{"id":32442,"date":"2020-12-21T23:23:32","date_gmt":"2020-12-21T23:23:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging-mondaycomblog.kinsta.cloud\/?post_type=pm&p=32442"},"modified":"2023-03-02T09:30:13","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T09:30:13","slug":"collaboration-benefits-myths-and-how-to-improve-company-collaboration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monday.com\/blog\/remote-work\/collaboration-benefits-myths-and-how-to-improve-company-collaboration\/","title":{"rendered":"Collaboration: benefits, myths, and how to improve cooperation"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false,"raw":""},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":35921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"pages\/cornerstone.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"monday_item_id":12069751498,"monday_board_id":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[13902],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32442","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-remote-work"],"acf":{"sections":[{"acf_fc_layout":"hero_1","title":"Collaboration: benefits, myths, and how to improve cooperation","subtitle":"","background_image":"35921"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content_1","blocks":[{"main_heading":"","content_block":[{"acf_fc_layout":"text","content":"Some Amish communities raise giant barns in as little as 10 hours. And they do it with no power tools.\r\n\r\nImagine getting your neighbors, or a group of people, together and trying to put together a simple shed. Even with all of the wonders of modern technology and a common goal, I bet it'd still take at least week.\r\n\r\nSo, what\u2019s the difference?\r\n\r\nMostly, it boils down to the level of collaboration and teamwork<\/a>. When everyone knows their role and works efficiently with everyone around them, things move faster.\r\n\r\nSmooth workplace collaboration is a necessity for running a thriving long-term business. If your employees can\u2019t cooperate and share ideas, your company\u2019s output will take a big hit.\r\n\r\nFrom large-scale, high-budget projects to day-to-day workflows, fostering strong team collaboration is your key to success.\r\n\r\nIn this post, and we\u2019ll cover principles, myths, and a few key how-tos for boosting collaboration throughout your company.\r\n

[cta-button url=\"https:\/\/auth.monday.com\/users\/sign_up_new\" target=\"_blank\"]Get started with monday.com[\/cta-button]<\/p>"}]},{"main_heading":"The basics of effective workplace collaboration","content_block":[{"acf_fc_layout":"text","content":"Before we cover tools and in-depth frameworks for company-wide collaboration, let\u2019s start with the basics.\r\n

What are the benefits of better collaboration?<\/h3>\r\nIt\u2019s not just project management<\/a>. Everything from product improvement to customer support will improve with better collaboration."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image_type":"normal","image":"32448","image_link":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","content":"You\u2019ll also see better communication within and between departments, build trust, and create a sense of community for your employees.\r\n\r\nBut these are all intangible benefits. What can your organization achieve if you focus on improving collaboration?\r\n

#1. Boost productivity<\/h3>\r\n53%<\/a> of companies that shifted their approach to collaborate more between teams saw a significant increase in performance.\r\n\r\nThis also holds true on the team level.\r\n\r\nTeams with a strong culture of collaboration and systems for effective communication make it easier for team members to access support and drive projects forward.\r\n

#2. Improve workplace morale and satisfaction<\/h3>\r\nOnly 42%<\/a> of employees are currently satisfied with their overall day-to-day work. By improving collaboration, you give each employee more room to focus on their strengths.\r\n\r\nEmpowering employees to focus on what they do best is one of the most effective ways to engage them in their work. When each person has the autonomy and space to do what motivates them, you'll see the quality of work rise dramatically.\r\n

#3. Eliminate silos between teams<\/h3>\r\nOrganizational silos are invisible walls that keep talent and data within the confines of a single team or department. They often result from disjointed team practices, poor communication, and fragmented technology.\r\n
97% of executives agree that silos hurt overall company productivity and performance. And yet, 83% of companies still struggle with organizational silos.<\/blockquote>"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image_type":"normal","image":"32453","image_link":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","content":"When silos exist, teams have a harder time understanding the purpose and value of one another's work.\r\n\r\nFor example, production teams may lack an understanding of customer priorities. Sales reps may not grasp the future upside of features in development. Customer support may not know that a bug is already being fixed.\r\n\r\nThese seemingly small problems can build up to large obstacles against the speed, growth, and success of your company.\r\n\r\nWith the right platform and culture, you can break down the silo walls between your teams and departments.\r\n\r\nBut how can your company get their hands on these benefits? Start from the ground up.\r\n\r\nDefine new values and principles to shape the culture in your workplace.\r\n

