December 2001 - Vol. 44 No. 12

Collaborative technologies, sometimes referred to as "groupware applications" given their deployment to support groups of individuals engaging in collaborative tasks, have developed rapidly in the last few years. Much of this expansion has been fueled by the dramatic increases in Internet penetration in societies around the world, making it possible for globally distributed teams to work on projects. We see these technologies being applied in a variety of ways, ranging from organizational communication and decision making to distributed software inspections and development to virtual education initiatives. The systems themselves include an array of technologies that may include video- and audioconferencing, shared calendaring, (digital) document management systems, text-based group support systems, and many more.

Technology does not make cultural and business boundaries disappear simply because it exists.

Communicating over differing continents and time zones is not an obstacle when the quality and tone of the communication are viewed as important as the project at hand.

Case study findings from several corporate environments suggest that successful virtualization does not depend on the degree of technological sophistication. It's how the tools are used that matters.