As the pace and complexity of business has grown traditional organization structures have been flattened through near constant reorganizations. The need for specialization within certain functions seems to prevent further reconciliation. Empowerment within business units and departments to make decisions within their scope of activities has increased, however, we often bump into "sub-optimizing the whole" if healthy interactions between units are not encouraged.
The latest thinking in business improvements has unleashed a new dictum for Clarity, Focus, Discipline and Engagement. These are all valiant efforts, but the continued focus is on process improvements through a typical hierarchal approach can limit growth. What seems to be missing is the requisite training and techniques for improvements to be implemented across functional silos versus up and down the leadership chain.
Organizations are often structured in a hierarchy, but do people actually work that way? Most people dare not work across departmental boundaries and silos, but where do most breakdowns occur? Reorganizations can help by creating a more generalist skill set which reduces the need for specialists. This paradoxically inhibits the growth of an organization because growth still requires specialized skills. How do you get the best of both worlds (a flat organization with sustained growth)?
It takes a unique approach when there is no existing hierarchy or understanding of each other’s specialization. Specialists are not often accustomed to working with others outside of their functional silo. In fact, the more specialization, the more siloed the department. This takes a unique method that mixes cross-functional problems into collaborative training efforts. This situation is better suited to a "learning by doing approach" and is best driven from a strength-based learning perspective that reduces or eliminates the typical buy-in and finger pointing issues associated with cross functional efforts.
When most people think of change, they think of something that directly affects them, or something that affects those around them. In both cases, change is perceived as a negative! It turns out that change itself is seldom addressed from a positive or strength based approach. Developing a positive skills framework through active participation will address change through the growth of soft skills for both individuals and teams.
"Collaboration" is an expression being tossed around the corporate environment just as "Agile" was a decade ago. There are few companies that have taken the step to develop a collaborative structure internally. Seeking collaborative efforts with customers brings additional cross-functional deficiencies to the surface. As the saying goes, a customer experience mimics an employee experience.
This blog post was co-authored by Bob Petruska, author of Gemba Walks for Service Excellence and Joe Dager It was from a discussion on how to harness the knowledge and the involvement of the people working in different departments on existing topics. It is “On-The-Job-Collaboration”. Contact Bob at BobPertuska.com or me to find out more about this unique approach and how it could strengthen your organization.
You can also find Bob at the upcoming ASQ Charlotte Conference on April 8th, 2014. It will be held at the Harris Conference Center. Bob’s track is called Keep Your Organization’s Chain Straight.