COLLABORATION: WHAT, WHY, HOW?
The following is an excerpt from my book, "Developing Your Capacity to Lead."
Collaboration: What, Why, and How?
What is collaboration? Collaboration can be defined as the joint effort of multiple individuals, workgroups, or other entities that come together to accomplish a task or project. This collaboration may take place within an organization, (intra-collaboration, or between two or more organizations, inter-collaboration).
Typically, we collaborate when we are trying to solve an identified problem, and because we don’t always have the right solution, or all the skills necessary to develop the right solution, we, therefore, seek to collaborate with others. Almost anything is, in principle, possible through collaboration because you are not limited by your own resources and expertise. You share your vision, you share your goals, and you leverage the resources and expertise of others who seek to support you, and when it works well you can feel the collaborative energy flowing freely.
Collective impact
Collective impact occurs when organizations from different sectors agree to solve a specific social problem using a common agenda, aligning their efforts, and using common measures for success. Collective impact poses many challenges, including the difficulty of bringing together people who have never collaborated before, the competition and mistrust among funders and grantees. The struggle to come to an agreement on shared metrics, the risk of multiple self-anointed backbone organizations, and the perennial obstacles of local politics. All of these together create the challenges that are difficult to overcome and require effective leadership that’s focused, committed, and has a winning strategy.
Under these complex conditions, predetermined solutions cannot be reliably implemented, but rather, the rules of interaction that govern collective impact lead to changes in individual and organizational behavior that create an ongoing progression of alignment, discovery, learning, and the eventual emergence of viable solutions. Their conclusion perhaps correctly is that these leaders realized that fixing one point on the educational continuum—such as better after-school programs—wouldn’t make much difference unless all parts of the continuum improved at the same time and that no single organization, however innovative or powerful could accomplish this enormous alone.
The obligation to solve many of the bigger problems that impact society in general, and which adversely affect health and disease, education, climate change, etc. requires the collaboration of many stakeholders with an array of skills. These stakeholders come from for-profits, non-profits, and governments, and it is mitigated via a varied combination of resources, including money resources, expertise, and strategies that influence positive results, because of the enormity of the need.
Community-based collaboratives have emerged in hundreds of U.S. communities, wrestling with difficult environmental, economic, and other types of public problems, thus, encouraging fast-growing research literature on collaborative governance arrangements at the community or local level. Organizations can act alone for some initiatives, but with the world, as it is, there are more innovative opportunities for collaboration and collectivism, important to solving many of these new world problems.
Typically, to gain a real advantage from collaboration, something must be achieved that could not have been achieved by any one of the organizations acting alone. This concept provides a useful “guiding light” for collaboration, but the second concept, collaborative inertia, captures what happens very frequently in practice when the output from a collaborative arrangement is negligible, the rate of output is extremely slow, or stories of pain and hard grind are integral to successes achieved.
This inertia can be described as a resistance to change or a lack of activity or interest, or unwillingness to try to do anything. In developing a project that requires collaboration, it is important that the collaboration project can and do stimulate interest and creativity as a way of sustaining those involved in the collaboration. The project should represent some change which when successful will provide a new perspective, or innovative process, a product redesign or update that is wanted.
There are always hindrances to a successful collaboration called collaboration blocks:
Collaborating in hostile territory. Is your company set up to foster and support a collaborative effort? Some organizations are clearly not collaborative. You might find, for example, that various teams are rewarded for competing rather than collaborating.
Over-collaborating. An organization, enthusiastic about the benefits of collaboration, may encourage teams, and even individuals, to set up extensive networks.
Overshooting the potential value. Hansen points out that it’s essential to measure the value of a collaborative effort. People get excited about collaborating and spend considerable time and effort.
Underestimating the potential costs. If you are considering a collaborative effort, such as working with the service division to share information development efforts, be certain that the benefits of sharing don’t outweigh the costs.
Misdiagnosing the problems. You might think that people in your company are simply unwilling to collaborate because they prefer to develop their own information. You feel that they believe strongly that they are better at writing content that customers need than anyone else. Thus, you reject collaboration as a potential solution.
