Episode #69: How to Improve Cross-Functional Collaboration in Your Workplace

One area I continue to see in corporate leadership teams that needs improvement is the low levels of cross-functional collaboration, which hinders their operational efficiency and strategic alignment. Simply put, each team tends to run like a separate entity.

The recipe that I give to leadership teams, which I originally learned from best-selling author Patrick Lencioni, is to have the leadership team become team #1 for its members.

Team #1 can foster a culture of collaboration, implementing integrated processes and systems, promoting open communication, and ensuring strong leadership and goal alignment across the organization.

As a leader, consider giving Team #1 a try. 

Transcript

Welcome to THE CAREER ACCELERATOR, the podcast where corporate managers will find tips and tools to deliver results through others.

Hello. Today I will share suggestions to improve cross-functional collaboration in your workplace.

I’m your host, Percy Cannon. 

In our last episode, I stressed the importance of maximizing the benefits of one-of-one meetings with your employees by focusing on what’s in it for each of them. 

I shared three tips:

1.   Start by asking each employee what their top three expectations are from you as their manager.

2.   Practice servant leadership with your employees.

3.   Use every one-on-one as an opportunity to provide feedback to the employee.

Switching to today’s topic, one area I continue to see in corporate leadership teams that needs improvement is the low levels of cross-functional collaboration, which hinders their operational efficiency and strategic alignment. Simply put, each team tends to run like a separate entity.

Here are three of the top challenges I continue to see:

1. Departments are setting their own priorities, protecting their own resources and not freely sharing them across functions. This, of course, can lead to inefficiencies and duplicated efforts.

2. Departments are developing their own subcultures within the organization, which can lead to different communication styles and work practices. Bridging these “cultural” gaps is essential for effective collaboration.

3. There is a lack of clarity and alignment within leadership teams. Effective cross-functional collaboration requires strong leadership to drive initiatives and ensure that teams are working toward common goals. 

The recipe that I give to leadership teams, which I originally learned from best-selling author Patrick Lencioni, is to have the leadership team become team #1 for its members.

Team #1 means that the top goal for each department is the collective priority agreed upon by all its members. In other words, department priorities rank below the collective priority agreed upon by the leadership team.

Team #1 means that resources are fluid between departments. Functional leaders will willingly reallocate resources if that is what’s needed to meet the collective priority agreed upon by all team members.

Team #1 means that all departments share the same corporate values, which leads to having a common culture in the organization.

Team #1 means that its members are clear and aligned on the top strategic and executional choices for the organization.

Team #1 means that all communications coming from the leadership team to the rest of the organization convey the same set of values and agreements. Employees from different departments should not receive conflicting messages from their leader.

Recently, a client asked me to work with the leadership team in one of its international units. Survey results uncovered two main challenges within its members: trusting each other and willingly making sacrifices for the good of the team.

We implemented a Team #1 approach, where they worked to build the trust level among themselves, and the team’s goals became the #1 priority for every member. They identified a set of cross-departmental projects, which they staffed with resources from different functions. The leadership team defined a process to guide, support, and help these project teams. They also scheduled a set of checkpoints with their senior leadership. 

After working with this leadership team for nine months, they posted the following results:

1.   Completion or significant progress of the cross-departmental projects they had led and prioritized,

2.   excellent feedback from their senior leadership on the projects’ performance and on their own capability to work as a unified team, and

3.   significant increases in survey results, especially in the trust developed by team members and the capability to work as Team #1.  

In summary, Team #1 can foster a culture of collaboration, implementing integrated processes and systems, promoting open communication, and ensuring strong leadership and goal alignment across the organization.

As a leader, consider giving Team #1 a try. 

I hope you enjoyed today’s episode. In the next one, I will continue to provide content that can help you become a more effective leader and a better team player. 

If you like what you heard today, let me ask you to please rate, subscribe, or follow this podcast and share it with your coworkers and friends. Also, you can request a free coaching call with me by using the links provided on this platform.

This is Percy Cannon, working to help you make the rest of your life…the best of your life®.