Comments on: Transforming Virtual Teams http://svprojectmanagement.com/transforming-virtual-teams Project management wisdom from practictioners and the UCSC Extension in Silicon Valley Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:04:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Randall Englund http://svprojectmanagement.com/transforming-virtual-teams/comment-page-1#comment-1245 Randall Englund Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:54:44 +0000 http://svprojectmanagement.com/2008/08/04/transforming-virtual-teams/#comment-1245 Colleague and author of <a rel="nofollow" title="Kind Ambition" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0976614103/creatinganenv-20" rel="nofollow"> Kind Ambition, Ian Blei </a> offers a viewpoint about communications that also impacts managing virtual teams. Pull and push technologies mimic our natural communication the way databases try to mimic our brain's ability to sort information. Push technology is like commercials on TV. You didn't request this information; it is being pushed toward you. Pull technology is more like a search engine. You actually pursue the information you want. Each has its place; we need to look at what best serves us in communication. Communication in the form of dialogue works best with gentle pull technology. We ask questions, we delve, we probe, we explore with each other. We need to relax, and not pull too hard. If we're so focused on pulling a specific piece of information or answer, our “search” can be too narrow; missing potentially important information. The other downside is where pulling too hard begins to affect the other person like pushing; they feel like they're being subjected to an interrogation, and their reactions will obstruct effective communication. It helps us communicate better with remote partners if we try to create more pull instead of push. Randy Englund <a href="http://www.englundpmc.com" rel="nofollow">www.englundpmc.com</a> Colleague and author of Kind Ambition, Ian Blei offers a viewpoint about communications that also impacts managing virtual teams. Pull and push technologies mimic our natural communication the way databases try to mimic our brain’s ability to sort information. Push technology is like commercials on TV. You didn’t request this information; it is being pushed toward you. Pull technology is more like a search engine. You actually pursue the information you want. Each has its place; we need to look at what best serves us in communication.

Communication in the form of dialogue works best with gentle pull technology. We ask questions, we delve, we probe, we explore with each other. We need to relax, and not pull too hard. If we’re so focused on pulling a specific piece of information or answer, our “search” can be too narrow; missing potentially important information. The other downside is where pulling too hard begins to affect the other person like pushing; they feel like they’re being subjected to an interrogation, and their reactions will obstruct effective communication.

It helps us communicate better with remote partners if we try to create more pull instead of push.

Randy Englund
http://www.englundpmc.com

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