Effectiveness and Impact of Virtual Teams Essay Example for Free

Effectiveness and Impact of Virtual Teams Essay Technology is consistently evolving and impacting many organizations worldwide. It has changed many aspects in the workplace, including work styles, communication, and teamwork. Communication has been transformed into the ways of the virtual world, directly affecting group dynamics. Organizations often form teams of employees to serve a variety of purposes and reach goals in a more effective manner than independent work. Teams used to work strictly through face-to-face interactions, but with growing technology, virtual teams have been created and are used fairly often. â€Å"A virtual team is any team whose member interactions are mediated by time, distance, and technology. The core feature is not the technology, but that the team works together on a task while physically separated. Group members can communicate through e-mail, voice mail, video conferencing, electronic bulletin boards, and intranets.† (Levi, 2007, p. 258) Many research studies have been done to assess the effectiveness of virtual teams, examining the positive and negative aspects. This literature review is aimed to analyze several articles where researchers have explored many components of virtual teams and their impact. Vroman and Kovacich (2002) wrote an article that analyzed â€Å"the interactions of a virtual interdisciplinary team.† They explain computer-mediated communication (CMC) to be the basis of virtual teams, which they then compare to face-to-face teams. They examined the Interdisciplinary Training for Health Care for Rural Areas (ITHCRA) project, which is a team comprised of many different types of health professionals (e.g. clinical psychologist, nurse practitioner, nutritionist, etc.) The team’s ultimate goal was to develop an interdisciplinary health care curriculum, solely using CMC. ITHCRA functioned the same as any other team working together would, and faced the same challenges and developmental processes (forming, storming, norming, performing, and transforming). They additionally had to learn the ways of the new communication technology, which was an obstacle for many of the group members. The developmental process of the virtual team was similar to that of a face-to-face team, however, a number of differences were found. The forming phase was very  typical for team development. Team building and norm development took precedent of the project tasks initially. They had met face-to-face once, and after looking at their communication after this occurred, it was obvious they had formed social relationships and were more committed. This raised the question: what would have happened if the face-to-face meeting did not take place? It may have been more effective to have two groups in this study so comparisons could be made (e.g. one group solely virtual, the other group allowed 1-3 face-to-face meetings). It is hard to determine whether certain aspects of team development would have taken place without the opportunity to see their team members in a more personal way. Storming took place as well, which is when teams face certain conflicts. There were no apparent differences for this development in the virtual team. Norming, performing, and transforming phases of development all contributed to the team’s success and helped them complete their tasks and reach their goals. Vroman and Kovacich (2002) provided a good analysis of ITHCRA and the ways in which it was successful and where the members were challenged. They portrayed virtual teams as being more convenient, effective, and less time consuming when completing tasks. However, it allows for less personal contact and can be more difficult for some to communicate and fulfill the expectations of the group project. It may have been more effective to have ITHCRA communicate solely through CMC and compare them to a team with the same tasks and goals, but who communicated through a combination of CMC and face-to-face meetings. More valid results would be accessible to draw more accurate conclusions. It was interesting to use a interdisciplinary team, however, it may have acted as another variable besides CMC, which would then alter the results. Kirkman, Rosen, Tesluk, and Gibson (2004) conducted a research study on the impact of team empowerment on virtual team performance. â€Å"Team empowerment is defined as increased task motivation that is due to team members’ collective, positive assessments of their organizational tasks (Kirkman Rosen, 2002). They examined team empowerment through the teams potency, meaningfulness, autonomy, and impact to determine its’ impact on process improvement and customer satisfaction. Kirkman et al. (2004) studied a service organization that utilized high technology and frequently formed virtual teams to complete the company’s tasks and goals. Each team member had different roles within the organization and was separated from each  other geographically. The researchers moderated the effects of face-to-face meetings to examine the relationship between team empowerment and both process improvement and customer satisaction. Kirkman et al. (2004) used surveys, observation, a team empowerment measure they had created, and customer satisfaction and process improvement scorecards to test their hypotheses, which were that 1. Team empowerment will have a positive relation to virtual team process improvement, 2. Team empowerment will have a positive relation to virtual team customer satisfaction, and 3. The number of team’s face-to-face meetings will alter the relationship between team empowerment and process improvement (the fewer face-to-face meetings the stronger the relationship), and 4. The number of team’s face-to-face meetings will alter the relationship between team empowerment and customer satisfaction (the fewer face-to-face meetings the stronger the relationship). Their results indicated support for hypotheses one, two, and three, but did not support the fourth hypothesis. The researchers produced a well-designed study with significant, meaningful results that help contribute to the understanding of virtual teams. They operationally defined all of the terms and measures to provide an equal understanding for everyone. It seems that virtual teams have many positive characteristics that are more effective compared to the common face-to-face teams. With the rising technology, virtual teams may become the norm as researchers continue to understand their components and wire them for optimal success. Montoya-Weiss, Massey, and Song (2001) wrote an article on the findings of their research study. They â€Å"examined the effects of temporal coordination on virtual teams supported by an asynchronous communication technology.† They measured the mechanism â€Å"process structure† to determine the relationship between conflict management behavior and virtual team performance. They measured conflict management individually for each team member through a questionnaire they created. They defined their dependent variable, virtual team performance, as â€Å"the quality of the team rationale used to support the team decision.† They examined the range, depth, and organization for each team decision. Lastly, they observed and analyzed all communication among the virtual team. Montoya-Weiss et al. (2001) had five hypotheses total, which were tested through statistical analysis. They predicted that for all conflict management behaviors, a positive interaction would result.

