Global teams

Global teams might resemble virtual and hybrid teams in many ways, but they do have differences beyond virtual teams even though they often work virtually. However, global teams often have clusters of people working at a particular site which may form stronger working relationships or cliques. In a global team, you will work with your team across different time zones, languages and cultures and that may cause conflict, frustration and misunderstanding which often inhibit creativity.  

Leaders must recognise and actively overcome the barriers that might impede the business’s success. There may be different employment laws, salaries and benefits across teams which may lead to resentment and difficulty enforcing working practices.  

The challenges that virtual, global or hybrid teams face might happen in the team formation stage. You start in the forming stage where everyone is polite and nice, putting their best image forward. As people get a little more comfortable, the storming phase begins, and we see power plays and hierarchies form. When that settles, the team moves to norming, where a daily pace and cultural norms embed. Everyone knows what they are doing and how things are done. Theoretically, the team moves to high performance. However, the reality is that many times, teams get stuck in storming and that becomes the norm. Such conflict might look like missed targets or confusion over responsibilities. On the other hand, you may be under-managing. When you under-manage you allow the culture and behaviours to naturally evolve. As a result, the team gets stuck in norming, doing things the way they have always done them, settling and drifting along unconsciously. LeaderX strives for high-performing teams and invests themselves in making teamwork a priority. If you would like to explore more about Team Formation, click the link below.