Abstract:

The literature on management of virtual and offshore project teams contains numerous examples of the ways in which such projects can fail. Typically, the failures relate to one or more of the three cornerstones of project management: the time frame is not adhered to; costs exceed the budget; the quality of the end product does not meet expectations. In most cases, both the cause and the solution lie in human rather than technical factors. This short paper, based on a literature survey and the author's own experience of working with an offshore e-learning content producer, offers a list of guidelines for managers of virtual and offshore project teams to help them avoid the most common pitfalls and reap the benefits of global collaboration.