More On Collaboration - Part 2

As indicated in the previous post on collaboration, this is a topic that is extremely important in the current political and fiscal environment. Although I still question if a lot of money can be saved through collaboration, I'm convinced that better communication, support to customers and enhanced management practices can all be improved through collaboration. It's also, in my opinion, a necessary aspect and requirement for leaders and managers in any business today. Previously I've written about why collaboration is so hard. This is really a continuation of that discussion and an attempt to focus on the leader's role in collaboration.

I want to start out by saying, that like many others, I was not always a fan of collaboration. Perhaps fan is the wrong word. Like other people in leadership or management positions, I always had lots to do. Lots of fires to put out and lots of internal decisions that had to be made on a daily basis. I felt the pressures of outside sources, customers, funders, regulators as well as internal ups and downs, employee issues, facilities, etc. I also hired good people to deal with many of these issues. I was a product of the very common top down, up/down management styles and practices. I experimented like everyone else with newer methods with some degree of success and a few major failures along the way. But as my own management experiences evolved and as I grew in terms of vision and focus, collaboration began to make more sense.

I also had a number of colleagues and mentors who helped me get to that place where collaboration became such a strong focus. As I share these thoughts it's really important that readers realize that my experiences included successes and failures and that there was a good deal of discomfort along the way. I learned early on in my collaborations that trust was absolutely essential. Now let's be clear, I said trust. I didn't say anything about liking or disliking other parties involved. Obviously liking or disliking a partner or potential partner plays a role and in the end is important but trust is essential.

I've seen people begin the collaborative process and work hard for some time at creating the necessary level of trust among leaders/partners. Sometimes it's harder then other times but I think eventually people usually can get rid of all of the baggage and begin to trust others. It's a big deal when it happens and should be celebrated. Relationships do grow and evolve and as with almost everything we deal with - it's all about relationships.

But that's the first phase and first step of collaboration. Here's where it begins to get harder. Along this journey of trust and collaboration, the leader has naturally become more excited and has stronger beliefs about collaboration and that's a good thing. The trick though is how the leader passes that passion and vision on to the rest of his or her management team. Let's face it, part of why collaborative efforts are difficult is because they require more work, more effort, more meetings, more of everything basically - at least for a time. So you have to be a great leader to convince your team that this is a good thing, right? It's critical and this is where things can sometimes break down. The leader of an organization is convinced collaboration is good and necessary but others wonder and some resist. After all they were hired to do a job and all of this talk about cooperation, collaboration and partnerships just interferes with their real focus - to get that job done.

I've seen a couple of approaches. The one that always fails is the osmosis and delegation theory. Basically people will get it by doing it and since I believe in it, they'll believe in it. In the process, I'll send people to meetings with other partners and everything will be fine. They'll all learn what to do and how to do it.

The other one that has more chances for success but that can also fail is the proactive leadership role and approach. Here, the leader's passion about whatever collaboration is taking place or their vision about collaboration is talked about, discussed and debated at every juncture. Every meeting of the management team reiterates what collaboration is taking place and why it's important. It's always done with a passion. Other leaders are allowed to question and identify problems but no one gets away with not buying into the vision. This is really hard because some people may refuse to come along and they've had value over many years. The reality is that this is a juncture and bridge that will have to be crossed. You may find yourself with at least one less member of your management team if the vision isn't shared. The reality is that one person refusing to participate has the potential of killing all of your collaborative efforts.

The truth is that leaders need to lead in the area of collaboration, not delegate. This means more work for you. You have to attend meetings where teams or new partners are present. You have to help clarify goals and work plans. You have to anticipate and deal with the negative responses and barrier building vs problem solving. A leader with similar vision always needs to be present and participating, mentoring, developing. Peer groups need to be identified but cannot go off on their own without direction. Ultimately it will frustrate them and you. Organizations that succeed at collaborative efforts realize that they need this kind of commitment, that goals need to be set in clear terms and that people need to be supported in their work and in the end there has to be a pay off that's real and measurable.