The value of collaboration

"The way a team plays as a whole determines its success. You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don’t play together, the club won’t be worth a dime." – Babe Ruth

Collaboration is defined as the action of working with someone to produce or create something. It is when a group of people come together and contribute their expertise for the benefit of a shared objective, project, or mission.

Collaboration is said to take place when two individuals or a group of people work together towards achieving a common goal by sharing their ideas and skills. How well you collaborate with others can greatly impact the outcome of a project. I have observed in Healthcare IT, but I am sure it rings true across multiple industries, that collaboration has become so important since we have skills sets that are very specialized.

For many people collaboration comes naturally. I am a people person and I love to solve problems, so I do not hesitate to call someone up and talk through an issue or opportunity. I think it is probably something most folks do without thinking, but maybe we should?

I have been thinking about how important collaboration is and making those connections with those who have skills that compliment my own. Here is what collaboration teaches us and why it is so valuable.

When a team outgrows individual performance and learns team confidence, excellence becomes a reality. – Joe Paterno

Problem Solving

When you get stuck do you ask for help? Sometimes another perspective is all you need. You might schedule a whiteboarding session with a colleague or ask them for their take on a issue. You collaborate with your team to solve the problem at hand. When a group of people pool their knowledge, skills, and expertise - projects move forward.

As I was writing this blog, it made me realize that I have probably gotten into a bad habit myself of hitting a wall before I reach out. Collaboration ought to inform the way we work as a team—it should be baked in. The more eyes on a given project from the get-go, the easier it becomes to identify and solve problems.

When a variety of knowledge and skills are pooled, it creates a talent pool that is competent, able, and experienced. Who would not want to be a part of that think tank?

Collaboration brings people together

Every organization has teams that rarely interact with each other and are operating in silos. I know on many of the EMR (Electronic Medical Record) implementations I have been involved in that some of it happens organically because of the way the vendors are segregated in their product knowledge themselves. Workgroups are often created to bring together those mixed-skill sets, but it is limited.

In Healthcare, the EMR is such an integrated product that it is critical that the teams are well versed in the big picture. We need to understand how what we do affects the next team, and so on. Collaboration can be used to break down barriers and improve communication across the organization.

Collaboration helps people learn from each other

One of the best things about working collaboratively with people who bring different skill sets and backgrounds to the table is learning from their experience. When you ask for feedback and opinions, share knowledge, find out how your collaborators approach their side of the project; you gain a better sense of how they work. You get a chance to hear their side of things: their pain points, priorities, even the way they think.

Some of my best work experiences have been when I have met someone that loves to learn and share as much as I do. I have worked with so many amazing people over the years (you know who you are 😉) and it has made me a better analyst. Many years ago, I worked with a brilliant data developer and his work was flawless. I was validating data and noticed a few discrepancies. I must admit I was a bit fearful to ask for clarification because of his skill, but in talking we discovered that there were multiple definitions of the data depending on which stakeholders might be defining it. From that day on we talked often and compared notes, and it opened a door for us to work on a data dictionary for our customers and our team. It was a great learning experience for me as well as a confidence builder.

Being stretched out of your comfort zone can be hard, but it is amazing what you can learn when you allow yourself to really be challenged.

It encourages you to look at the Big Picture

If you have ever read my blog, you know how I feel about keeping the big picture in mind. Everyone comes to work to do their job, and in most all cases, people are there wanting to do their best work and trying to do so based on where they sit and what they can see. No one can operate beyond what they can see.

In the end, this is the most important of all. When we collaborate it often allows us to connect the big picture to our work. It allows us to see how what we do affects someone else, or where it lands downstream. People want to do work that has a purpose and a meaning. People want to make a difference.

"You must learn how to hold a team together. You must lift some men up, calm others down, until finally they’ve got one heartbeat. Then you’ve got yourself a team.” - Paul "Bear" Bryant

Collaboration brings meaning and adds value to the way we perceive our job. If you see the value you add in your role it bring meaning to the work you do each day.

Connection matters to people. Connected teams drive collaboration, nurture healthy working relationships, and promote knowledge-sharing. The more connected we are as colleagues, the more collaborative we will be, and the more successful we will be.

Until next time... - Leigh