Chapter 7: Creating Rapport 115
half an hour she bought the car and became a firm advocate of the brand and
the garage.Building rapport in virtual communication
Twenty years ago, the Internet and email tools were confined to research
labs and computer geeks. Regular business transactions involved cheques,
letters, and faxes, mostly filed in hard copy: jumping in the car to visit sup-
pliers and colleagues was all part of a day’s work. Today, life’s different. Of
course, people still write and phone – the paperless office remains elusive –
but the percentage of electronic transactions has shot through the roof.
People are tweeting, blogging, and managing their lives online. If you lose
your computer connection or have no access to email, you can feel lost and
helpless very quickly.Virtual teams who hold virtual meetings haven’t just entered the workplace;
you’re as likely to join teleconferences for sharing information and speak-
ing to social groups. People are comfortable with the virtual management
of multi-cultural project teams that sit across global networks and work
remotely thanks to technology – conference calls, email and videoconferenc-
ing. Expecting to get to manage our finances online or through an interna-
tional support system is the norm, instead of seeing local bank staff or
postal workers.In this environment of reduced face-to-face contact, you lose the nuances of
facial expressions, the body language, and the subtlety of getting to know the
colleague at the next desk as you work closely with others. At its best, the
virtual team spells freedom and flexibility of working practices, diversity, and
a richness of skills: at its worst, it’s lonely, isolated, and ineffective.The challenge of building rapport through virtual working is now greater than
ever. Little wonder that people are being recruited more for soft skills – the
ability to influence and negotiate – than for technical competence.Here are ten ways to develop rapport over the phone and in teleconferences:✓ Make sure that all the locations are connected and can hear each other
on the phone. Introduce and welcome people with a roll call.
✓ Work to a clear agenda. Set outcomes for the call and agree them with
all participants.
✓ Check that you’ve had input from a mix of people. If necessary, encour-
age the quieter individuals to take part; say, for example, ‘Mike, what are
your thoughts on this?’
✓ Discourage small talk or separate chats at different sites: keep to one
discussion, one meeting, one agenda.