Collaboration is the basis of every successful business. Collaborative workplaces see an increased level of trust, a more involved workforce, and better performance.
One study showed that collaborative teams performed 5 times better because they felt motivated by a common goal.
However, despite the known benefits of effective collaboration, it is rarely preferred by managers. A recent Salesforce study found that this is the case. Of the 1,400 managers, employees and teachers interviewed, 86% said that lack of cooperation was responsible for workplace failures.
Creating a team environment for collaboration is not an easy task. Integrating cooperative values into the overall behavior of your business requires a concerted effort. Here are some strategies to help you get started managing your collaboration support team:
Share the mission with the company again and again.
Everyone needs a reason to see every day – the cause to be part of and the broader purpose to do. Defining your company’s mission is the first step to bringing people together with a common goal and working together to make it happen.
Your mission should be simple but meaningful. The more convincing, the better.
Communicate your expectations.
If your team doesn’t know you want them to work together, you can’t expect them to do so. Set your expectations of collaboration from scratch as a minimum standard. Even better, it should be part of your registration process to let potential recruits know that you prefer to work together. Employee job descriptions should include details of their roles, such as the roles they are expected to work on. By differentiating them, you set clear boundaries between what they should do with personal responsibility and what they should work on together.
Explain and communicate your team’s goals.
In principle, you should discuss your team’s goals daily. A team that knows its individual or shared goals can help reduce strength and keep everyone productive.
Emphasize each strength.
A recent OfficeTeam survey shows that 66% of employees leave their jobs when they feel they don’t respect them. This figure has jumped to 76% over the millennia. People will start looking elsewhere if their unique set of skills is not used and their value is not recognizable. Not everyone is a leader. Not everyone is a confident speaker. But a successful team succeeds when each member can bring their own set of skills to the table.
Support a community work environment.
A sense of community is essential for an environment of collaboration. 54% of employees say that a strong sense of community leads them to stay in the company longer than their own interests.
When people feel that their opinion is important, they are more likely to use their own. Conversely, when people know that their opinion does not matter at all, they feel overwhelmed and the team’s game falls apart.
Develop honest and open communication.
Good teamwork is based on open and honest communication. The more people feel they can contribute, the more ideas can be shared, and the more productive the team is. However, for more introverted team members, this part of the process may not come naturally.
Encourage creativity.
Brainstorming can be a great way to open your team to creative thinking. An environment where they can present and challenge ideas helps employees feel interested in the company’s mission.
Share knowledge, understanding, and resources.
Knowledge, as they say, is power. And when knowledge is shared with your team, they feel more empowered to contribute to the same game.
File-sharing software helps your team gain access to the resources they need to do their jobs – such as internal collaboration software. But more than that, create spaces – both physical and virtual – where your team can share their knowledge, discuss their failures and provide each other with constructive feedback.
Lead by example.
You can create collaboration strategies as you wish, but if you don’t show your own collaborative behavior, it will filter your employees.
As a leader in a collaborative group, you must always show cooperation. One-on-one is a good place to start. Concentrate at regular intervals, with each member of your team showing that you are ready for dialogue.
Out of office.
Leaving the office often helps groups build relationships based on mutual interests instead of what they most often share during working hours. It helps employees see each other as people, not just colleagues.
But you don’t have to wait for offsite events. Morning coffee or beer after work can help strengthen relationships and educate your team. Some smaller companies have adopted more regular arrangements, where team members “meet” and go to lunch for lunch, with teams taking turns.
Celebrate successful collaboration.
How you measure the success of your team will send signals about what kind of business you are. When you reward effective collaboration and successful collaboration, you communicate the values that support your business.
Invest in collaboration tools.
Creating a digital workplace is the most practical thing you can do to ensure long-term cooperation with your team. And research is growing, with 80% of companies using social collaboration tools to improve business processes.