Does Distance Matter?

What are the major differences between collocated and distance work, and why does distance matter?

First off, personal connection is very important. People generally feel more comfortable around each other when there is a close connection, or common ground that has been established during their first meeting. With collocated work, team members are around each other whilst working and can observe behavioural changes and moods by simply looking at the other member. This is very difficult to do when distance becomes a factor. Another big difference is that of coupling. It is easier for collocated members to work on tightly coupled pieces of a project, since they can quickly form groups for discussion etc. Distance makes tight coupling very difficult, since it is time-consuming to set up the meetings for imprompto discussions. Collaboration Readiness and Collaboration Technology Readiness are also 2 major factors when answering the above question. Often enough, people do not want to work with the new technology since they are scared of it, or think that it might hinder their particular way of doing things. Then there are the language, cultural and time barriers that further enhance the divide between working together or over distances.

Will it be possible to make distributed teams as efficient as collocated ones in the future?

Personally, I do not think so. The world is built on communication, trust and the simple human interactions which are almost automatically generated by our subconscious when we meet new people. One adapts to the other person standing before you through body-language, quirks and gestures and also tone of voice coupled with facial expressions. There are a multitude of factors which only personal interaction can relay which will never be possible through the use of technology. There might be vast improvements on the technologies in the future, but none will surpass the personal interactive properties of close proximity...that which is needed to keep a well-oiled human project machine functioning at optimum speed and capacity.