Implementing the wrong solution. One organization found that it made a mistake investing in an integrated knowledge management system. Hansen concludes that “bad collaboration—collaboration characterized by high friction and a poor focus on results, “is a significant danger for managers.”
These blocks must be mitigated through the collaboration process, starting with the inquiry to determine if there is even a need for collaboration, the development of an effective strategy, and the effective management of the collaboration process from start to finish.
Overcoming Challenges of Collaboration
Organizations come together bringing different resources and expertise to the table, which in turn creates the potential for collaborative advantage. But it should be clear that organizations and individuals do have their own reasons for collaborations that are different from the identified need to collaborate. Their representatives seek to achieve different outputs from their involvement and sometimes these different organizational intentions lead to conflicts of interest.
Furthermore, for some organizations, the joint reason for the collaboration is perceived as central to achieving organizational goals, whereas others are less interested and perhaps only involved (reluctantly) because of external pressure. Unsurprisingly, tensions often arise when some organizations seek to influence and control the joint agenda, and some are reluctant to commit resources to it, and so on. Similarly, individuals too, there are expectations, aspirations, and understandings of what is to be achieved jointly.
Misdiagnosing the Problems. We might believe that people in our organization are simply unwilling to collaborate because they prefer to develop their own information, or that they believe strongly that they are better at writing the content that customers need better than anyone else. Thus, they reject collaboration as a potential solution. If the problem may be misdiagnosed, and we are trying to solve a problem that does not exist, or it is misidentified, and therefore the issue or process should be left in place.
Implementing the Wrong Solution. One organization found that they made a mistake investing in an integrated knowledge-based management system. Hansen informs that “bad collaboration—collaboration characterized by high friction and a poor focus on results, “is a significant danger for managers.”
Implementing the wrong solution occurs when the strategy is flawed, or not properly considered in the process of determining, “what to do”. This wrong solution also affects credibility and creates an environment where finding the best talent to collaborate becomes a challenge. Many people are shy about lending their support and expertise to a collaborative effort because of the fear of failure. This fear can be debilitating and block opportunities and influence the success of the collaborative struggle.
Collaboration and Shared Goals
Aims, goals, objectives, vision, and purpose are the basis of needing to collaborate. They seem to believe that central questions about aims, goals, objectives, and purpose must be addressed as the key part of the decision to collaborate. It is usually the case that we collaborate on projects not just because… but to address a need for change. These questions must not only be answered individually but collectively as well.
Collaborative advantage. The possibility for collaborative advantage rests in most cases on drawing synergy from the differences between organizations, different resources, and different expertise, differences which stem from different organizational goals or purpose, and these inevitably mean that involved organizations will seek different benefits from each other as outcomes from the collaboration.
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This behavior of organizations that come together to collaborate also have an influence on each individual member of the collaborative team. They may have their own agenda and they expect to attain it through this collaborative process. This includes their own aims, goals, objectives, vision, and purpose for needing to collaborate, and they work with these in mind.
Collaboration aims are statements about what the collaborating organizations are aspiring to achieve together, and for individuals, whose aims are statements relating to personal aspirations. These efforts typically relate to career progression or personal causes. Individuals are likely to have been assigned to a role in the collaboration by superiors. So, regardless of whether the collaboration is between individuals or organizations and there is a shared vision, there are also expectations that by collaborating, each team member will accomplish their own vision and goals by being involved in the process.
Collaboration on Virtual Teams
Before collaboration can begin, team members must come to the realization that they are not alone, even if their expertise and contribution are expected to be different from those of the other members. Virtual, or face-to-face collaboration, locally, nationally, or globally must follow the same rules regardless of the type of collaboration. With virtual collaboration, those involved can take advantage of several technological tools to effectively interact and communicate ideas and proposals, and in the 21st century, virtual collaboration allows collaborators to work globally in a much larger pool of expertise that represents not only a welcomed diversity but cross=culturally as well. This adds to the richness of ideas, and if harnessed can produce great results, but because of vastly different time zones, collaborating virtually can be difficult to achieve, particularly if the group is large and there are differences in language and practice.
