I've found that for the design phase of projects, it's VITAL to be in the same room.

There are tools to replicate so many things- You can use phone calls, and shared whiteboards.. But they are half-way measures- They don't let you work against each other, or argue back and forth easily, making changes to a design..

I've worked with friends in other states before, and at times, we'd struggle for a design problem for several weeks, before I flew down and we hashed it out in one all-night session of pizza and caffeine.

If it's pure code to spec, perhaps you'll be able to get away without out, but even then, working in the same place ensures that you stay friends, and that you can talk over a design while going out for lunch.

If at all possible, I strongly recommend working in the same place.

For projects with well defined goals and methods of acheiving those goals, it can work.

For more nebulous, complex projects where decisions frequently come down to judgment calls, it doesn't work so well. For instance, startup founders need to work together, literally elbow-to-elbow to give the best chance of success.

Some of my best work has been done with clients that I never met. As always, ymmv, but if you can find a good person online, someone who you can trust and be friends with, there's no reason it won't work.

Not at all. It's important to have trust, but I've had great collaborations with people I've never met.

Timezone's do come into play, but they're not much of a problem either.

If you had a marketing person in France, a QA guy in Singapore, another pair of developers located in NY city and London, England. How do you get everyone collaborating as a team? Setting up a fair meeting time for everyone can be challenging.

Trust can be harder to establish online. Online collaborations work when there are measurable indications of commitment.

I agree with all of you. Have been in project management and product development situations that most of you have been in. What I discovered is the 1st meeting. This initial meeting determines whether the project has a chance to succeed or fail. The way I ran my meetings is that each and every stakeholders must be there in person. This goal of this 1st meeting to have everyone determines everything in terms of goals and objectives. During this time, everyone gets the "feel" whether they believe in the project and whether they believe in their future teammates.

From my experience, most people do not know what to do during this first meeting. In most cases, it is their problem.

In my case, I believe in establishing a Tangible Plan (or Overview) that everyone can unified with. It is about getting everyone to commit to the big picture (the goal, its specific and to each other).

The question is getting everyone to work through specifics of the grand goal.

From my experience, not everyone are willing to be teamplayers. During the 1st meeting, it is about seeing who wants to play teamball and who wants to play "Lone Ranger".

Team collaboration is not about software, It is about a process of getting people to collaborate. 100% team management psychology. ... Remember losers promises while winners commit. Each of your success will be about getting people to commit. .... Thank you very much for all responses.