The Role of Virtual Teams in Project Management During the Pandemic and Economic Crisis Situations in Sri Lanka: A Case Study of Maga Engineering (Pvt) Ltd, Sri Lanka

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to reveal the success of the virtual teams in pandemic and crisis situations in Sri Lanka since these turbulent situations impacted highly on the on-going projects and the Project Management. This research has been conducted as a Case study method and in this case study approach, semi-structured in-depth interview and participants’ observation have been followed to investigate the research questions by incorporating the interpretive technique in analyzing the transcribed information from the interview of the Project Manager of the Maga Engineering (Pvt) Ltd, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Researchers found that the software development project of the company has been successfully run during the pandemic and crisis time in Sri Lanka. The virtual teams showed a positive performance since the projects have to be completed within the stipulated time frame. Further, during the crisis time also the organization saved its overhead cost which was a benefit to the company. It is also found that Maga had efficient team leaders/managers to manage these virtual projects during these turbulent situations. However, the teams’ performance in the virtual environment is not much efficient as the physical environment. Therefore, the researchers recommend that the right team leaders, the appropriate leadership style, and employees’ motivation are very much essential factors to a successful virtual teams’ performance especially in crisis situations. Keywords: Case Study Approach, Crisis, Pandemic situation, Project Management, Virtual Teams.