Virtual group project

It's difficult to form group cohesion with a virtual group. It is difficult to trust people who you have never worked with before and don’t personally know. This would be one drawback of having everyone in different locations. If at all possible it would be helpful for everyone to meet personally at least once before or shortly after work on the project began to learn what roles each person might play in the group. If this was not possible, then it might be helpful to have everyone fill out a questionnaire that included questions such as interests, what role they play in the company and how they see themselves as contributors to the group. Group members should also ask what their goals for the site are and how they envision reaching those goals.

On teams in general it is important to have clearly defined roles and assignments or responsibilities. It’s also important to have a timeline of when tasks will be completed. It is important to discuss progress regularly to make sure assignments will be completed on time. One way to do this in a virtual setting would be through teleconferencing. As long as the group isn’t more than about six people this would work well and people won’t likely be talking over each other. In this type of environment it does help to identify yourself before speaking. Updates could be sent via e-mail and attachments.