What Really Drives Collaboration

and Innovation in the Workplace?

by
Janice Yau
#teamwork

Lately, we’ve all been forced to adapt. Everything from how we work and
socialize to the way we shop for groceries has been impacted by the need for
social distancing.
‍
While some of these adjustments have been easier than others (wearing gym
shorts to the “office,” anyone?), the sudden shift to remote work has also
forced many of us to re-examine our understanding of teamwork.
‍
As a team leader, one of your primary goals is to motivate and inspire your
employees to perform their absolute best. In many ways, the new reality of
forced remote work directly challenges that goal.
‍
What does the new reality of work mean for those who belong to (or lead) a
tight-knit team? Is it possible to embrace the shift to remote work and turn it
into a tool for innovation? Let’s unpack some of the prevailing theories about
how teamwork and creativity occur in the workplace — whether it’s a live-work
environment or distributed teams working from home.
‍

Where Does Innovation Come From?

Just as you can’t force creativity or inspiration, innovation isn’t something you
can order on demand. But that doesn’t mean you there’s nothing you can do
to encourage your team to work together and think outside the box — even
from afar.
‍
While there may not be a reliable formula for innovation, a workplace that
encourages collaboration naturally explores a wider range of solutions from a
larger number of perspectives. This can give rise to truly creative ideas,
features, and workflows that propel your company into the future.
‍
In other words, collaboration breeds innovation.
‍

How Can You Promote a Collaborative Work

Environment?
‍
Distributed or not, it always takes a lot of work to build a culture that values
collaboration and encourages innovation.
‍
There are three key elements required to create the ideal conditions for team-
wide collaboration, and thus creative solutions:

 Trust

 Technology

 Teamwork

When employees learn to support each other, the entire team benefits. In
many cases, fostering employee engagement may be key to promoting a
collaborative workplace where teammates can rely on each other.
‍
There’s plenty of evidence that shows engaged employees are more
productive, attentive, and committed to their work. In fact, a survey
conducted by Gallup involving 1.4 million employees found that strong
employee engagement is associated with 21% higher productivity. Stronger
employee engagement is also linked to lower absenteeism and turnover.
‍
So, here’s what can you do to keep employees engaged and collaborative
despite working from home offices and other remote locations.
‍

