Although these ideas are not new and which ones to use use depends on your situation, I hope you will find something useful here and add your comments to this post.

Establish & Maintain the Team

• Start with face to face meeting.

• Maintain regular formal and informal interaction.

• Supplement face to face meetings with interaction, eg with video conferences, skype etc.

• Support ongoing face to face interaction with business trips, eg of project manager to maintain relationship.

Define Working Processes

• Hold regular meetings.

• Clarify agenda and document the meeting minutes.

• Ensure meeting hygiene: no typing in background, on time participation etc.

• Establish standard terminology.

• Speak often.

• Set rules.

• Use preferred communications hierarchy, eg phone rather than mail.

• Ensure clear roles and responsiblilities.

• Understand culture.

• Agree which languages to use.

Teambuilding Styles

• Add time to meetings for chat.

• Hold virtual coffee breaks.

• Organise off site meetings.

Information Sharing Tools

• Internet groups

• Forums

• Blogs

• Discussion groups

• Wikis

• Chat rooms

Communications Tools

• e-mail

• Video conferences

• Telephone conference calls

• Web meetings, Webex etc

• Instant messengers

• Skype

• Sharepoint