Now, more than ever, we need to create and nurture cultures of collaboration within our organizations and communities. The complex issues we are facing today such as climate change and systemic racism require multiple “heads” and diverse perspectives “around the table” to generate creative solutions.
In the past few years, more and more influential women are coming out publicly and acknowledging that they have burnt out. An example is Jacinda Ardern, the former Prime Minister of New Zealand who in January 2023, announced “I no longer have enough in the tank to do the job”, and declared that was why she was stepping down.
It is being acknowledged more widely that the traditional ways of doing business and being successful; of driving and striving, valuing competition over collaboration, and leading from our heads and egos rather than from our hearts, are no longer sustainable. Arianna Huffington, co-founder of the Huffington Post and founder and CEO of Thrive Global, has shared her story of collapsing from overwork and why she created Thrive Global. It was as a result of her experience of “working day and night” and the negative impact it had, and her desire to share that there is a healthier way to be “successful”.
In more than three decades of facilitating multi-stakeholder consultation processes and strategic plans, co-creating projects, managing large international projects, and founding and running a national not-for-profit, I have experienced the amazing power of working collaboratively and the rich solutions that result when people from different backgrounds and cultures work together toward a common goal. I have also experienced the negative impacts that can result from focusing on competition.
What is the difference between a culture of competition and one of collaboration?
A Culture of Competition
Looks like:
- Individuals are rewarded, rather than teams, for their performance
- Everything is urgent; priorities are unclear
- Organizational values are not clear or not “followed”
- Unclear vision; people do not see how they “fit in” or contribute to the organization
- Senior management makes decisions with little or no consultation with other levels of the organization
- Planning is “top down”
- Leaders tend to hire folks like themselves
- People criticized for deviating from the organizational norms and for their “failures”
- Unclear expectations about where work ends, and personal/family life begins
- Managers expect people to respond to emails and/or text messages evenings and weekends
- People consistently work more than 50 hours/week
Results in:
- Reduced employee engagement
- Reduced productivity
- Little if any innovation
- Reduced morale
- Extreme stress leading to Increased rates of absenteeism and sick leave … and in extreme cases burnout, chronic illnesses and what the Japanese call “karoshi” or death from overwork
- Increased conflict among employees and managers
- Stress on families and relationships …
- A reduced “bottom line”
Whereas,
A Culture of Collaboration
Looks like:
- Teams are rewarded for their performance
- Priorities are clear to everyone in the organization
- Organizational values are clear and people “walk the talk”
- The vision of the organization is clear, and people see how they “fit into” or contribute to the organization
- Senior management believes in and involves those closest to an issue to be part of the process to generate solutions to address it
- Planning is participatory
- Leaders are aware of their strengths as well as their weaknesses and hire a variety of people to complement their strengths and address their weaknesses
- People feel safe in the environment and are encouraged to voice their concerns and suggestions
- Leaders set clear expectations and model work-life balance (e.g. do not expect their direct reports to respond to emails and/or text messages on evenings and weekends)
- People are not expected to work more than a forty-hour week unless there is a critical issue or proposal, for example, that needs to be addressed/finalized
- Feminine leadership qualities such as: collaboration, inclusiveness, intuition, emotional intelligence and creativity are valued and modelled by those in leadership positions
Results in:
- Enhanced employee engagement
- Increased productivity
- Enhanced creativity and innovation
- Improved morale
- Enhanced health and well-being of employees
- Reduced tension and conflict
- An enhanced “bottom line”
I invite you to “weigh in” on whether you think it is time to value, create and nurture more cultures of collaboration and why.
Stay tuned for future posts on creating cultures of collaboration.