From Sea to Shining Sea…Bi-Coastal Teaming  

This presentation addresses the issues that technical communicators face when team members are in different geographic locations. Issues such as communication, team building, project management and planning, and successful practices that help teams succeed without regard to their physical locations will be discussed. The management of distributed teams, what obstacles managers face, including labor and employment laws, cost-of-living relative to salaries in varied locations, and how to conduct performance appraisals when managers and employees work thousands of miles apart will also be explored, along with employee perspectives and issues of change and collaboration.

Chappell, Leah P., Deborah Gill-Hesselgrave, Strecker Peterson. STC Proceedings (2001). Presentations>Collaboration>Online

Managing a Distributed Documentation Group  

A distributed documentation group is one in which people work together from distant locations, The new problem in managing such a group is that casual, face-to-face communication is missing. Technological solutions include source control, email, groupware, telephone, and the World Wide Web. Human solutions may be even more important. Autonomy, explicit standards, various ways to meet, and deliberately working across locations build the necessary communications and trust.

Jackson, Ken. STC Proceedings (1996). Presentations>Management>Collaboration>Online

Taming a Telecommuting Team  

“Telecommuting” includes situations where members of a group (department, team, other) are working in different locations, communicating with each other and with clients by phone, fax, and e-mail. The team may be dispersed through an urban area, nationally, or internationally. Telecommuting has advantages and disadvantages over the traditional centralized working group and presents new challenges to management and staff As a team leader of telecommuting technical writers on software development projects, I have dealt with many of these Issues. In this discussion I cover some of the advantages and disadvantages and some principles and rules of successful telecommuting teams.

Weber, Jean Hollis. STC Proceedings (1996). Presentations>Management>Collaboration>Online