#4 Empower your team to collaborate with an intranet software<\/h3>\r\n

Intranet solutions are popular tools to boost collaboration. Intranets make it easy for employees to connect, communicate with each other, find relevant information and make strategic decisions. Happeo is an intranet platform<\/span><\/a> that makes collaboration easier, while focusing on the social aspects of an organization. Employees can use Channels to meet, socialize and collaborate. Pages allow the distribution of company wide news and an employee directory enables everyone in the company to find and connect with colleagues. Besides that Happeo integrates with Google Workspace and all its popular productivity apps<\/a> including Gmail, Drive, Docs, Meet, Chat, Search, Groups and Calendar.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

What are the 5 principles of effective collaboration?<\/h3>\r\nCollaboration principles range from a clear vision to transparency to promoting ownership and autonomy.\r\n\r\nWithout a clear set of guiding values, you won\u2019t be able to establish better collaboration in your organization.\r\n

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#1. Set a clear vision and goals<\/h3>\r\n[twitter]Without a clear direction, your team members won\u2019t know how to self-regulate. A shared vision and roadmap help your employees understand the context of their work.[\/twitter]\r\n\r\nIt\u2019s the first step towards establishing a positive work environment from the bottom up.\r\n

#2. Value transparency<\/h3>\r\nTransparency in business<\/a> is one of the cornerstones of good collaboration.\r\n\r\nIf you want your employees to feel motivated to take a greater initiative, they must first know how they fit into the broader business objectives.\r\n\r\nAt the highest level, this means being open with goals, project<\/a> progress, and outcomes. On the individual level, this means setting honest performance expectations.\r\n\r\nEvery employee should know what they need to do to \u201cdo a good job.\u201d\r\n\r\nOpenly rewarding employees who excel by these standards is another aspect of transparency.\r\n

#3. Focus on workflows, not just outcomes<\/h3>\r\nIt\u2019s a lot easier to assign deliverables than to get granular with the workflow<\/a>. But to improve collaboration, you'll need to embed new standards for working together into every workflow.\r\n\r\nYou must break down the required deliverable into its moving parts. Doing so will help you see if a team has access to all the resources they need to finish a project."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image_type":"normal","image":"32458","image_link":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","content":"For example, a UX update to an app involves multiple stages. It goes through design, prototyping, development, and testing before deployment.\r\n\r\nDoes the team have the bandwidth to get all of this done in the assigned timeframe? Do they need access to additional resources? These are essential questions to answer before starting a project.\r\n

#4. Find a framework that works for your team and organization<\/h3>\r\nYou must identify the right project management framework<\/a> for your company.\r\n\r\nDespite what some experts preach, this doesn\u2019t have to be the Agile methodology. Agile is not the end-all-be-all of facilitating teamwork within companies. In fact, more small teams can lead to additional silos if mismanaged.\r\n\r\nFind something that suits your team structure, workflows, and deliverables.\r\n

#5. Promote ownership of tasks and smaller deliverables<\/h3>\r\nEmpower your employees to own tasks and deliverables and make sure they get completed. If every small decision has to go through a manager, it will cause a bottleneck. Project progress will grind to a halt.\r\n\r\nInstead, team members<\/a> should own their tasks and be proactive. Directly solving small problems and roadblocks by working with other team members should be the norm.\r\n

What are 3 important skills for teamwork and collaboration?<\/h3>\r\nThe best collaboration skills are soft skills like empathy and creativity. They help smooth out the hard edges of the hierarchy and make it easier to work together.\r\n

#1. Empathy and emotional intelligence<\/h3>\r\n54% <\/a>of CIOs from leading tech companies highlight this as a valuable skill for collaboration and management.\r\n\r\nWithout empathy, your managers can\u2019t connect with and inspire your workforce to collaborate. And your employees won\u2019t be able to anticipate each other\u2019s needs and contribute.\r\n

#2. Delegation<\/h3>\r\nMany people underestimate the importance of delegation to effective collaboration, and this is a huge mistake. Delegating well requires more than just handing off work to others.\r\n\r\nEffective delegation involves understanding the skills and capacity of your team<\/a>, as well as matching each individual with the work they'll be most motivated to take on.\r\n\r\nPixar managers receive specific coaching<\/a> in this area because it can be so hard to do it well. The challenge is not just to let go of control, but to identify the right people to hand more responsibility.\r\n

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#3. Creativity and problem solving<\/h3>\r\nCreativity, resilience, and problem solving<\/a> when faced with challenges are some of the most valuable employee traits.\r\n\r\nToday, unexpected problems crop up all of the time and threaten to derail your projects if your team isn't prepared to act.\r\n\r\nWhen people see problems as opportunities to exercise their creativity, they will be more effective at collaborating to solve problems. It\u2019s the first line of defense against any of these common issues:\r\n