Ethical Issues of Human Cloning Essay -- Ethics, Human Cloning

The word "cloning" is commonly used in everyday communication to mean many different technological procedures. Cloning is more specifically defined as somatic cell nuclear transfer. Simply explained by Glenn McGee in his article Primer on Ethics and Human Cloning as "the starvation and subsequent implantation of DNA from one organism (e.g., cells specialized to make that organism's hair or milk) into an egg whose DNA nucleus has been removed. The resulting egg and nucleus are shocked or chemically treated so that the egg begins to behave as though fertilization has occurred, resulting in the beginning of embryonic development of a second organism containing the entire genetic code of the first organism," (........).This method was first harnessed in 1952. Further manipulation of the procedure provided the first mammal being cloned in 1996. A sheep named Dolly was created by Dr. Ian Wilmut form PPL Therapeutics and the Roslin Institute of Edinburgh, Scotland. Several more mammals proc eeded Dolly including mice, cows, pigs, cats, rabbits, and a mule in 2003. While progressing leaps and bounds, cloning still provided many undesirable presentations. For example, Dolly was severally obese and died prematurely. Aged chromosomes during her creation is thought to be the cause of her unfortunate death. Many clones created have had complications with their immune system, lung, livers and like Dolly, many have been obese. Cloning has also proven to require nearly endless attempts to provide a full pregnancy resulting in a live mammal. In Dolly's case, she proceeded 277 failed pregnancies. Furthermore than physical complications, many other issues, both tangible and ethical, steadfastly accompany cloning. Cloning, still being entirely exp... ...in need of organ transplants. One needs a liver, another needs a kidney, two need a new lung, and another needs a heart. Should I justify therapeutic cloning, I would then have to justify the murder of an innocent local to provide organs to these five people in need. If my wife needs a kidney transplant and I can provide a match and giver her one of mine, I have the conscious ability to make that decision. However, and embryo, a premature child, does not have the voice to say that he or she is willing to give up his or her life to benefit research of medical advances. The idea of being able to use exactly compatible cells to safe lives sounds like a beautiful reverie. If there was a way to create this miracle without creating an embryo, without killing a life, I would be extremely supportive. Until that breakthrough occurs I will stand firm behind my beliefs.

