Virtual Organizations and Project Management

- Overview

Virtual organizations and virtual project management (VPM) are both ways to work remotely and collaborate on projects:

• Virtual organizations: Use technology to connect employees and teams across different locations and time zones. They can be made up of contractors, subcontractors, vendors, and clients. Virtual organizations can access new markets without geographic restrictions.
• Virtual project management (VPM): A remote working method where a team plans, controls, and completes projects. The project manager leads the team and is responsible for the project's outcome. Virtual project management is similar to traditional project management, but the work is done online or virtually.

- Goals of Virtual Project Management

Organizing and executing business projects requires significant resources, including time, energy and money. Fortunately, you can handle all critical tasks remotely and ensure timely completion with virtual project management (VPM). 

With more than half of U.S. businesses now having a majority of their employees working virtually, embracing remote work is necessary due to its many benefits.

Virtual project management (VPM) is a remote working method that involves real-time tracking and monitoring of tasks and other activities. Since team members and employees are often in different locations or time zones, a virtual project manager ensures everyone understands and achieves the company's goals. 

For many organizations, developing virtual teams, planning projects and implementing them remotely can be challenging, but it is one of the most effective ways to work efficiently.

- Characteristics for Virtual Project Management

Virtual project management is a remote working method where a team of people from different locations work together to achieve business goals and complete tasks. The process is similar to traditional project management, but the team members work remotely and rarely meet in person. 

Here are some tips for virtual project management:

• Use outcome-based management: Instead of evaluating performance based on time spent on tasks, evaluate based on the results achieved. This can help with accountability and ownership, and it can also help accommodate flexible schedules.
• Use virtual project management tools: These tools can help track the status of each team member, what they're working on, and what's delayed. Some examples of virtual project management tools include Asana, Trello, and ClickUp.
• Schedule one-on-one meetings: Schedule one-on-one meetings with each team member to check in and ensure communication.
• Plan meetings in advance: Plan meetings in advance and get good at organizing them to make sure they're purposeful.
• Consider the impact on the bottom line: Virtual teams can reduce office space, equipment, and utility bills.

[More to come ...]