Last updated on Aug 12, 2024

How can a Culture Change professional create a collaborative culture?

Collaboration is a key skill for any organization that wants to innovate, adapt, and solve complex problems. But how can you foster a culture of collaboration among your team members, especially in a remote or hybrid work environment? As a Culture Change professional, you have the tools and the mindset to create a collaborative culture that supports your team's goals and values. Here are some tips to help you get started.

1 Define your vision and purpose

Before you can collaborate effectively, you need to have a clear and shared vision of what you are trying to achieve and why. This will help you align your team's actions and expectations, and create a sense of direction and motivation. As a Culture Change professional, you can help your team articulate their vision and purpose by facilitating workshops, surveys, or interviews that explore their aspirations, challenges, and opportunities. You can also help them translate their vision and purpose into SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) objectives and indicators that can guide their collaboration.

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Shrihari Suresh

Man. of Culture @ Kissflow | People & Culture Leadership | LinkedIn Top Voice '24 (Thought Leadership & Culture Change)
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Break Down Silos: Encourage open communication and information sharing across departments. No more information hoarding! Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Reward successful teamwork and collaboration on projects. Celebrate shared wins! Listen Up! Actively listen to employee ideas and concerns. Make them feel valued and heard. Bonding Time! Organize social events and team-building activities to build relationships beyond work.

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Jacques Fischer

Founder and president of CulturalChange
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Creating a collaborative culture is necessary to develop a high-performance organization, implement cultural change, or achieve executional excellence. At CulturalChange, we create collaborative cultures by: • Translating the organization's strategy into a language that resonates with the workforce, • Creating a motivating communication of the purpose, vision, and objectives, • Highlighting the interdependencies between functions and people, and fostering an understanding of why collaboration is critical, • Developing common skills, models, and vocabulary through training programs, • Leading all employees of the organization through a series of steps to improve the effectiveness of their collaboration and create a collaborative culture.

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2 Build trust and psychological safety

Trust is the foundation of any collaborative culture. It means that team members can rely on each other, communicate openly, and share feedback and ideas without fear of judgment or retaliation. As a Culture Change professional, you can help your team build trust and psychological safety by modeling and encouraging positive behaviors, such as listening, empathy, respect, and honesty. You can also design and implement activities that promote team bonding, such as icebreakers, games, or social events. Moreover, you can help your team establish norms and agreements that define how they will collaborate, such as roles, responsibilities, expectations, and boundaries.

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Amira K.S. Barger, MBA,CVA,CFRE

Author, Professor, communications/marketing counselor at the nexus of health equity, DEI, and employee engagement to aid organizations in addressing society’s most pressing public issues. Mantra "Nice is not the measure"
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3 important roles in change: Senior leaders/People managers/Frontline colleagues. Senior Leaders: Active/visible sponsorship for the success of change. They are preferred for communicating overarching reasons for change. Frontline Colleagues: undergo most significant day-to-day change. Their acceptance & use of change are pivotal for success. People Managers: have close relationships with teams & play a critical role in keeping colleagues engaged, recognizing, supporting, & modeling positive behaviors.

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3 Leverage diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are not only ethical and social values, but also sources of creativity and innovation. A diverse and inclusive team can bring different perspectives, experiences, and skills to the table, and generate more ideas and solutions. As a Culture Change professional, you can help your team leverage diversity and inclusion by creating a culture of curiosity and learning, where team members can appreciate and celebrate their differences, and learn from each other. You can also use tools and methods that foster inclusive participation, such as brainstorming, voting, or consensus-building.

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4 Use technology and tools

Technology and tools can enhance collaboration by enabling communication, coordination, and co-creation across time and space. As a Culture Change professional, you can help your team use technology and tools effectively by selecting and introducing the ones that best suit their needs and preferences, such as video conferencing, chat, or project management platforms. You can also train and support your team on how to use them properly, such as setting up clear protocols, rules, and etiquette. Furthermore, you can help your team evaluate and improve their use of technology and tools by collecting and analyzing feedback, data, and outcomes.

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Robert Tanner

VP of Brand & Culture at Eduro Healthcare
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Looking for recommendations on this! Does anyone have some good tools that have helped build a stronger culture? Bonus if you work in a healthcare setting!

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5 Celebrate and improve

Collaboration is not a one-time event, but a continuous process that requires constant evaluation and improvement. As a Culture Change professional, you can help your team celebrate and improve their collaboration by recognizing and rewarding their achievements, such as milestones, deliverables, or impacts. You can also help them identify and address their challenges, such as conflicts, gaps, or errors. You can do this by facilitating regular and constructive feedback sessions, such as retrospectives, debriefs, or reviews. You can also help them implement and monitor action plans that outline the steps and resources needed to improve their collaboration.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Robert Tanner

VP of Brand & Culture at Eduro Healthcare
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Regularly evaluate and adjust. We've tried many different initiatives to encourage stronger culture--some work and some don't. I think it's important to take a step back and review outcomes before deciding to move forward to make a shift with your strategy.

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How can a Culture Change professional create a collaborative culture?

1

2

3

4

5

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1 Define your vision and purpose

2 Build trust and psychological safety

3 Leverage diversity and inclusion

4 Use technology and tools

5 Celebrate and improve

6 Here’s what else to consider

Culture Change

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How can a Culture Change professional create a collaborative culture?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Define your vision and purpose

2 Build trust and psychological safety

3 Leverage diversity and inclusion

4 Use technology and tools

5 Celebrate and improve

6 Here’s what else to consider

Culture Change

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