on a team, however many of the approaches can directly be translated to interaction with other stakeholders such as business partners etc. Due to the many overlaps between Project Human Resource Management and Project Stakeholder Management these two areas will be looked at together in one section. Within each process step some matters should be taken into account when the team members are geographically dispersed, might have language barriers and different cultural backgrounds.

Table 2 gives an overview of the different activities within the different knowledge areas. However be aware that the two knowledge areas overlap which means that one activity in human resource could also be seen as an activity in communication management. Each activity is explained in the sections below.

Initialising Planning Manage and control Closing
Project Human Resource and Stakeholder management - Identify stakeholders
- Recall knowledge and experience on cultures and cross cultural teamwork - Identify staff; roles, responsibilities, capabilities
- Consider off-shoring and outsourcing
- Consider culture when planning time schedules, meetings etc. - Acquire members
- Develop team; Face-to-face meeting, teambuilding, create vision
- Coach, give feedback etc.
- Manage conflicts, be aware of culture differences
Project Communication management - Decide for communication channel
- Consider culture differences and communication
- Keep the communication rhythm
Table 2: Considerations and activities, which can be applied within each step of the GPM process

==Project Human Resource and Stakeholder Management==
Within these knowledge areas there is four steps; planning, acquiring, developing and managing the team.

'''Planning human resources '''
- Define needed project staffing; roles, responsibilities and capabilities. In a global team it is important to consider where are the needed skills available, maybe some countries and people have more knowledge within a specific area or as mentioned in pros and cons, a researcher researching in own country has an advantage due to culture and language understanding. However also pay attention to how it could have disadvantages off-shoring or outsourcing, due to cultural, language and time difference within the team.
- Use

'''Acquire project team '''
Acquire the needed team members.

'''Develop team '''
- When developing a team it is important to pay attention to interpersonal skills such as cultural background etc. As a project manager it is also important to understand own cultural background to find common ground, identify similarities and differences within the team. In order to get insight and understanding of the individual team members tools as attitudinal surveys [Link: http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09301.pdf], belbin test [Link http://www.belbin.com], interviews, ability tests etc. can be used. These tools can help the project manager when proactively trying to avoid conflicts or understanding how to possibly handle future conflicts. As well it can lead to more efficiency, trust and commitment within the team.
- Create trust and agreement within the virtual team: As described earlier face-to-face meetings are one of the best ways to create trust and understanding. Having an early meeting enhances the chances of a good group dynamic <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 3." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 51-59. Print. Summary: Description of trust building in GPM. Establishing, maintaining and keeping long-term trust</ref>.
- Another way to enhancing the level of understanding and trust within a team is by making team building exercises <ref> Osman, Hassan. "3 Fun and Easy Virtual Team Building Activities." The Couch Manager. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.thecouchmanager.com/3-fun-and-easy-virtual-team-building-activities/>. Summary: Article on three different activities for team building in a virtual team</ref>.
- Develop informal socialization customs such as checking up on team members, making a virtual room for informal socialization or similar.
- Aligning roles, tasks and responsibilities for each member.
- Make a resource calendars to ensure tasks are solved on time, consider time zones and days off. Remember that other cultures have other holidays and traditions.

'''Managing project team '''
- As described in the ten principles it is important to keep a rhythm within the virtual team. Keeping the meeting plans ensuring every team member is engaged in the work and takes responsibility.
- Share leadership by giving specific tasks to specific team members.
- Listen to the members and provide feedback and coaching.
- In a virtual team as in every other team, conflicts are likely to occur. Some approaches can be taken into account for resolving conflicts that can be a threat to a project. Solving the issue by confronting it, compromising, avoiding confrontation, smoothening out and forcing the team to move on <ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 4." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 63-65. Print. Summary: Describes the sources of conflicts, the levels, how it can influence I GPM and the steps to managing conflicts.</ref>. The project manager should be aware that different cultures react very different on conflicts some are very willing to confront, takes criticism as a way to improve, and some are more likely to avoid the conflict and see confrontation as a way of getting the team out of balance <ref> Ford, John. "Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams." Cross Cultural Conflict Resolution in Teams. N.p., Oct. 2001. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://www.mediate.com/articles/ford5.cfm>. Summary: Article describes how different cultures handle conflicts</ref>.

==Project communication management<ref> Binder, Jean. "Chapter 7, 8, and 9." Global Project Management: Communication, Collaboration and Management across Borders. Aldershot: Gower, 2007. 91-118. Print.</ref>==
In project communication management the focus is on planning, managing and controlling the communication.

'''Plan communication '''
- Determine appropriate channel for communication [Link: http://www.thecouchmanager.com/the-ultimate-list-of-virtual-team-technology-tools/]. Maybe some members need training in using a specific communication media.
- Establish ground rules, communication rules and create a common language and common understanding, e.g. a list of important words and their meaning.

'''Manage and control communication '''
As a project manager it is always important to be aware of different communication techniques and even more crucial it becomes when the communication is to a cross cultural team. Generally a message should have a purpose, is it to control, motivate, express an emotion or inform. However when communicating there is always some background noise which can disturb the purpose. Too much information could give an overload meaning some of the information might not be recorded. Emotions could influence how the receiver interprets the message, language barriers can make it hard for some to understand the meaning etc.<ref> "Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/shannon-and-weaver-model-of-communication/>. Summary: Describing Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication." </ref>. Model XX shows a message’s way from the sender to the receiver. In a cross cultural team it is important to remember that the members have very different backgrounds, might interpret the message differently, might have different limits to information overload, might have different motivations etc. The way a person interprets a message can be influenced by different dimensions as mentioned, however the manger can control this by choosing an appropriate style, using visualization and appearing credible <ref> "Cross Cultural Communication." Communication Theory RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2015. <http://communicationtheory.org/cross-cultural-communication/>.</ref>. For more information on communication, research, theories and techniques visit e.g. http://communicationtheory.org.

'''Figure 2:''' Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication

=Conclusion=
As described in the article there is many aspects that can influence a GPM process with a virtual team. However by correctly managing the team it is possible to benefit in many ways. The project manager’s focus should be on how to deal with issues such as language barriers, geographical distance as well as cultural differences within the team.

=Annotated Biography=

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