Drupal runs on virtual teams. The Drupal project itself is a virtual team project. Many Drupal shops have at least some remote employees. Enterprises that want to bring Drupal in-house are finding that a good way to get top-notch Drupal talent is to allow employees to work remotely. Drupal sites everywhere are being constructed by virtual teams that include both in-house employees and remote contractors. In every possible way, Drupal runs on virtual.

But there are challenges to building effective virtual teams. Project stakeholders have to understand and overcome the challenges while taking full advantage of the benefits. Team leaders need different techniques to manage a virtual project. Team members have to learn how to work effectively in a virtual team. Nothing about it is automatic.

The goal of this session is to help project owners understand how to use virtual teams more effectively, and help contractors and employees understand how to benefit from and contribute to the success of a virtual team. If you are leading or participating in a virtual team now, or are trying to create a new virtual team, or you just want to make a case that you can be effective as a remote employee, this session is for you.

Some of the topics we'll cover:

Benefits of virtual teams, for both companies and team members
Potential problems with virtual teams
Building rapport when you're not in the same room
Staying in touch vs information overload
Mixing timezones, cultures, and languages
Tips for running virtual meetings
Tools that help make virtual teams effective
Stories and examples of making it work