Please briefly, comment on each post separately, like I agree, my point of view.....

Post#1:

Wikipedia is a multilingual, free open content online encyclopedia written and maintained by a community of volunteers. Wikipedia is a great example of how to manage performance of a large-scale, volunteer-based service. Volunteers at Wikipedia monitor one another and have policies and guidelines in place with clearly defined consequences. Additionally, there is an escalation and dispute resolution process in place. A positive aspect of Wikipedia's performance management efforts is that it is accessible, and promotes accountability by tracking the IP addresses of those who make edits to the pages. Negative aspects of this volunteer-based performance approach are that there is no direct obligation for the volunteers to be consistent and there are no deadlines, so effectively managing performance can be a challenge.

Post#2:

Wikipedia may not be the first source that I would use to get information, but it will give me an idea or overview. Anyone can write the entries - it's open to all and can be modified and edited by anyone. However, Wikipedia's administrators protect some pages from direct editing if they believe they are regularly subjected to "vandalism" - the addition of abusive language or falsehoods.

Wikipedia is self-policing and relies on its community of volunteer editors to improve the quality and accuracy of the pages over time. Writers are encouraged to back up factual statements with verifiable references and authoritative sources as often as possible.

Wikipedia has rules - lots of rules. One obvious one is not being dishonest. Another is avoiding opinion and sticking to verifiable facts. But it is possible to set up a user account with a pseudonymous username to allow you to edit anonymously. However, using anonymous accounts for blatant misrepresentation and puffery - known as sock puppetry - is often spotted and the offending content challenged or removed by other editors.

Strengths:

1. Wikipedia is completely free, providing access to information on millions of topics to anyone with Internet capabilities.

2. Wikipedia is constantly updated by the hour. In comparison, print encyclopedias are usually updated annually.

3. Wikipedia is a great place to start your research, giving you background information on your topic and possible keywords to help you conduct more in-depth research elsewhere.

4. Sources used in the articles are cited, allowing further investigation into any topic.

Weaknesses:

1. Anyone can create, edit, or delete Wikipedia articles.

2. Wikipedia articles cannot be considered scholarly, because we know nothing about the contributors.

3. Articles are works-in-progress, meaning changes are constantly occuring to the information. When an article is first published, the information might waver back and forth between viewpoints before achieving a neutral tone. Viewing the behind-the-scenes discussion can be a valuable way of learning about those varying perspectives.

4. Sometimes articles are vandalized, whether for fun, as a hoax, or because the subject is controversial.

5. The intended audience can vary-- some articles are written from an insider's view, with highly technical language, while some are written for a more general audience. This can be both frustrating and valuable depending on what one is looking for, and either way is a warning sign that the information can be inconsistent.

post#3:

Some of the benefits of virtual teams are the reduction of expenditure on travel and risks associated with driving to and from work every day. Virtual teams minimize personal and professional disruptions due to travel, minimizes commuting time by allowing employees to telecommute, and reduces the need for brick-and-mortar office space. Other benefits that were not listed on the slides are flexibility for parents with small children that would need to attend daycare while parents are at work, being able to work without typical office distractions, and the ability to wear casual attire while working virtually. Some of the challenges of virtual teams are that they may lack clear performance standards and team identity, lack of training on how to improve performance, and difficult for team members to keep up with group developments. Other challenges that were not listed in the slides are reliance on internet, employees that take advantage and are not actually at home working but are out shopping, and a lack of holding employees accountable.

The methods to turn "B players" into a winning team would be to not limit team processes with other tasks or organizational requirements, provide good team design and organizational support, and give feedback only on processes that the team members can control. You should also design and implement the best system possible and consider the dangers of a poorly implemented system. Positive feedback and motivation will also influence positive team behavior.

Post#4:

Teamwork is essential and good communication also, having trust in one another, when it comes to virtual teams. Team building exercises can be beneficial to bring up morale. The pros are virtual teams save an organization money. Some team members may enjoy the flexibility that virtual teams offer. Productivity can increase with virtual teams. When you've employed virtual teams, you can also increase productivity with shift work. The cons are the most obvious disadvantage is the one that is most out of an organization's controlthe internet. While communication is an advantage if the managers make the effort and use the right tools, communication can be a huge hurdle to overcome. The issue is pervasive in texting or email, where tone can be misinterpreted. It can also be harder to get time to bond when team members are not physically present. Virtual teams can create @ headache for managers who are responsible for directing them. Managers must have very good communication skills and the right tools to assign, monitor, and track the team's progress. This is especially the case when it comes to virtual project management. Good leaders can turn B players into an A team, by following the right strategy, gathering precise performance data, giving accurate feedback, and building and maintaining high morale.