Building Collaborative Capabilities

by | May 31, 2021 | Opentalk Blogs

Taking a collaborative approach to how we work needs to become more of a norm, if organisations wish to retain a competitive advantage in a post pandemic marketplace or if we, as a society want to grapple better with many of the complex, unresolved social issues we face, e.g., housing or health. Many of these issues need broad or ‘whole of sector’ approaches to deliver more ground breaking, holistic and enduring solutions to deeply rooted problems (Head & Alford, 2015 and Bradley 2020).

Some solutions to addressing these complex problems have included ‘jumping in with two feet’ or alternatively, the equivalent of ‘putting a band-aid over a large gaping wound’ and then later wondering why the wound never healed or how it became worse! We need a new mindset and set of skills to really tackle and respond to the core of “tough” or “messy” issues.

Increased interest in approaches like design thinking, process automation or AI also indicate a movement toward new ways of thinking and working to deliver different solutions and outcomes. Many of these approaches involve a broader array of people in thinking, planning and implementing. They are underpinned by concepts such as collaboration, involving stakeholders and end users in a process to bring broad and sustainable change. This approach is critical to breaking the cycle of ‘quick fixes’ to generate real and tangible benefits (Grint 2008, Pless & Maak, 2011, Belet 2016).

Recently, I wrote about ‘collaboration being hard to do well, but worth the effort for the multiple benefits it brings to individuals, organisations and society’. To enable more collaboration, we need to develop or enhance individual and collective capabilities and provide avenues to put new knowledge and skills into practice. In developing capabilities, organisations often face a significant challenge in connecting learning to the practical realities of working. This contextual piece is vital in the development discussion, as indicated by the success of collaborative processes like Place Based Leadership (P-BLD) (Worrall, 2015).

For a number of years, I have worked with a particular sector in the public service, delivering an innovative change and collaborative leadership programme, specifically aimed at addressing some of the complex issues facing that sector, including collaboration and capability development. Senior representatives from all the sectoral organisations work collaboratively on cross-cutting, strategic issues. By working together towards a ‘common purpose’, participants together experience their different perceptions of their problems. Through joint disclosure and open dialogue, they share a ‘lived experience’ together. They can then overcome their differences of perspectives, to find new ways of thinking about the issues, which might otherwise have been thought of in fragmented, incomplete ways or avoided altogether.

The experience of this programme reflects wider practice and research in the area of collaboration. For a collaborative process to really work, we have to develop capabilities on a number of levels, including:

Individual Level

  1. An open and curious mindset to explore ‘unheard’ and different perspectives.
  2. Skills to cope with the sometimes, fluid process of collaboration.
  3. Courage to delve into the real and uncomfortable issues to find more sustainable solutions.
  4. Facilitation skills to give space to all to participate in discussions and solution planning.

Collective and Senior Levels

If collaboration is to become a way of thinking, working and delivering, it needs to become part of the organisational fabric and mindset, role modelled and supported by the most senior management. Therefore, senior managers should:

  1. Reflect on and improve their own collaborative practices and processes.
  2. Purposefully facilitate the connection of people across boundaries.
  3. Think broadly about opportunities for collaboration, even with unlikely partners.
  4. Support practice-led development initiatives.
  5. Include the requisite collaborative and facilitation competencies into goal setting, strategic planning and performance discussions.

Collaboration needs to be encouraged and empowered across all levels, complemented by a collective individual willingness to work more cohesively with others. A leadership and management approach which discusses, incentivises and role models collaborative thinking and behaviour encourages this. It all starts with developing the right mindset and skillset so that the commitment and energy can flow in the right direction.

As Matthew Syed (Rebel Ideas) points out, successful collaboration requires a particular attitude – a willingness to share one’s insights, perspectives, wisdom and questions with others. Syed’s research found that those with a more ‘Giving Attitude’, tended to be more successful. If we all had a more ‘Giving Attitude’, we could drive more successful collaborative practices too.

 

 

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