It is a leadership challenge that seemingly will not go away despite countless the hours we spend talking and countless baht we spend on tools to address it. Many senior leaders are still frustrated by inability of their leadership teams to collaborate effectively.
There is a mindset disconnect at the heart of the problem. Senior leaders understand that the challenges facing our organisations require teams to come together; having our people do great work in silos is no longer enough because things have become too integrated and complicated.
We know that our leaders’ ability to do their jobs is increasingly dependent on the input of others. But we have seen how the best plans get derailed by late handovers, lack of ownership, and not putting best efforts into others’ projects.
However, we need to accept that collaboration will not improve until our leaders see that organisational problems as SHARED. All the technology investments in the world will not change anything until this critical shift happens.
We need to accept that collaboration really cannot be commanded. Collaboration must be empowered. It maybe even need to be role-modelled and facilitated. Senior leaders must set aside the notion that even our best people believe in collaboration and will quickly start collaborating better. Many do not know how to collaborate effectively or how to even get started.
So, how can you create more collaborative leadership teams and organisations?
Start with you. First, we must look at how we have allowed our people to pretend to collaborate. How we have been part of the problem by not ensuring better collaboration to create new opportunities in an ever-changing environment or solve complex problems.
We must look at our behaviour and ask why we have failed. If, as the head of the organisation, we have talked about it and promoted collaboration, why is it not better? Senior leaders must reflect honestly on how their behaviour has contributed to inhibiting authentic collaboration.
Then use your empathy. As with many things, improvement starts with empathy. Senior leaders must understand that collaboration is hard work. For rising stars and seasoned pros who have accomplished much on their own merits, it requires a change of worldview to get on board with the open and wholly reciprocal mindset that successful collaboration demands. They must be willing to put in as much as they take out.
Fear is often an unspoken element in the failure of collaboration to take off. Office politics aside, there is often a measure of being afraid of being outcompeted or a discomfort with transparency. A mindset of self-protection (while natural to some extent) inhibits the shared ownership that empowers collaboration. Getting past the status quo means helping people set aside past bad experiences and seeing their role and accountability together with new eyes.
Next, you have to rebuild mindsets. Senior leaders need to embed a new focus on “we” rather than “me”. It means engendering a willingness to continually learn, to hear from other team members, learn from past experiences, and adjust accordingly. Creating a collaborative worldview requires helping your people to look outward, and this requires ongoing conversations and reflection.
Rebuilding culture comes next. We must understand that collaboration is a product of culture — it requires the right conditions, mindset and tools. Improving collaboration demands a focus on shared outcomes. It requires a different understanding of why people resist, and why emotions lead to ongoing low-level resentment and conflict. We need a culture in which people feel comfortable being empathetic.
Co-create what collaboration could look like. Systems may hold back collaborative efforts. Change may require empowering leaders to look at the current situation and provide input. It also engages people in the solution and reduces defensiveness, resistance, or thinking this does not apply to them.
Improving collaboration is not easy, but it is straightforward. I have seen it transform results and create industry-leading organisations. More collaborative mindsets have transformed organisations across multiple industries, and of all sizes here in Thailand. If they can do it, then so can you.
Arinya Talerngsri is Chief Capability Officer and Managing Director at SEAC — Southeast Asia’s Lifelong Learning Center. She can be reached by email at arinya_t@seasiacenter.com or https://www.linkedin.com/in/arinya-talerngsri-53b81aa. Talk to us about how SEAC can help your business during times of uncertainty at https://forms.gle/wf8upGdmwprxC6Ey9
