Which characteristic describes an advantage of a virtual team as compared with other types of...

Virtual teams use computer technology to unite physically dispersed members in order to achieve a common goal. The defining advantage of virtual teams is their ability to overcome the constraints of time and space, allowingpeople to work together who might otherwise not be able to collaborateon a work task. This is particularly beneficial for global organizations that need to pull together the best experts regardless of where they are located in the world.

Image of virtual team collaboration

However, virtual teams face unique challenges compared to face-to-face teams. Because they rely on electronic communication, they often suffer from a lack of nonverbal cues (like body language and tone of voice), which makes communication less rich and more prone to misunderstanding. Consequently, virtual teams often report lower levels of satisfaction with the interaction process and may take longer to build trust and rapport (refuting options B and D). To be effective, managers of virtual teams must ensure that the team has the right technology, that progress is closely monitored, and that efforts are made to create "social presence" through occasional video calls or face-to-face meetings to build the trust that forms more naturally in traditional office settings. Despite these hurdles, the strategic benefit of accessing diverse talent from across the globe makes the virtual team an essential tool in the modern organizational landscape.