Team Collaboration: What is it and How to Foster it?
Achieving the level of team collaboration that most managers desire may seem challenging. Nevertheless, it’s a goal worth striving for. With workers sharing strong team values and a will to succeed, businesses can achieve unprecedented success. Every team consists of members with different backgrounds, personalities, and working styles. While this may have synergic benefits, sometimes it can be hard to combine contrasting energies. Unproductive conflicts between team players may hinder goal achievement and company success. That is why it is important to map out strategies to foster team collaboration. What is Team Collaboration? Team collaboration means working together as one cohesive unit to achieve outcomes superior to those achieved individually. It encompasses activities such as brainstorming, fostering creativity, and leveraging diverse skills to strive toward a shared objective. The team may work together or cross-collaborate across different departments or external partners. With the global business landscape opening to hybrid, remote, and freelance workforces, team collaboration has become more vital than ever. Managing teams is already challenging enough; so encouraging teamwork in remote environments is even harder. Why is Team Collaboration Important? To understand why team collaboration is essential for success, you must discover the consequences of having team dysfunction. The best way to visualize a team disarray is to think of a cart dragged by a horse, a lion, a fish, and a sheep. They’re all different animals with their strengths and weaknesses. But more importantly, they’re not meant to work together at all. Team collaboration depends not only on the composition of people but also on how well they work together. When teams are collaborative, individuals come together to generate ideas, tackle challenges, and accomplish tasks. Within such a setting, people can combine their capabilities, sparking inspiration through exchanging fresh ideas. Even better, collaborative teams usually encourage members to be unapologetically themselves. Such comfort may set the stage for maximum team synergy. On that note, let’s check out some benefits of team collaboration. Advantages of Team Collaboration You’re already aware that team collaboration is non-negotiable for success. Still, let’s establish how it can skyrocket your success: Higher Efficiency and Productivity According to Deloitte, workers work 15% faster when they collaborate. This may be because team members regularly communicate, give prompt feedback, and can spot discrepancies sooner rather than later. The study also revealed that when workers work in collaborative teams, they are more engrossed in their tasks and feel invested in project success. Instead of focusing on personal fame, collaborative team members move as a joint force and strengthen each other. As a result, they may work diligently and don’t stop until they achieve their combined goals. Knowledge Sharing Team collaboration fuels knowledge sharing. Since it brings together people from diverse skill sets, knowledge, and experience, it elevates: In an environment conducive to learning, workers grow individually and combine expertise to achieve success. Innovation When team members share ideas and theories based on experience, they may feel safer experimenting and driving innovation. Working jointly gives the mental cushion for taking innovative leaps of faith in business. For example, innovative companies often partner with external parties and customers to create new concepts and products. Effective Problem Solving Instead of being stumped at facing a problem, you can always count on your team members to show you a way out. You may arrange a brainstorming session with your team or ask a colleague to comment on the situation. Either way, you’ll have access to multiple possible solutions recommended by those with firsthand knowledge and experience. Employee Satisfaction Those working in healthy teams often derive greater satisfaction from their jobs. One reason could be that working in teams may feel less isolating, with regular communication among members. When workers share good camaraderie, work may not feel as stressful. Collaboration often looks like sharing coffee breaks, cheerful banter, bouncing ideas, and pulling each other up. All these factors may garner life-long friendships. Good relationships between team members can be a strong motivator for workers to stay with the organization, resulting in higher retention rates. Better Corporate Culture Building a sound reputation for your organization is a tricky and long-term process. One bad incident can knock you off. However, fostering collaboration in teams is a time-tested way to create a great corporate culture. An organization known for satisfied employees, great collaboration between team members, and shared vision sounds like an ideal work environment. If you can flaunt a commendable corporate culture, you will most likely attract new talent, generate market interest, and even hire high-value talent. Such assets may greatly add to your company’s goodwill. How to Build Team Collaboration? Let’s go over some of the tactics you can apply to encourage team collaboration: Establish Goals When goals are set, everyone is informed of expectations and common objectives. Setting goals also facilitates the management of both individual and collective tasks as tracking progress becomes more aligned. In organizations where goals are clear, employees are more likely to monitor their productivity and hold each other accountable. Goals serve as strong motivators by helping team members envision their future. If you make them time-bound and specific, it’s an added bonus. Having concrete goals is always more ideal than providing vague directions. Want to learn the art of goal-setting? Check out our blog on how to set SMART goals. Set Expectations When you set expectations beforehand, you communicate the acceptable level of performance for each team member. This clarity gives employees a clearer understanding of what is required and how to achieve the desired standards. Communicating expectations within various teams is beneficial to ensure consistency in results. Collaborative efforts between department managers serve as a fine example of effective interdepartmental collaboration. Assign Roles When fostering collaboration, consider assigning significant roles among multiple employees to stir active engagement. When delegating roles, assess the distinctive value each team member brings and how they can facilitate collaboration. Assigning roles is an ideal way to establish reporting lines. Additionally, assigning roles enables the provision of mentors to junior employees. When
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