Translating Healthy Team Dynamics to the

World of Remote Work
It seems the prevailing idea is that by working remotely, teams lose some of
the "magic" that comes from in-person encounters and drives things like
collaboration and innovation.
‍
But does true collaboration require working together in-person? Not if you’re
willing to reimagine your understanding of teamwork for the distributed
workplace.
‍
If you want your remote team to produce creative, innovation, industry-
shaping solutions; you must create a culture built on trust, transparency, and
teamwork — while also providing access to technology that supports
distrusted teams.
‍
1. Strive to Earn (and Keep) Each Others’ Trust
Embrace the Freedom of Remote Work‍
Great leadership has nothing to do with supervision or monitoring an
employee’s online activity. When you trust employees to work independently,
they’re more likely to trust themselves and their own instincts — which is a
precursor to new ideas and open communication about differing perspectives.
‍
Set Clear Expectations
Trust is a sign of respect. Respecting your employees means trusting them to
get their work done and manage their responsibilities from the comfort of their
home office. One of the best ways to set remote employees up for success is
to provide clear expectations about their role and duties. This can lead to
greater achievements and productivity.
‍
Prioritize Effort Over Perfection
Building trust requires that you accept, but not judge, your employees’
humanity and fallibility. That means acknowledging mistakes, accepting
imperfections, and framing failure as an opportunity for growth and learning —
rather than a punishable offense.
‍
Instead, reward creativity, collaboration, and out-of-the-box solutions. By
encouraging employees to try new approaches, speak up when they need
advice, and accept responsibility if something doesn’t work out; you can also
remove some of the stigma associated with appearing vulnerable in the
workplace.
‍
2. Build a Community that Values Teamwork
Encourage (and Model) Open Communication
Collaboration is driven largely by culture. A remote workplace that empowers
employees to be innovative and collaborative requires mutual respect,
freedom to fail, learning opportunities, and transparent leadership.
‍
A remote workforce needs managers who encourage open conversations and
requests input from team members on how to improve culture, productivity,
and work-life balance. Ideally, try to minimize the need for all-hands meetings
while also inviting input from as many team members as possible.
‍
In order to accommodate employees in different time zones, consider setting
up an online survey that must be completed by a specific date. If you have
important announcements, consider recording it so everyone can watch or
listen on their own schedule without attending a meeting that cuts into their
productivity.
‍
Invest in Remote Work Culture
Just as you would celebrate victories and milestones at the office, it’s
important to give remote employees opportunities to celebrate and connect
with teammates. Whether you host weekly happy hours on Google Hangouts
or play games together on Slack, invest in activities and (optional) online
social events that bring your remote team together.
‍
3. Leverage the Best Technology for Every Touchpoint
Make It Easy to Stay in Touch
How can remote teams achieve the same level of collaboration as their in-
office counterparts? If the shift towards remote work had come a decade
earlier, the answer would be uncertain. However, thanks to modern
technology and communication tools, it’s more than possible for remote teams
to work in sync.
‍
Use video calls in the place of in-person meetings. Choose a text-based chat
platform for your team, like Slack or Google Hangouts, to send instant
messages instead of just relying on email. There are hundreds of apps and
other digital tools on the market — especially now — that make it easy for
distributed teams to stay in touch.
‍
Provide Access to Shared Tools and Knowledge
One of the keys to effective teamwork in a distributed setting lies in the
technology they use to manage internal knowledge. If you haven’t already,
find and provide access to tools that enable remote team members to easily
store and share information digitally.
‍
Some key tools may include an accessible project management platform; a
centralized knowledge base where everyone has access to the information
they need to do their job well; an eSignature tool like HelloSign to
streamline onboarding, sales, and other workflows; and other cloud-based
solutions that enable teams to access shared files and work from anywhere.
‍

In Order to Collaborate and Innovate, You

Must First Be Prepared to Adapt
Transitioning to remote work introduces both new opportunities and
challenges. However, great leadership can set the tone by providing access to
the right technology and demonstrating a willingness to work together despite
obstacles.
‍
Remote or not, a leader who promotes trust, technology, and teamwork can
create a workplace that enables team-wide collaboration and innovation.

Source: What Really Drives Collaboration and Innovation in the Workplace? - HelloSign Blog

https://www.hellosign.com/blog/what-really-drives-collaboration-and-innovation-in-the-workplace

Why is Collaboration Important [Workplace

Collaboration 101]
Mike Kulakov, September 9, 2020
Table of Contents  hide 

Collaboration Among Employees vs Teamwork: Are They the Same Thing?

Why is Collaboration so Important?
How to Create an Effective Workplace Collaboration Environment
✅ Create a positive working environment
✅ Foster psychological safety
✅ Improve your meeting efficiency
✅ Allow some creative freedom and autonomy
✅ Reward your employees for collaboration
What About Remote Team Collaboration?
Workplace Collaboration Issues & How to Avoid or Fix Them
To Wrap It All Up…

What could be more beneficial for your business than a strong team of professionals
who know their work? A strong team of professionals that collaborates!

Why is collaboration so important, you ask? Collaboration encourages your team

members to work towards one goal in the most efficient and sustainable way possible,
without needing to be forced to cooperate.

That’s why we wrote this article — to help you to build a successful collaboration culture
in your company!

Collaboration Among Employees vs Teamwork: Are They

the Same Thing?
There is a clear distinction between teamwork and collaboration in project management.
Let’s take a closer look at what these terms mean for you and your company!

Teamwork entails that a team works together to fulfill project goals and objectives. Each
professional has their own responsibilities. A team leader guides the working process
and resolves problems and conflicts. Team participants have to fulfill their roles, but
don’t have to share common values.

