It sounds like your office appreciates the opportunity to collaborate often. This is great! I am also seeing that you celebrate as a team and accept responsibility as a team for less than successful events. I'm curious to hear how your team fostered that collaborative spirit?
I believe we do a good job in my office of understanding that successes and failures are "group" successes and failures, and that each of us bares a responsibility when things go well, and when things do not go well.
What an excellent way to inspire collaboration! I get the sense that this helps to foster relationships on campus and between departments as well. Thanks for sharing, Jason.
Our school has just implemented school wide round table for faculty and staff. This allows for interaction between departments and helps maintain and/or build relationships.
At this roundtable or meeting all concerns are brought to the attention of the group. Members participate in answering the concerns of the individual and helping find solutions, where needed, to those concerns.
A new staff member is selected each meeting to proctor the meeting. All ideas are respected and anyone can speak if they raise their hand. There is often passionate discussion on different topics, but in the end everyone walks away with a better understanding of an issue or concern within the school.
Ashley, it's good to hear that your organization utilizes the collaborative principles and understands accountability. I'm wonder, is there one place in particular where there could be any improvement?
Our organization collaborates very effectivly. We always share accountablility and work as equal parts and share a common goal.
It's important that we all do that because if one person does not take initiative then we all are held equally accountable.
Awesome, Stephany. It looks like you work to build up your team and each members complimentary skills to improve how you serve your students. How do you find this collaborative environment impacts your teams relationships and their relationships with students?
Interesting point Sara. I wonder, in using the collaborative principles in your department, do you think that other departments will follow your lead?
As the Director of Admissions at my University, I see how collaboration amongst the admissions counselors is important. We can build upon each others strength and weaknesses to succesfully enroll a student. This in turns helps us put out a better product.
Within the department that I work for I think collaboration is very good. Sharing responsibility opens up coworkers to be more creative and even willing to participate. As a whole though I think our University needs to review the collaborative principles because it is currently not being very collaborative between the departments.
This is fantastic, Katie! It sounds like you really appreciate the fact that your current company promotes employee development. I am also sensing that that level of support helps you to be more resourceful in approaching challenging situations, would that be right?
I have worked with several different companies and currently the company I am working for really helps the employee. The company strives to improve employment opportunites as well as let the individual grow. Having the ability to have the support of the company allows one to overcome obstacles and find solutions to most problems.
Hi Christine. Sounds as if you are a member of a great organization. As a team member, you play an important role in that success, too. Everything you mention: common goals, mutual respect, working out issues, and constructive criticism are all important to team success.
So given this understanding, what might you do differently than you have in the past? Or, what might you add to what you're already doing to make collaboration even better?
Our organization has a strong foundation because all of the members involved believe in common goals. Each member respects one another equally and assists one another if there are any issues to address. When the relationships remain constructive, the entire school maintains a mutual respect for one another and things run smoothly. There is a strong sense of teamwork, which leads a strong example to all of those involved.
