There is no 'I' in Team!

Like the old saying, ‘everything old is new again’, I’m pleased to see that the concept of teamwork and collaboration is once again centre stage in many organisations thinking. For many years established Silos, which it should be said are often the cornerstone of efficiency, have dominated departmental strategy and thinking. While undoubtedly representing a form of business synergy, silos, can over time become troublesome in that the very nature that makes them strong, becomes their enemy.

An attribute that exists within all silo based areas of a business, is teamwork, for by its very definition a silo consists of those who can work together collaboratively and in most cases in the same direction! When organisations try to break down silos, they often fail to realize that the essential successful elements of collaboration and teamwork may well be ‘thrown out with the baby’!

With the current organizational focus moving away from entrenched silos, to cross departmental collaboration, the question being asked is how do we maintain the necessary bond that is required for good teams, yet stretch it across areas of the business with limited interaction. Realistically it’s not as difficult as it sounds; it takes an open mind and an understanding of the shared vision of the organisation, along with a healthy lack of an ‘ego’. For many employees, especially those working within areas that are considered domains of the ‘SME’, it can take considerable motivation and enthusiasm. Collaboration is not natural to all, this is not to say that those not favored to it, should be looked down upon, or abandoned as loners or non-team players, rather leaders should look to include all types of personalities and skillsets.

For those of us who have worked in high performing teams, the stark difference between them and the type of non-functional and ego driven incarnations that can exist are like ‘night and day’. In terms of professional reward, there is no better atmosphere or feeling than working with like-minded colleagues on a common goal or problem, for as the saying goes ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’.