The writing world
is run almost exclusively
with virtual teams.
I’ve never met my editor
or publisher or cover designer.
With virtual teams,
more than with any other
type of team,
responsibilities have to be clear
and timelines have to be kept.
Each team member is doing
her own thing.
There is often little communication
between the team members.
All communication is flowed
through the coordinator.
So any overlap in roles
causes… well.. chaos,
duplication, angst.
The coordinator has to be clear
about who is doing what.
Timelines are also more important
because, again,
there is little communication
between team members.
Jackie doesn’t know that
the part she needs from Jill
has been delayed.
Also because Jackie has limited contact
with Jill,
any failure like missing a timeline
is magnified.
Jill is seen as unreliable and untrustworthy.
Erin Meyer points out more differences
between virtual and non-virtual teams.