As an ex-journalist, I can write well, facilitate online discussions, do basic Web sites. So partner Simon Berry pitches in from Coventry, England, to handle projects and development. London-based Kevin Harris works on policy, community development issues, and information management for the group's effort, and Drew Mackie specializes in organizing client workshops from his home based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Berry and Peter Mason handle installation and management of clients' hardware. Wilcox credits the Internet with making these virtual work relationships both affordable and efficient.
Online costs are the same, unlike telephone or fax where distance increases costs.
Being a provider of internet solutions gives Partnerships Online a technological edge. That server provides us with e-mail and conferencing suited for team working. It also has excellent Web publishing capabilities which allow e-mail conferencing to be accessed via a browser. But the real benefit of virtual partnerships, Wilcox has found, is the human connection so many home-based workers crave. You need others to bounce ideas around, keep you cheerful, help you make sense of difficult jobs.