What are some special challenges that virtual teams face? For virtual teams to be effective, what should management ensure?

What will be an ideal response?

Virtual teams may suffer from less social rapport and less direct interaction among members. They aren't able to duplicate the normal give-and-take of face-to-face discussion. Especially when members haven't personally met, virtual teams tend to be more task-oriented and exchange less social-emotional information. Not surprisingly, virtual team members report less satisfaction with the group interaction process than do face-to-face teams. For virtual teams to be effective, management should ensure that (a) trust is established among team members (research has shown that one inflammatory remark in a team member e-mail can severely undermine team trust); (b) team progress is monitored closely (so the team doesn't lose sight of its goals, and no team member "disappears"); and (c) the efforts and products of the virtual team are publicized throughout the organization (so the team does not become invisible).