A business should run like a well-oiled machine, but if the work environment isn’t built upon collaboration, that machine can quickly break down. Finding a balance between productive collaboration and slacking off with co-workers can be difficult. Below are a few helpful ways to create a collaborative work environment that will benefit your employees and your business as a whole.
Improve communication
Communication is critical to the success of any business. As such, improving communication within your office is one of the best ways to create a collaborative work environment. Lead by example and begin by first improving communication between staff and employees in upper management roles. This will help set a precedent of collaboration that will soon encourage employees in lower positions to follow suit. From there, you’ll be better able to start working toward improved communication and collaboration between employees on the same team and even interdepartmentally.
Encourage feedback
Encouraging feedback and valuing employees’ opinions goes a long way in creating a more collaborative work environment. Collaboration is a two-way street, after all, and you’ll never make any progress unless all parties are open with their opinions. Employees should feel comfortable sharing their own opinions, and they should also be open-minded and receptive to the opinions of others. Encouraging feedback and fostering a work environment in which all opinions are equally valuable will help your employees feel more comfortable with one another and help your business run more smoothly.
Inspire your team
The road to a fully collaborative work environment won’t be without its fair share of obstacles. During moments of stress or turmoil between employees, take a moment to refocus the group and push them toward the ultimate goal of company collaboration. Inspiring your team by setting concrete, achievable goals and providing constant encouragement and support will help create a more positive company culture and foster a more collaborative atmosphere. When employees feel more comfortable conversing and interacting with their leader, they also feel more comfortable interacting with each other, leading to a more collaborative culture overall.
Provide necessary tools
Interdepartmental collaboration can be especially tricky, especially when each employee is concerned with their own daily schedule and duties. For this reason, face-to-face collaboration may not always be possible. Rather than sacrificing interdepartmental communication entirely, try introducing new tools and technologies that allow employees to collaborate with one another, regardless of their location or schedules. E-mail and instant messaging systems are great ways for employees to collaborate with one another without ever having to leave their desks. Data sharing services are also beneficial—they’ll encourage multiple employees to work on a singular project simultaneously.
