There will come a time in your business when the requirements of a project require more than a team to fulfil. The collaboration brings two different teams together, which can get challenging to manage. The employees may face communication problems, and it can cause some severe disputes.
The leaders are responsible for filling the compatibility gap between the two teams. They need to allocate the roles and responsibility while maintaining a clear communication channel. Here are some tips for organisations to manage cross-team collaboration.
1. Communicate the Roles and Responsibilities
You need to start by giving the essential roles and responsibilities to the key members. Clarity in communication is extremely critical during this step. The employees need to understand their roles and the expectations from them.
The managers need to find the right person for the tasks from the two teams. It may create a conflict if the essential roles are given to a specific team for no reasons. Moreover, they need to be accountable for their work and should know the consequences as well.
2. Create a Centralised Communication Channel
Once the roles are designated, you need to create a centralised communication channel for the new team. The members need to communicate with each other and the upper management without any trouble. They must have each other’s contact in the system to ensure smooth communication.
The communication channel is an integral part of any collaborative project. The project management tools provide a space for communication to the employees. You can achieve the same with limited functionality from applications such as Microsoft Skype, Team, or Google Meetings.
3. Find the Tasks for Collaboration
The project, on the whole, may require a single or a few collaboration tasks. You will only waste time and create a mess by involving other team everywhere. Therefore, find the tasks that require collaboration from the project requirements.
You can take the inputs from the required teams for the specified task. This will help management to create strategies for individual processes. The project management will be simplified if more than two teams are collaborating.
4. Invest in Technology
Technology can help you automate tedious and complex processes to save time. Your employees will use their limited energy on essential tasks. Therefore, invest in modern tech to increase productivity and efficiency.
The least you can do is invest in project management tools that streamline every task for management and communication. You can create strategies while tracking the progress with different metrics. Advance computers and other devices will also help them increase productivity and accuracy with the tasks.
5. Provide the Resources
The team members will require various resources that include physical and computer tools. You need to provide them with the required resources to achieve the target successfully. It may get a little tough with the increased demand because of collaboration.
Make a list of required resources that should include tools, software and infrastructure. You will need it to create an action plan where they are allocated to the individuals. Take loans for bad credit in Ireland if the budget is too tight for the resources.
6. Allow Members to Share Progress
The subordinates need to submit the report and their progress with the managers. However, they should ask the employees to share their progress with the other team members as well. It will help promote accountability among the employees.
Moreover, the employees can get to know their new teammates for the project. This will help create trust among the new mates, and they may start relying on each other.
7. Find Key Performance Indicators
Monitoring individual performance is extremely important for complex projects. It helps managers work on individual employees and give them valuable feedback. Also, you can point out the subpar performances to help them improve.
For this, you need to find the key performance indicators for various roles and tasks. It makes no sense to compare the employees in testing with the developers. Therefore, the performance of each individual should be evaluated based on various performance indicators.
8. Train for Conflict Management
It is okay to have a few minor conflicts among the teammates because of the new setup. Everyone will learn something from these incidents, including the managers. They will play a significant role in conflict resolution with their leadership skills.
You can provide the training to manage various types of workplace conflict. In the planning stage, take proper steps to avoid any situation that may disrupt work because of opposite ideas. Ask them to focus on the positives if the employees are indulging in a conflict.
Conclusion
To sum up, a detailed plan of action is critical for the success of a collaborative project. You can take help from technology to make the process a little easy. In the end, communication is critical and should focus on streamlining it.