Better Together: Remote Collaboration

We work better together, but what does that mean when we are working from home?

Collaborative working is essential for businesses looking to drive innovation and creativity. Team working is increasingly taking place virtually due to rises in flexible working. 83% of employees rely on technology for collaboration. However, online collaboration is embryonic and has limited research in how to ensure success. 

We have tips to make your new remote collaborative working environment prosperous. 

Regular debriefing ‍

Debriefing is an excellent way to enable continuous improvement within your team. It creates a shared, safe space where people can speak freely. As a group, you can follow key milestones and work out what went well and what could have gone differently. The collaborative process can evolve and can be honed to suit the ongoing needs of the business. 

Get to know each other

It’s essential for members of a group to get to know each other to facilitate strong collaboration. Interactions in the online space are not very personable; therefore, it is crucial to take the time to build connections and reinforce in-group relationships. 

When more people understand each other, including backgrounds, cultural beliefs and more, the less likely friction will occur. It is more likely the team will understand why everyone says and does what they do. 

‍Share goals and outcomes 

Collaborative teams need to work towards a shared goal; if one member does not believe in the goal, it can become tough to sustain positive working relationships. Visioning the plan is vital; the project leader must demonstrate clear priorities and goals to encourage team members to reflect and repeat these to ensure success. 

Set expectations

Mismatched expectations can undermine online collaborations. This can arise in many areas, for example, deadlines. Some of the team may need to wait for others to contribute before they can. This can lead to frustration if deadlines are missed. The key to avoiding this good communication about expectations for the team, if someone asks a question, this should be answered to ensure everyone understands and contributes to the task. 

Half of all employees believe that their workplace could be more collaborative. Online collaboration is new to us all, it is important to work together to develop a system that works for your team. It’s clear that employees want to get work done as a team, now is the perfect time to build an online collaborative strategy, and we hope these tips will help.