Collaboration involves a deeper level of engagement than the “traditional” teamwork.

Collaborators can settle issues and disputes without the leader’s mediation as they
share the same values. The team leader performs the function of guidance, acting more
as an adviser rather than a controller.

Although this type of team interaction takes a lot of work to be established, it is a far
more efficient, flexible, and sustainable way for teams to work together.

“It is the long history of humankind (and animal

kind, too) that those who learned to collaborate
and improvise most effectively have prevailed.”
Charles Darwin

Why is Collaboration so Important?

In their day-to-day business, companies face lots of issues and situations that require
swift solutions. Most of these solutions are provided by team members. In teamwork,
communication is the factor that defines the success of meeting challenges. 

Collaboration and communication have a strong link. According to a Slack survey on

collaboration, nearly every worker in 7,000 surveyed in 17 countries stated that easy
communication with their colleagues is the main factor of ‘good collaboration’.
Therefore, the success of any business relies on establishing healthy and strong
relationships among team members and creating a good collaboration environment. 

Collaborative communication has a positive impact on the business and its employees.
It helps to:

 Improve problem-solving as your employees more freely share their knowledge and can
find unconventional solutions to the issues in collaboration groups;

 Enhance interpersonal relationships in the team that improve communication;

 Create a positive view of the workplace. Good communication establishes a safe

working environment in the office and employees are more willing to come to work every
day. It reduces turnover and employees tend to have less sick days or days-off;

 Improves productivity, making employees more likely to engage in the working process
Their work becomes not an obligation but an interesting thing to do;

 Encourages employees to self-analyze their strong and weak points and competencies

at work;
  Helps employees to see the bigger picture of the projects they are working on.
Collaborative communication defines employees’ responsibilities and shows their part is
in achieving project goals. 

How to Create an Effective Workplace Collaboration

Environment
There are a lot of things a company can do to promote professional collaboration
among their employees. However, the specifics of establishing collaboration at the
workplace will depend on the team size, whether your team works remotely or in an
office, the number of departments, and others.

If you want to foster a collaborative spirit at the workplace, then below are some
effective methods to consider!

✅ Create a positive working environment

This can include organizing interior design like arranging a separate lounge area for
coffee breaks, establishing a communication corporate culture like encouraging active
listening or special meetings to greet newcomers in the company. It’s also a great idea
to organize team-building activities to get team members to know each other better:

✅ Foster psychological safety

The atmosphere in a workplace means a lot. Your employees shouldn’t be afraid of

sharing their ideas, looking unprofessional, or making mistakes. An overly authoritative
working style can ruin trust among employees, putting them under pressure and making
them survive, not thrive at work. For this, you need to encourage the development of
horizontal communication and transparency among your employees when everyone
feels equal and treated fairly.

Evidently, even at Google (according to their own research), levels of psychological

safety varied greatly from team to team, and it made a lot of difference in their
performance:

✅ Improve your meeting efficiency

Meetings can be disruptive to the employees’ productivity and as a result rather

irritating. Employees get distracted in the middle of the working process and it’s difficult
to get the focus back after. That’s why it’s important to assess the actual need for a
meeting before calling one, and make sure to make them meaningful and
productive. Don’t forget to include brain-storming activities and keep the meetings
interactive to let your employees speak and be heard.

✅ Allow some creative freedom and autonomy

The more you try to establish control over your employees, the less they feel secure
enough to express themselves. It’s a sure way to kill creativity. That’s why it’s important
to let your experienced employees choose their own working style.

There are still ways to manage employees in a more gentle way. For example, simple
time tracking vs. “spying” apps and letting them define their activities for the day that are
aligned with the business goals on their own.

✅ Reward your employees for collaboration

Once you gather a new team and its members start solving problems without any
supervision above, it’s time to stimulate the collaborative efforts. This could be done in
the form of encouraging messages, letting them decide on their working schedule, or
simply making a small event, inviting all the team to celebrate!

What About Remote Team Collaboration?

