Although the concept of collaborative work has existed for many years, the health crisis and the development of hybrid work have suddenly accelerated its implementation in companies.
Collaborative work necessarily entails a team spirit, which is the foundation of any project-based operation. But it primarily translates into cooperation between individuals. Radical changes in work methods, team organization, and management practices. It involves, in particular, greater accountability for employees and a questioning of the hierarchical organization.
Before we start putting collaborative work into practice, let’s see in this first part what this concept entails and the benefits it brings for increasing the efficiency and involvement of teams!
The definition of collaborative work
What is collaborative work?
Collaborative work is a process in which several people work together to achieve a common goal. This can be done physically or using digital tools to facilitate communication and coordination.
Collaborating on common projects is about learning to working better together, at Relying on collective intelligence, at pooling skills, the knowledge, ideas, resources, etc., to contribute to a common goal.
By principle, in order for everyone to feel responsible, collaborative work puts the employees on an equal footing, which is why it leads to a more cross-functional and less hierarchical organization.
«The best things that happen in the business world are not the result of the work of a single person. It is the work of an entire team.»
Steve Jobs
Understanding collaborative work in 3 minutes
The benefits of collaborative work
Collaborative work allows for the sharing of skills, knowledge, and ideas, and encourages emulation to achieve greater efficiency. Here are the 5 key benefits of collaborative work!
1. Boosting collective intelligence
Collaborative work is a driving force for activation collective intelligence and, thanks to emulation, allows for encouraging initiatives, projects, new ideas, etc.
The mutualization of knowledge and skills enables us to challenge innovative ideas and solve or anticipate problems more quickly.
A company that operates in a collaborative way will be able to unite and engage its teams around clear objectives. Sharing the skills, know-how, and experiences of each individual will allow for faster solutions to be found.
Together, the employees are smarter and more productive that if everyone remains isolated in their own function.
2. Promoting creativity and innovation
Working together and collectively promotes creativity, innovation, and the sharing of ideas. More specifically, brainstorming sessions, Design thinking or other methods or rituals allow new ideas to be born and developed.
By bringing people from different backgrounds together, it is noticed that the most innovative ideas often come from those who have a fresh and outside perspective on a problem, and this can lead to the discovery of innovative solutions. In fact, working with people from different professional and cultural backgrounds can broaden perspectives.
Furthermore, Allowing a collaborator to express their ideas naturally contributes to their commitment and develops their creativity. at the service of his team and his company.
3. Improve well-being at work
Feeling confident, being valued for your work and ideas, improving communication and relationships between colleagues, and evolving in a supportive environment that allows you to speak freely are all conditions that promote well-being at work.
60 % of the employees believe that collaborative work has a particularly positive impact on their motivation at work
In an uncertain context where employee engagement is a real challenge for companies, it is essential to take care of the employees’ experience and well-being at work. This well-being will be promoted, in particular, by being more involved in projects and decisions, working in a positive and caring atmosphere, and having better recognition, etc.
This participatory working method, where everyone feels useful and valued, allows us to build stronger bonds within the team and encourage everyone to share their ideas. It’s a true virtuous circle, because happy employees are on average nine times more committed to their company, 31 % more productive and 55 % more creative according to a MIT-Harvard study.
4. Save time and be more responsive
Collaborative work allows for the saving of valuable time through the sharing of knowledge, resources, and exchanges.
These shared working hours will allow us to limit the sending of emails, which are a real time-consuming scourge in the workplace. According to an analysis by BIO Intelligence Service relayed by Carbo, A French employee receives an average of 58 emails per day, that is one message every 8 minutes!
Working in a collaborative mode involves a more agile organization, It is less hierarchical and responsible for the decisions it takes. These decisions are no longer hampered by the many intermediate validations and can be immediately implemented.
Collaborative work is usually accompanied by tools and collaboration methods that enable better exchange, faster decision-making, and time savings.
As a corollary to this time saving, collaborative work allows costs to be reduced, notably through the sharing of knowledge that avoids time wasted searching for internal information… employees would spend an average of 7.30 hours per week searching for internal information, according to the study.’Information and Management Association !
5. Increase productivity and performance
By allowing teams to work together to achieve a common goal, collaborative work promotes productivity and performance through the combination of several factors:
- the confrontation of different viewpoints and the complementarity of skills allow for solving problems in a more effective and creative way,
- individuals can help each other and support each other, which reduces stress and improves motivation;,
- Individuals learn from each other and develop new skills by working together,
- effective communication and coordination can improve the quality and speed of decision-making,
- Sharing tasks and responsibilities helps to distribute workload more equitably and effectively.
Collaborative work offers significant benefits for employee engagement and the performance of the company. To ensure its implementation under the best possible conditions, it is first necessary to «prepare the ground». This is the subject of the second part of our article dedicated to 6 keys to successfully implementing collaborative work. Good reading!
Testimony of Michel and Augustin
