ICT Tools and Group Dynamics : ICT Tools Enhancing the Communication in Intercultural Project Teams Alternatively Working in a Collocated and Virtual Context at the Forming and Storming Stages

Abstract

Due to the prevalence of virtual and hybrid project teams, in the contemporary business environment, the use of ICT tool has also increased, as means of communication and collaboration. The research at hand aims to discover the ways such tools can enhance communication and, implicitly collaboration, of intercultural virtual and hybrid teams, at their early stages of group development. The research can be seen as consisting of two interrelated parts: the literature review and the empirical segment. The literature review highlights the most important culture and virtual environment related issues, which trigger the necessity of ICT tools’ use. The research framework promotes the choice of an ICT tool for two different project groups, based on their communication and collaboration needs. The study is an explorative one, conducted qualitatively, and based on the principles of design science. The results of repeated observation sessions, transferred into graphs, served as a base for interviews’ structures and further analysis. The observed and perceived benefits of the used ICT tool were transferred into an affinity board including the most beneficial functionalities. All the resulting information was analysed and concluded upon, in accordance to the literature review. The results of the research indicate that, although not a group development panacea, ICT tools can improve the quality of the incipient phases of group development, in certain ways: communication is encouraged and facilitated regardless the implemented communication model; meetings’ efficiency is increased; workflow is improved by work synchronisation and awareness; client communication and collaboration is favoured; the adoption of new members is streamlined and the impact of direct interaction’s low extent is alleviated.