Virtual collaboration should include:
Organizing over several time zones. Time zones present communication challenges that must be mastered
Leadership and Virtual Collaboration
Increasingly, virtual teams will form without the advantage of prior face-to-face team-building opportunities, but with the added challenges of geographic isolation, time zone differentials, and cultural diversity. Collaborating virtually adds more complexity to the process. Teams are created, and in some cases, decisions regarding the makeup of the team are made after a face-to-face meeting, and having a global mindset is an important tool in virtual collaboration because it increases the available pool of expertise that is available and can be drawn on in efforts to build a strong communication network, employing new technology that is compatible with the virtual team environment.
Trust can indeed be actively accelerated and maintained on virtual teams even when they have to be assembled on the fly with employees scattered across the globe. Leverage “swift trust.” recognize that when groups first form, people, are usually willing to give others the benefit of the doubt, usually because the prevailing feeling is that “we’re in the same boat together”: success will reflect well on everyone, whereas failure could hurt people’s careers.
Trust is a major component in the construction of a collaborative team and especially so with a virtual team where face-to-face discussions are limited. A leader must proactively build interpersonal trust when assembling a virtual team where the assumption is that people will mainly be interested in what their fellow team members can do, as opposed to who they are as individuals.
Communication in collaboration. The key to good communication is not quantity but quality. In sharing and rotating power in a traditional workplace, teams are usually led by single leaders. In a virtual environment, that type of centralized power structure is less effective and may not exist. Ways to proceed.
Employing these tips in efforts to develop a collaborative team will effectively benefit team leaders in executing their strategic plans.
Balancing the Power of the Leader and of the Group
The leader balances the power they wield by sharing their vision with the group or team; they provide an environment where team members can express their thoughts and offer feedback freely without the expectation of being rejected. To be effective, this leader must inspire a shared vision, and achievable goals, a vital ingredient in being able to bring people together. Leaders must foster a commitment to the shared future they seek to create. They must set an example and build commitment through daily acts that create progress and momentum.
In wielding their power, a leader must express their vision and goals for the team, they must direct, inquire, question, and be flexible. They must promote solutions without bias, and openly praise team members who are high performers, and they must be a cheerleader for the team. These actions openly demonstrate the leader’s efforts to balance their power, and in so doing, guarantee success. The leader’s most difficult task is to align people around the organization’s mission and shared values, which is far more challenging than making short-term numbers. The ultimate measure of effectiveness for leaders is the ability to sustain superior results over an extended period with a balanced effort.
Organizations filled with aligned, empowered, and collaborative employees focused on serving customers will outperform hierarchical organizations every time. Top-down leaders may achieve near-term results, but only authentic, transformational leaders can galvanize the entire organization to sustain long-term performance.
Analyzing Strategies that Improve Collaboration
Potency is the key component of team success in any collaboration effort. It is an important construct in the teamwork literature because of its strong association with team performance. Potency refers to perceptions of broad team capabilities that span tasks and situations; it is theoretically and empirically distinct from the group or collective efficacy. This refers to members’ perceptions that the group can succeed at specific tasks.
Organizations can also support teamwork by providing formal and informal rewards and recognition to teams and team leaders and team members perform best when the organization provides the space and support systems for them to work and achieve success. Different tasks require different skill sets and experience, so it is important for organizations to align the task demands with the capabilities and experience of team members when forming teams.
Networking Strategy to Improve Collaboration
Networking is a key collaboration tool. It allows organizations to leverage a broad perspective in finding innovative solutions to problem issues, and as a way of creating positive change in the organization. While networking can be a key benefit, it can be difficult to maintain over time because it needs ongoing nurturing and as Hansen (2009) suggests, there is a misconception about the benefits of networking.
Leaders need to demonstrate and practice a collaborative style of leadership so that the concept of collaborating effectively builds momentum throughout the organization. This becomes the way of dealing with issues of importance. There are three key leadership behaviors that enhance collaboration.
·????????Redefine success to move from narrow agendas to big goals. Collaborative leaders try and find common ground. Instead of defining success based on your own narrow agenda, look at what bigger goals you can be working towards.
The solution is not to get people to collaborate more, but to get the right people to collaborate on the right projects. In sustained and disciplined collaboration in an organization, leaders must walk the talk.