We need to collaborate more...

Or do we?

The reason I ask is because often when I talk to people about their challenges this is one of the things they say is their biggest challenge.

'If only we collaborated more things would be much better' seems to be a common theme.

I posted a poll this week about what makes collaboration difficult and the main reasons seemed to competing priorities, lack of psychological safety, unclear roles or ownership. I think the poll was perhaps not the right poll to run and I expected some feedback on this regarding the options but I also think I know why people responded this way.

Here's what I really think the challenge with collaboration is:

One

Collaboration is seen as a generic across the board solution to a mostly undefined problem. If you really think more collaboration will sort your issues then please do check you understand the problem first.

Try these questions to help you understand the problem more.

• What is the gap between where you are now and where you want to be? Keep asking 'Why until you get to a very real problem, one that you can measure is good.
• What is not happening just now that, if fixed, would make your organisation demonstrably better? If you still think the answer is collaboration then to what end, what is the tangible outcome it will achieve, again something you can measure.
• What do you think is not happening because you're not collaborating and how big a problem is it?
• Why hasn't the problem been fixed already? Please don't say collaboration! But you might for example say 'because we aren't very good at understanding the problem or problem solving'!

If you don't know what the problem is that needs fixing, if you can't quantify how big a problem the problem is, compared to all your other problems, if you haven't worked out why the problem hasn't yet been fixed then how can you know if collaboration is really the solution?

Two

Understand what collaboration really means. Collaboration isn't team work. I think often when we say collaboration we mean team work, alignment and communication.

Imagine I'm building a new hotel complex. I want something to really stand out from the rest. I recruit architects, builders, joiners, plumbers. I have the resources all lined up for when I press go and the problem statement I'm trying to fix with my hotel solution.

I might want the architects to collaborate together to create something unique that fixes the problem I've given them. They might, at a push, involve the site manager in their 'working out loud backwards and forwards ideas' to create a masterpiece collaboration. They don't need to collaborate with the electricians, plumbers, joiners, builders. The site manager will, once the overall problem has a solution create the plan, make sure everyone is aligned around the vision and end product before ensuring they all know their role, deliverables and when they'll be needed. The site manager might bring the team leads together at times during the build especially when working simultaneous elements but they do not need to collaborate, they need to work as a cross functional team - aligned around the shared goal, with clear objectives and communicate frequently. Some groups may come together during the build to resolve specific issues which may need experts, may need creative solutions, are unlikely to need the architects and this will be facilitated by the site manager. Anyone involved in the build is unlikely to complain at any point that any problems with the build are due to a lack of collaboration. Team work, yes, communication, yes, collaboration, no.

According to a range of sources:

Teamwork involves a group of individuals working interdependently toward a common objective and requires coordination, shared responsibilities, and collective effort and a consistent, ongoing dynamic. It prioritises unity and coordinated execution of a solution for a common goal.

Collaboration refers to individuals or groups working together, often across roles and it often focuses on creativity and innovation to solve a shared problem,

The key difference? Collaboration is broader, focusing on cooperative effort across boundaries (not limited to a single team), while teamwork is more specific, centred on a cohesive group with defined roles. Both have value. Both are needed for different things. Collaboration is needed when there is a problem that needs creative solutions. It isn't necessarily needed to deliver the work once the work has been agreed as long as there is plenty of communication, alignment around a shared goal and checking in on progress and interdependencies.

Three

In my olden, but not golden NHS days we didn't' talk about collaboration. It wasn't the thing back then. Instead we talked about silos. Working in silos was always the problem.

'If only we didn't work in silos we wouldn't have all of these issues' people would say at workshops intended to engage people in coming up with solutions to problems that hadn't really been well defined.

Sound familiar?

'Rubbish' I would think before challenging them (this was pre Ninja days!)

'Silos exist for a purpose, you want accounts to do accounting, IT support to support IT'.

The very nature of these 'ideation' workshops was to 'collaborate' or 'work out loud' but there was never a good problem statement and the attendees were invited based on seniority rather than problem solving and diverse thinking. And if silos really were the issue then our pretty sharp CEO at the time would have got rid of them.

The lingo was different back then but I think it was exactly the same challenge.

Stock, 'in vogue', solutions that can't easily be delivered. They are no ones responsibility, there is no identified problem to fix, everyone assumes everyone should be doing it and the culture needs to change to accommodate it but it's someone else's job to fix it.

Don't confuse team work with collaboration and assume collaboration is the solution.

Do ensure you have a clear problem statement, idea of the size of the problem, understand why it's not fixed and then, if necessary, collaborate on on some creative problem solving solutions.

You don't need the organisation to fix this, you are a Ninja, go forth and Gap Leap