Establishing collaboration with a remote team can be a bit harder as the employees
don’t meet each other face to face. Therefore, collaboration is heavily based on
communication and the choice of the right tools and solutions for effective collaboration,
including:

1. Project management tools to allocate workload and track progress;

2. All-in-one time tracking tool to ensure that your employees work during the set working
time and meet deadlines successfully;

3. The right software and solutions for instant and delayed group communication.

If you are running both an office and a remote or part-time team, it’s a good idea to get
your remote team acquainted with your in-house team for better communication and
collaboration. So, when arranging team-building activities or parties in your office, don’t
forget to invite your remote employees!

Workplace Collaboration Issues & How to Avoid or Fix

Them
When shifting corporate culture towards collaborative teamwork, you may run into some
challenges. Some employees that are accustomed to working in an old-fashioned style
may get lost in new conditions. You need to provide them with support and introduce
the changes slowly. Here is what you can do:

👉 Carefully select members for your team. Relationships in a team are defined by its
team members, their working style, world outlook, and temper. It’s hard to establish a
collaborative spirit in a team whose members have totally different mindsets and views.

👉 Have face-to-face conversations. Although digital communication tools greatly

expand throughout offices, it’s still important to have individual conversations with your
employees. Most of them are usually willing to share the difficulties they encounter and
you can help to resolve them during a private talk.

👉 Teach your team the ‘disagree and commit’ principle. It states that every employee
should be heard if they oppose any ideas. At the same time, once most of the team
agree on any decision, each team member should commit to it, even if they aren’t
entirely happy about it.

👉 Make collaboration culture a prime goal of your company. Once you decide to
establish collaborative rules, they should be applicable to the whole company, not a
particular team. Collaboration principles have to become a strong company policy
company (with its leaders representing a role model for others) for the employees to
follow and internalize the new culture of collaboration. 

To Wrap It All Up…

Collaboration is a great driving force that can help your business develop and grow
quickly. It’s based on establishing healthy communication among employees and results
in increased productivity and better problem solving. All these have a positive effect on
the business’s overall performance and customer satisfaction.

If you decided to start a collaborative culture in your company, we hope that this article
was useful and informative for you. Now you know more about how to effectively bring
your team together, what makes it tick, and how to get more from your employees!

Source: Why Collaboration is Important: Basics of Effective Teamwork (everhour.com)

https://everhour.com/blog/why-is-collaboration-important/
The Importance of Collaboration
in the Workplace
WRITTEN BY

Jamie Yan

PUBLISHED

October 16, 2019

CATEGORY

No successful organization runs successfully without collaboration in the workplace.

Collaboration in the workplace involves individuals working together to solve problems
across departments, management levels, and functions. This post will explore what
workplace collaboration is, the benefits of collaboration in the workplace, and tips to
improve collaboration. 

What is workplace collaboration

Collaboration is the act of individuals working together to make unified decisions. When
we talk about collaboration in the workplace, this definition extends to team members or
colleagues working together and setting processes to make choices that all members
agree on for a greater purpose. Collaboration happens in all types of settings whether
teams are remote or stationed at headquarters. Ultimately, the goal of workplace
collaboration is to maximize the chances of success by administering an open,
communicative, and collaborative experience among all members of an organization. 

For the history of workplace collaboration, read this article from SmartSheet.

Why collaboration in the workplace is

important
If you think about collaboration in general, the goal is to maximize the success of a
business. A group of individuals has more power and impact than a single person.
Working in teams enables employees to share knowledge, work more efficiently and
effectively. Each member of the team is like another resource or tool that team members
can leverage to make better and smarter decisions. In addition, working together in teams
promotes healthy employee relationships. Healthy employee relationships lead to better
team performance and overall productivity. 

Collaboration in the workplace improves:

 Optimized workflow processes
 Improved employee and team relationships
 Maximized productivity
 Increased efficiency

Benefits of collaboration in the workplace

Now that we’ve outlined why collaboration in the workplace is important, let’s talk about
some of the benefits. What are the outcomes to expect when employees engage in team
collaboration? We mentioned the theme of increasing business success. Let’s examine the
contributing factors that lead to maximized project success.

