The constant demand for greater efficiency, effectiveness and productivity within an organisation has led to the evolution of the collaborative workforce.
Today’s ideal employees are flexible, mobile, and capable of leveraging the unique skillsets of team members to increase an organisation’s efficiency, and drive innovation. In fact, 96 percent of businesses blame the lack of collaboration, or ineffective communication for workplace failures.
Gordon Tan, Managing Director at R & G Technologies, believes technology is an enabler of workplace collaboration. He says: “Collaboration is pivotal for organisations wanting a smarter, faster, more competitive workforce. Supplement a connected workforce with collaboration technology, and you get fluid communication, collaboration and higher levels of productivity than was previously thought possible.”
Collaborative software is popping up left, right and centre to assist with the development of this new standard of working.
In order to get employees working together, consider these three ideas to improve workforce collaboration:
1. Implement an enterprise social network
Deploying an enterprise ‘Facebook’ has the potential to boost organisational comradery, and encourage knowledge-sharing and other collaborative processes between employees.
According to a study by Pentland and Waber, employees with the most social connections and interactions with co-workers had the highest levels of productivity.
This is because ‘employees’ moods impact on job performance, decision making, creativity, turnover, teamwork, negotiations and leadership’ - Wharton Management Professor, Sigal Barsade.
An enterprise social network will encourage employee communication. Employees will be able to update each other on projects, share different perspectives and offer pointers to co-workers in a more casual setting.
What tools can help you create an enterprise social network?
For example, Yammer, also known as ‘Facebook for Business’ allows travelling and remote staff to stay connected regardless of location or device. Yammer enables staff to participate in spontaneous, real-time discussion and share resources internally with colleagues.
Not only are socially connected staff going to perform better, they’re also better equipped to work collaboratively and have greater positive impact.
2. Leverage virtual conferencing
Embedding collaboration into the business culture is difficult when employees are never around. Use high quality video and audio conferencing to maintain connectedness and collaboration, regardless of where they are.
Gordon adds: “The positive effects of collaboration are greatly diminished when employees must return to the office to do so. The solution is high-definition video conferencing, which ensures collaboration can continue seamlessly despite geographical distance.”
What tools can help you with video conferencing?
Microsoft’s Lync is a unified communications platform, which offers VoIP capabilities, instant messaging and video conferencing from anywhere with an Internet connection, off any device. The enterprise technology also has whiteboarding capabilities, syncs with Outlook and has various other features, enabling efficient collaboration.
Virtual conferencing capabilities are a godsend to companies with disparate offices and remote workers, desiring effective collaboration.
3. Use cloud-based project management tools
Misinformation, duplication of activity and other inefficiencies are a result of miscommunications during collaborative efforts. Cloud-based project management tools eliminate this productivity pitfall, keeping all team members aware of the project’s evolution.
A study by Skitmore revealed the biggest gap between skills needed and skills possessed by project managers is communication (5). Cloud-based project management tools keep all team members informed at all times, dramatically reducing miscommunication and the errors that follow.
Team members can contribute remotely, communicate in real time and make informed decisions. This results in rapid information and workflows, creating better buy-in from team members and more successful outcomes.
What tools can help you with project management?
There are various project management tools on the market, including simpler applications like Trello, or more advanced software like Microsoft’s Project Online. Project Online is offered as part of Office 365, and delivers sophisticated portfolio and resource management and reporting. Users have a centralised location where they can check the status of the project from any device with an Internet connection, monitor and plan projects, and work on important tasks from the convenience of a web-browser.
Collaboration doesn’t have to be laden with inefficiencies. Using project management tools to consolidate all relevant information under one roof will streamline communications, and ensure team members can work effectively towards shared goals.
How to improve workforce collaboration
Foster a collaborative workplace, capable of delivering maximum impact, by embedding collaborative technologies and processes deep in your organisation.
Key takeaways:
- Get a ‘Facebook’ for your organisation to promote networking and enhance performance.
- Build virtual conferencing into the way your organisation communicates
- Use cloud-based productivity tools to collaborate, heedless of location.
Remember, the collective can accomplish far more than siloed departments or lone individuals, so make sure you’re optimising your workforce through collaboration.
Do you need help choosing the right technology to improve workplace collaboration?
R & G Technologies is a Brisbane IT Support and IT Consulting firm that helps organisations across Australia. We can help you identify the best technology - like Lync and Trello - to increase workplace collaboration. Call us on1300 562 886 or contact us via this page.