Start with recent history of work: from going to a workplace to work to current situation of virtual work; the ability to do many jobs from anywhere.

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2 Start with recent history of work: from going to a workplace to work to current situation of virtual work; the ability to do many jobs from anywhere. Ask the question what next? If no one raises the possibility of robots taking over our work, ask question: who is confident that robots will NOT take their job over the next decade. Invite discussion/points of view. Let discussion run until point made that robots are not humans But this is not a presentation about robots. It s about people. Managing people is difficult because people are not machines 2

3 Introduce myself and my presentation with the story of the establishment of the Mail & Guardian online and my first virtual employee and the realisation we were at the start of a new era of work. 3

4 Before I go into detail about managing virtual teams, let me introduce you to my team: Central team based in South Africa, 9 members: Head, Editor, Content Manager, 3x Proposal Managers, 2x Graphic Designers, 1x Administrator 4

5 Describe Standard Bank s approach to proposal support in a global business: Proposal support to the bank s businesses in 20 African countries; also London, New York, Dubai, Beijing. Producing about 200 proposals & presentations a year, most of them bespoke. 5

6 APMP based process: Prep session; kick off session; multiple drafts; full range of reviews and edit; production; delivery Many RFPs for multinational corporations involve multiple countries Exec sponsor: on big deals positions opportunity at kick off. Ensures all understand strategic importance of bid and gets commitment. Break down proposal into separate work streams: avoids confusion, allows comms to smaller groups; helpful when there s a big team participating in telecons 6

7 Differentiate between virtual direct reports and ad hoc teams: Alot has been written about managing virtual direct reports so my focus will be on managing ad hoc (project) teams in a proposals environment. Direct reports: Management authority (do it because boss said so) and accountability Focus on relationships (these are our regular work colleagues) Ad hoc (project) teams: Focus on communication Influence vs authority (do it because I want to do it) 7

8 A few brief points before we focus on ad hoc teams: Flexible working arrangements (working hours): My team is officially office based, but allowed to work from home or other company sites 2 days a week. How can I be sure they are actually working when out of my sight? Output based management: Manage work through clear deliverables and deadlines I don t have to worry what people are doing while at home, so long as they deliver specific outputs on time Managing perceptions back at the office: In a traditional office based work environment, people who are regularly absent from their desks generate negative comments/perceptions, especially where their own managers won t allow flexible working arrangements. It s very important to proactively manage these perceptions before they become widespread. When out of office always send s to all you are working with letting them know you re still at work and how to contact you. 8

9 Ad hoc team definition: assembled for a specific project Geographically dispersed (language, culture, time zones) No direct reporting lines (authority) Managing the matrix: if line manager doesn t support project or gives heavy workload, then tendency is to prioritise line instructions. Project team members all have busy day jobs in addition to the project at hand; difficult to get commitment 9

10 Without management authority, getting things done requires leadership Authority is easy, influence is hard work Do it because someone with authority told me vs do it because I want to do it. The importance of agreements (ensure commitment and accountability). Requires EQ, good comms skills, people skills Sensitivity to cultural differences. Especially re communication, ways of doing things, etc SB all speak English, generally well educated But we still have language issues: DRC French Angola, Mozambique Portuguese Beijing Mandarin Eg: Demand for Mandarin translation; we can t deliver 10

11 Communicate, communicate, communicate! We think we have communicated but discover we have not. Made worse by not working face to face. Comms technology: , telecons, video conferencing, Skype, Lync, etc New technologies have enormous potential and can make communicating and collaborating across distances a lot easier But they also have their downside: things often don t work! Time wasting on set up, poor connections, etc Technology has great potential, but always be prepared to use telephone and as fall backs Use technology for team meetings such as kick off sessions. Position bid, establish agreements re deadlines and deliverables. Always follow up with 1 1 phone calls to confirm agreements and ask about concerns Regular telephonic check ins to confirm understanding, track progress and offer support, especially where language or cultural differences can lead to misunderstanding Eg: Recent big proposal for SA based global multinational, on follow up Mozambique team clearly didn t understand RFP questions; spent some time ensuring team clear about requirements 11

12 It s always best to establish a relationship before work starts; not always possible. Ideally through face to face meetings. Eg: Ref my comms/training road shows across Africa Conduct regular 1 1 phone calls to ensure people don t feel left in the cold and ensure you are aware of issues and can provide support. Follow up all team meetings with 1 1 calls to confirm agreements and clarity re deadlines and deliverables and uncover any issues not raised in team meeting 12

13 PM tech aids collaboration: eg, Sharepoint, MS Lync, proposal management systems. Screen sharing aids collaboration, shared databases of generic info ensure access to required information for all. Develop a simple project management tracking document. Green, orange, red flags. All team members can see progress. Subtle pressure to ensure on time delivery Also regular progress check ins: ask for estimate of % completion of tasks. Keeps up subtle pressure to deliver. Also reminder 24hrs before deadline; phone call reminder on deadline day; renegotiate deadline agreements; what assistance can I provide. What when people don t deliver? Only escalate when all else has failed. Often counterproductive as compromises relationships Where escalation the only way, then best done peer to peer: my proposal manager escalates to me and I escalate to the offender s line manager. Only escalate as high as you have to. 13

14 I ve recently found it quite useful to look at project teams in the light of Tuckman s stages. Even short term project teams go through all the stages, so how to fast track to performance? Very important to get any storming out of the way early. Disputes about solution structure or pricing late in the process create unnecessary pressure. Forming: IDing and calling project team together Storming: Getting agreement on solution/price/strategy before the start Norming: Kick off session, drafts, reviews Performing: This happens the more you work with the same people in different project teams 14

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