Collaboration in the workplace: 

Promotes problem-solving

Generally speaking, when diverse knowledge and skillsets are in the mix, it increases
competence and experience. Individuals with different skill sets are able to solve
problems more creatively and effectively because they are able to cover blind spots.

Spurs innovation

The diverse expertise and perspectives of your team will foster problem-solving. When
people are constantly updated with new information, it continues the momentum and
creates a continuous cycle of ideation that can expedite new and creative solutions. 

Connects teams to the bigger picture

Many times the bigger picture gets buried when an individual is focused on a problem.
Collaboration in the workplace brings together people with different backgrounds that
can be leveraged to identify and see the bigger picture. In addition, it enables employees
to make connections between various ideas and departments that break down siloes. This
is valuable because it lends a higher purpose to employees. 
Boosts learning and skills-sharing

When you have people working together, there is a tremendous opportunity for
individuals to learn from each other. Because collaboration in the workplace requires
feedback and viewpoints from various teams and team members, you’re effectively
connecting cross-functional teams. Because no two people have the same ideas,
knowledge, and experience are transferred between individuals, enabling employees to
expand their skills faster. 

Increases employee satisfaction

Collaboration in the workplace helps create an open environment where people feel
valued and heard. Employees who are happy positively contributes to a good company
culture. In addition, employees who are excited to go to work every day tend to be more
accountable and are less likely to leave the company.

 Aligns distributed or remote teams

The workforce is more distributed than ever. Some organizations have multiple offices
spread across the globe, some companies employ only remote workers, and some
organizations have a hybrid of the latter two. It’s even more critical to promote
collaboration and include remote teams so that everyone stays updated, aligned, and
connected. What happens is, remote employees start to feel siloed and lonely, which
negatively impacts productivity and employee retention.

Tips to improve workplace collaboration

There are more than enough reasons that prove collaboration in the workplace is
beneficial not only to your employees but to your entire company. Here are some tips to
better collaboration:

1. Listen first, talk later. A large part of collaborating successfully between

employees and teams is listening to one another and making sure that everyone
feels acknowledged and heard. When you prioritize listening, you’ll learn much
quicker and be able to identify more gaps. Also, it builds trust, leading to better
relationships.

2. Set ground rules and goals. When you have a large group of people collaborating
in the workplace, it can become chaotic. Setting goals along with rules are
necessary to keep everyone on track and focused on what’s at hand. Goals
 should be iterated at the beginning of every collaboration meeting so that
everyone is aligned. Rules will create a structure for the process. For example, to
make sure that collaboration is efficient, you can set rules to limit time.
3. Lead by example. To encourage your team members to collaborate, you must
lead by example. This means being respectful and open to new ideas, feedback,
and opinions. This also means that you should take them constructively. Leaders
should be transparent about processes and information and recognize that
mistakes will be made.
4. Be flexible. Because there are various personalities and experiences in the mix,
it’s critical to continuously adapt to different practices and needs of team
members. You should not expect everyone to follow a single process. Instead,
recognize that there will be differences in the way others execute things and find
different ways to approach those differences without being judgemental. 

A successful business requires team

collaboration
Collaboration in the workplace takes into account employees’  ideas, skills, experiences,
and opinions. When individuals work together openly, processes and goals become more
aligned, leading the group towards a higher success rate of achieving a common goal.
With increasing competition in the market, it’s become increasingly important to
encourage collaboration in the workplace. Collaboration spurs creativity, improves
productivity, and increases employee satisfaction. With the right mindset and practices,
collaboration can be a unique differentiator for your company. The outcomes mentioned
above prove that collaboration in the workplace is a critical contributor to overall
business success.

Source: The Importance of Collaboration in the Workplace | Simpplr

https://www.simpplr.com/blog/2019/importance-of-collaboration-in-the-workplace/