This interpretative phenomenological study used semi-structured interviews of 10 participants to gain a deeper understanding of the experience for virtual team members using collaborative technology. The participants were knowledge workers from global software companies working on cross-functional project teams at a distance. There were no limitations to participant sex, socioeconomic status, or country. The structure of the essence is presented in the established dimensions of team research. The description of the lived experience provides human performance improvement technologists with a deeper understanding of the experiences of team members with regard to working at a distance. The findings showed a mostly positive rating with specific areas where improvement is needed to make teams and their organizations more successful. These recommendations include supporting synchronous video tools, encouraging social team building, hiring self-directed technology users, adopting protocols, and developing an organization-wide support for virtual teams. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]