Over the past several years the use of web-based collaboration tools, such as web conferencing services and extranets, has grown dramatically in support of the increasing number of work groups with geographically dispersed members.

These tools have allowed organizations to tap the resources of employees, consultants and vendors in real-time, regardless of their location. Additionally, they have dramatically decreased the cost of serving clients and made more accessible a larger universe of prospective customers.

But at what cost? The danger is that reliance on these tools may reduce the power of personal contact. As the use of online collaboration to support relationships continues to grow, it is critical that organizations integrate a personal touch.

One strategy is to re-invest the savings realized through the use of technology to support travel expenses for occasional personal meetings. This provides the best of both worlds: the ability to move projects forward more rapidly using technology, while exploiting the power of personal presence when required.

The net effect is that the cost to serve work groups and customers remains the same. But the benefit is that the proper mix can propel organizations to maximum efficiency and profitability.

Simply pocketing the savings realized through the use of web-based collaboration technology is a false profit. Putting a face on team participation and customer relationships is a critical investment in enhancing effective collaboration and maintaining stronger relationships.

Laura Schweiker writes extensively on the use of technology by businesspeople and is an evangelist for intranet software and online document management.