Presenters: Ronald Yates and Marachel Knight

Saturday, February 9, 2013 | 11:20a.m. – 12:35p.m.

Washington Marriott Wardman Park | Maryland Suite B

VIRTUAL LEADERS AND MANAGERS

MASTERING THE ART OF VIRTUAL

CONNECTIONS

Ron Yates BEYA 2011 Service Award Winner

Marachel Knight BEYA 2013 President’s

Award Winner

Presenter Bios:

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

Ronald Yates, Senior Manager- Program Operations (Strategic Missile & Defense Systems) Ron Yates is currently the Strategic Missile and Defense System’s Program Operations Manager at the Boeing Company. Ron is responsible for many virtual project management teams throughout the US. In 1984 Ron started his career working for the Department of Defense as an Industrial Engineer. Ron supported the development and sustainment of the ICBM land base missile, including the first implementations of Theory of Constraints and other process improvement activities. In 1995, Ron transitioned over to Rockwell International as an Product IPT manager, and was apart of the transition team when Boeing acquired Rockwell in 1996. Since then, Ron has held many different management positions including operations manager, program manager until he was selected for his current position. Ron received his Bachelors degree from The Ohio State University in Industrial & Systems Engineering, and his Masters Degree from the Air Force Institute of Technology in Engineering Management. Ron's current hobbies and interests include coaching & playing most sports, fishing, golfing, singing, and spending as much time as possible with his wife and three children.

Marachel Knight, Vice President - Program Management (Strategic Programs) Marachel Knight is responsible for managing strategic programs end-to-end; delivering new products and features; and ensuring operational readiness for an effortless customer experience. Marachel previously served as Chief of Staff for the Office of the Senior Executive Vice President-AT&T Technology and Network Operations (ATNO). Marachel has over 17 years of experience with AT&T and has held several leadership positions in Network Planning, Network Engineering, Network Operations and Marketing. Marachel is the inventor of the Systems for Use with Multi-Number Cellular Devices patent (#8064876) and has two other patent filings pending. In addition to her contributions to AT&T, Marachel contributes to her community and the field of engineering through her volunteer efforts. Marachel is a licensed Professional Engineer and certified Project Management Professional. Marachel received her master's degree in information networking from Carnegie Mellon University's Information Networking Institute (CMU INI). Marachel has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Florida State University. Marachel currently resides in Plano, Texas, and enjoys reading, traveling and watching football.

Topic Requirements:

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections Communicating with people and teams is a challenging process. When we communicate live, we derive substantial meaning from visual cues and body language. Virtual connections must rely on specific tools, techniques, and skills to effectively build relationships and accomplish tasks. This workshop will give you these tools to transform your team’s virtual experience. At the end of this session, participants will be able to: a) Identify challenges in virtual communication and management b) Apply voice and interaction techniques that keep teams engaged c) Use effective strategies to create a productive virtual environment d) Revise traditional management techniques to meet the needs of virtual teams Learning Outcomes: Participants will explore tools and techniques to foster increased productivity and communication efficiency of virtual teams and work models.

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

Outline:

•Best Practices and Techniques •Virtual Tools •Meeting Netiquette •Panel and Audience Perspectives

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

1. Apply Soft Leadership Skills • Build Relationships • Build Trust • Engage Team

2. Set Very Clear Expectations 3. Generate Commitment 4. Avoid “Out of Sight and Out of Mind” 5. Communicate Regularly 6. Recognize and Utilitize Team Diversity

Establishing Virtual Team Leadership Connections: Best Practices and Techniques

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

1. Audio Conferencing Services 2. Desktop Webcam Conferencing Service 3. Email and Instant Messaging 4. Videoconferencing 5. Webcast 6. Blog and Wiki Services 7. Initiatives Database 8. SharePoint (Web-enabled collaboration tool) 9. TeamCenter Community

Virtual Tools

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

Meeting Netiquette Virtual meeting ground rules create an engaging

meeting for all participants

Identify yourself as you speak.

Use key pad on phone to signal “I have something to say.” Press any key twice (except 0).

Avoid side conversations.

Avoid side tasks (no email, instant messaging, etc).

Mute telephone if there is disruptive noise in background. However, if you are in a controlled environment, consider leaving your phone un-muted to hear emotions during discussions.

Take turns speaking; avoid interrupting while others are speaking.

Speak loudly and clearly into telephone or speaker.

Let others know if you can’t hear or understand them.

Effective and Engaging Strategies for the Virtual Environment: Setting the Ground Rules

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

Pre-meeting:

Include the SharePoint link and meeting deliverables

Assign meeting roles (Engagement Manager, Facilitator and Scribe)

Take breaks during long meetings to allow attendees to handle emergent,

non-team business

During meeting :

Display team pictures on WebEx

Review meeting “Netiquette”

Start on time and enforce breaks time

Engage others in open dialogue

End of meeting:

Review decisions, action plans, action items

Solicit feedback from team members

Effective and Engaging Strategies for the Virtual Environment: Virtual Meeting Tips and Techniques

Virtual Leaders and Managers: Mastering the Art of Virtual Connections

TRUST and COMMUNICATION

are the keys to

Virtual Leadership Success

VIRTUAL LEADERS AND MANAGERS

MASTERING THE ART OF VIRTUAL CONNECTIONS

Presenters: Ronald Yates and Marachel Knight

Saturday, February 9, 2013 | 11:20am – 12:35pm

Washington Marriott Wardman Park | Room