How the Prologue in Romeo and Juliet Prepares the Audience for the Play Essay

The prologue to Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ prepares the audience by making a short summary of the play so it gets the audience thinking about what the story is about. The prologue is a sonnet which is a 14 line poem, it is also known as an english, elizabethan sonnet which contains 3 quatrains and a rhyming couplet. A sonnet is usually a love poem and that is exactly what ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is about. The first quatrain of the sonnet is about the feud and conflict between the two families. Both of the families have the same status ‘ both alike in dignity’ but they seem to be holding a ‘grudge’ against each other, we aren’t told what causes the hate within the two houses but it is there and drags the households into fights this is particulaly shown in line 4 ‘where civil blood make civil hands unclean’ the word ‘blood’ is meaning that death and injuries occur due to the feud the families have. ‘Civil’ is meant to mean poliet or fair which is a bit ironic since there isn’t any politeness. The second quatrain is about the lovers, Romeo and Juliet, and their deaths. ‘From forth the fatal loins of these two foes’ this line is saying that the two household enemies have produced a pair of lovers, this is mainly emphasised in the phrase ‘ fatal loins’ this implies that these being in love is deadly and they are also involved with the feud of their parents. It also means that their fate has been decided and that death will be their destiny. The second line ‘A pair of star cross’d lovers take their life† this is implying that the stars which is meaning their destinies, since they believed that stars told their destiny like horoscopes, so being star cross’d lovers means that their destinies are entwined but they are also against each other due to the feud. The last line of the second quatrain ‘doth with their death bury their parents’ strife’ this shows that in order to end the feud the deaths of Romeo and Juliet seem to take affect on their parents. The next quatrain is about both love and hate. The first line ‘The fearful passage of their death-marked love’ this means that all the events that they go through will lead them them to their destinies of death. The second line says that their parents anger is something that isn’t easy to take away but in the next line ‘which but their children’s end, nought could remove’ this means that the only thing they can’t stop is their children’s death and it was caused by their hatred to one another. The last line ‘is now the two hours’ traffic of our stage’ this implies that the events that they have mentioned will now take place on the stage by the actors. The rhyming couplet is the last to lines of the sonnet. ‘The which, if you with patient ears attend, what here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.’ These two lines are now directed to the audience and that now they are going to show them the play if they are willing to stay. The phrase ‘patient ears attend’ show that because they are on a stage they don’t usually use scenery so you have to listen and use their imagination to help what is happening. In conclusion the prologue to Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ prepare the audience for the play by mentioning the key facts to the play so they know what to expect when that particular event is being performed also it helps to explain the parts of the play which seem to be a mystery like the parents hatred, the audience would not know that the two families are meant to be sharing the same status just that there are two groups who don’t like each other. It also prepares the audience like a warning saying that death will occur in the play as well as love and hatred.

Basic Rights of an Employee - 1196 Words

Your basic rights as an employee There are minimum rights and entitlements set out in law, which apply to ALL employees, whether it is written in your employment agreement or not. Your employment agreement cannot trade off or provide for less than these minimums. The law protects you at work by setting the minimum rights you have as an employee with paid time off work the minimum you can get paid public holidays sick leave bereavement leave giving you the right to refuse to do work that would likely harm you making sure that all workers, including young people, are safe at work and not unlawfully discriminated against. Your employer must: * Pay you at least the minimum wage * Provide you with annual leave * Provide or†¦show more content†¦For example, a prospective employer cannot ask a job applicant certain family-related questions during the hiring process. In most states, employees have a right to privacy in the workplace. This right to privacy applies to the employees personal possessions, including handbags or briefcases, storage lockers accessible only by the employee, and private mail addressed only to employee. Employees may also have a right to privacy in their telephone conversations or voicemail messages. However, employees have very limited rights to privacy in their e-mail messages and Internet usage while using the employers computer system. There are certain pieces of information that an employer may not seek out concerning a potential job applicant or employee. An employer may not conduct a credit or background check of an employee or prospective employee unless the employer notifies the individual in writing and receives permission to do so. Other important employee rights include: * Right to be free from discrimination and harassment of all types; * Right to a safe workplace free of dangerous conditions, toxic substances, and other potential safety hazards; * Right to be free from retaliation for filing a claim or complaint against an employer (these are sometimes called whistleblower rights); * Right to fair wages for work performed. Federal Regulations on Employment Relationships Following is a quick summary of key federal laws related to employment. *Show MoreRelatedSupervision And Leadership Of Certificated Employees1006 Words   |  5 PagesSupervision and Leadership of Certificated Employees in Idaho Schools The State of Idaho provides school districts with the flexibility to offer certified employee different types of contracts depending on the situation and tenure. Each of these contracts requires due process rights, evaluation protocol and grievance procedures although the procedures may vary slightly. 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