The Pros and Cons of Distributed Teams
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I got this article recently, called 5 Reasons Distributed Teams Suck. This is an answer to another article that argues that distributed teams are great and gives us 5 reasons for that. The funny thing is that using the same arguments both authors come to different conclusions. For example:
Reason Number 5:
Pros: It saves energy. While you work at home you don’t waste time and effort for traveling.
Cons: It wastes energy. When you have to travel, you waste a lot more than if you worked in the same country and in the same office.
Where is the problem? Why these guys think so differently upon the same situation? My answer is very simple. The very definition of the “distributed team” they use is different.
When I ask myself the question “What does a distributed team mean?” I divide it into the following questions:
1. How distributed is the team? If the team works in the same town and they don’t work constantly in the office but instead they work at home I believe it really saves money and energy and this kind of distributed team works effectively because they don’t spend time traveling, they use their own computers and they only need a good internet connection to do their work (especially if the team doesn’t need any other special technical equipment). But if the team is disbursed through the globe then it might not be cost-effective at all. Especially if there are long time differences and there is a need to meet face-to-face frequently.
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