The X-culture Handbook of Collaboration and Problem Solving in Global Virtual Teams

According to a 2018 survey, 89 percent of “white-collar” workers at least occasionally work as members of global virtual teams. The percentage has likely increased during the COVID-19 pandemic as bans on international travel and the shifts to telework prompted more online collaboration. Collaboration among people from different countries, cultures, organizations, and institutional environments presents numerous advantages; the diversity of perspectives and knowledge pools greatly enhances the team’s creativity and decision-making. However, such workgroups often have to deal with time-zone differences, limited in-person contact substituted by communication online, and the differences stemming from cultural and institutional diversity, which presents challenges not experienced by traditional collocated teams.

Based on a wealth of research and personal experiences, contributors to The X-Culture Handbook of Collaboration and Problem Solving in Global Virtual Teams review known challenges and recommend evidence-based best practices for working in global virtual teams. The book provides practical advice not only to members of global virtual teams, but also for team managers, coaches, counselors, and educators.

This book is available in an open access digital format.

Vas Taras teaches international business in the Bryan School of Business and Economics at UNC Greensboro. He is the X-Culture Project Director (www.X-Culture.org) where he conducts research on cross-cultural and global virtual teams, crowd-based business problem solving, and experiential learning.