Although much of the collaboration literature highlights processes for negotiating terms with organizational partners, my research indicates that organizations that collaborate well are organizations that have worked on becoming good collaborators themselves. Rather than focusing on making agreements with each partner separately, organizations should focus on developing the attitudes and frameworks for becoming collaborative in general.
My research indicated that the organization’s culture – specifically a culture that embraces values of involvement, autonomy, and community – is the central factor in an organization’s ability to collaborate.
- Involvement: an underlying value of successful collaboration is the necessary involvement of those affected by a decision or change; such involvement yields triple benefits: it produces a better solution, engages partners in the change, and reaffirms the value of the partner
- Autonomy: although it seems counterintuitive, collaboration can only occur if partners bring their independent sets of perspectives, skills, goals, and visions; collaboration is about leveraging the diversity and choice of each organization, not requiring partners to be the same
- Community: the concept of organization-as-community promotes a sense of unity across the collaborating partners and a commitment to each other and to a greater purpose; this strengthens the ability of organizations to collaborate, particularly in difficult situations
How do organizations create such a culture? A surprising finding is that leaders need to exert their power of authority to engender a collaborative culture. This may seem paradoxical, but leaders have a role in defining processes, building relationships, and making decisions that can promote an organization’s capability for collaboration. The leaders of today can develop competencies to support their roles in building collaboration.
Although much of the popular literature focuses on activities to perform to build collaborative partnerships, research demonstrates that collaboration is a way of being. It requires a mindset and values that foster that way of being. Leaders have the power to align organizational processes and values to create that way of being, preparing organizations to thrive in today’s interconnected, complex environments.
Read more in my published article: A Collaborative Culture: Collaboration Is Not Something Organizations Do, But A Way of Being.