How collaborative is your workforce? In modern businesses, it’s all the rage – and with good reason. Collaboration can lead to more inventive thinking, innovative ideas, and the sharing of expertise. However, it can also be costly and time-consuming, so there is a delicate balance to strike. In today’s guide, we’re going to reveal several strategies to lay the foundations for a collaborative workplace. Read on to find out more and see if you can use any of these ideas in your business.

Define your focus

The first step is to make sure you have a vision and a focus for your business. It’s easy to tell people what to do and expect them to get on with it. But if you can explain why these tasks need doing, and what results they will bring, it is a far more attractive proposition for employees. Once they understand your goals, they will feel more comfortable about collaborating to achieve them.

Take it from the top

Whenever you start a new way of working in business, it’s vital to lead from the top. It’s no different for collaboration, so start showing your workers what to do by being an excellent example. A good way of doing this is to stop sending out company wide emails full of instruction and direction. Instead, use collaborative tools when talking to your employees. Get feedback and action some of the ideas that you encounter. You will benefit from better top-to-bottom communication. And, you will also inspire employees to be more confident about speaking up.

Invest in the right tools

We mentioned using tools in the above paragraph, and it’s vital to choose the right ones. Video conferencing can open up many doors for you, for example. It allows people to meet up in the virtual space and confer over projects wherever they are in the country. Project managers and team leaders will also benefit from sharing documents with employees in a more efficient way. Try looking for a good White-Label File Sharing service to make it easier for people to connect with each other. It doesn’t matter whether they are team members or outsourced workers, the results will help. People can access, change, and add to documents, files, and other tasks whenever they like.

Encourage friendships

The closer you are to someone, the more critical you can be when it comes to giving feedback. It makes sense, then, to try and encourage stronger bonds between your key employees. Great team building can help. Offering social activities outside of work hours can also contribute to break down some barriers. Not only will it help people produce better work, but they will also feel more comfortable about suggesting new ideas. It’s a win-win situation that will only do your business good.

Be aware of privacy issues

So many businesses are embracing the open office policy these days. And, you might think it is ideal for productivity and collaboration. However, it isn’t quite that simple. Some people thrive better in smaller groups, and others need private time to be creative. So, if you have plans for a fabulous open office in the future, make sure you also allow for private space, too.

Engage your employees

It’s important to have as many employees on board as possible if you want a collaborative workspace. Actively engaging staff members and getting them to work towards a common goal will help. It gives people the confidence to empower themselves, take more responsibility, and share ideas. The impact on your company results will also see the benefit when everyone is pulling in the same direction.

Be more diverse

Diversity can come in many different forms in the workplace. Hiring people from abroad, for example, can bring new ideas and working methods that add value. Mixing teams up every now and again works, too. Try and create balanced teams that have a right mixture of personality types. Not everyone will be able to work well with some people, and vice versa. Keep an eye out for the most productive relationships in your business. Provide opportunities for people who might usually keep quiet to come up with brilliant ideas.

As we mentioned above, collaboration is becoming more popular with forward-thinking businesses. If you want to start investigating its potential for your business, try putting some of these ideas into action. Who knows where it might take you? You might uncover an undiscovered pool of talent in your company who could drive you forward to achieve great things!