Best Practices to Increase the Success of Your Virtual Project Team IV

Using Sub-Teams

The larger the virtual team the more complex it becomes and the more difficult for one person to manage overall. I have found that any more than 8 members of the core project team is difficult for one person to manage effectively when the team is a remote or virtual team. Over 8 members and I prefer to have sub-team leads to help manage smaller teams.

Sub-teams may be based upon major tasks of the project (sub-team for technology, application development, design, marketing, etc.).  As a best practice, be sure that the sub-team leads and their teams are diverse – in experiences and skill levels. Additionally, do not pull sub-teams only from one geographic location (such as headquarters). As an example, let’s assume your sub-team will be responsible for the marketing component of a project. You would want your sub-team lead to have a strong background in marketing and for his/her team to be comprised of members from throughout the organization with varied backgrounds and experiences in marketing. This diversity enables for more creativity in approaching the work and in accomplishing the goals of the sub-team.

It is often easy for the project manager to select sub-team leads based on the project manager’s location. For example, if the project manager is based in London, she may want to have all sub-team leads also in the London office. This does not enable for diversity on the team (though it may be easier for the project manager certainly!) and impacts the perception the rest of the team will have on how sub-team leads are selected.

As the project manager, meet weekly with the sub-team leads to check in on progress. Your sub-team leads should be meeting regularly with their teams. Your sub-team leads should be developing the project schedule for their component of the project, which should then be rolled up into the overall project plan. I prefer that sub-team leads follow processes set for the entire project – such as status reporting, communications, etc. This enables for consistency among all sub-teams and easier management from the project manager’s perspective. Be sure your sub-team leads have the resources (tools, technology, people, support, etc.) they need to be successful.