What Are Collaboration Methods and Techniques?

What are collaboration techniques?

Collaboration techniques are simply the behaviors and practices that you and your team employ to work together better. They can refer to anything from your communication methods to your company culture to the tools you use day-to-day. Finding the collaboration techniques that work for your team can help them feel more empowered, appreciated, and motivated to do their best work.

Why is collaboration important in the workplace?

Think about all the tasks you complete in a typical workday. Imagine how hard it would be to do your job effectively without the help and support of your teammates. Collaboration is the cornerstone of efficient business, providing employees with a sense of purpose, community, and opportunities to grow and learn from one another.

Examples of collaboration techniques

There are a number of ways to encourage collaboration within your team — don’t be afraid to get creative with your efforts, and be sure to include your team in brainstorming. Here are just a few examples of how to get started.

Team building games

Allowing your team time to get to know each other will help them feel more comfortable collaborating and asking for support. You can encourage team building with an office sports team, for example, or a quick ice-breaker session at the beginning of your weekly meetings. Find a way for your team to work together in a fun, casual setting, and watch them become more comfortable collaborating at work. 

Cross-departmental communication

Maybe your immediate team does a great job of collaborating with each other, but when it comes to cross-departmental projects, it falls apart. Make an effort to educate your team and others about everyone’s roles and responsibilities. Get to know each other and your points of contact for each kind of project. When every team feels heard and respected, it can work wonders for collaboration across the board.

Celebration of efforts

When a team member smashes a goal or reaches a great achievement, it calls for a celebration. A 2016 survey revealed that 82% of Americans “don’t feel that their supervisors recognize them enough for their contributions” and 40% say they’d put more effort into their work if they felt their efforts were more recognized. Showing appreciation to your team members while including the rest of the team in the good wishes is a great way to boost morale and improve relationships across the team. 

Online collaboration software

Online collaboration tools can be incredibly effective in harnessing your teams’ efforts and making collaboration easier for everyone. Wrike’s versatile collaboration software provides a single digital workplace for every team member, no matter their location, role, or preferred way of working. Real-time updates and custom-field request forms make collaboration siloes a thing of the past.