Business Collaboration for Professionals

Business Collaboration for ProfessionalsBusiness Collaboration for ProfessionalsBuilding relationships with colleagues promotes goodwill, gruppework and innovation. But it may come as some surprise that for greater than a third (39 percent) of the CFOs in a Robert Half Finance Accounting survey, mastering the art of business collaboration across the organization is their departments greatest challenge.Is interacting and working smoothly together really that difficult? Due to differing work styles and personalities, many finance and accounting professionals said, yes, it can sometimes be challenging. Here are some suggestions for better business collaboration with your coworkersTips for ManagersHold inclusive meetings. Work with leaders in other departments that your team often interacts with to plan periodic meetings of all groups. This will allow your interrelated teams to get a clearer picture of what colleagues in other departments are up to and how every group works together tow ard a common goal.Promote cohesiveness. Team-building exercises are terrific for engendering solidarity. They also demystify how other departments approach tasks and solve problems. Take a combination of teams out of the office for an afternoon so they can break the ice in a less formal setting. When coworkers are on friendly terms, they are more likely to reach out and support each other.Offer job shadowing. Finance department employees crunching crucial company data may not be aware of how their colleagues in marketing use their analyses to design new customer retention campaigns. Meanwhile, marketing might not understand how the results of the data are derived. To promote awareness of how each department affects the other, and to expand insights, give team members the opportunity to work alongside a colleague in another department or branch.Address conflicts promptly. With so many personality types and communication styles, occasional disagreements are bound to occur in any organ ization. Resolve issues before they multiply or do harm to morale in your department and beyond. When you sense inter-departmental discontent, step in and mediate. Listen to each side and then devise a mutually agreeable solution.Tips for EmployeesSit in on meetings outside your department. Were all inundated daily with meeting notices - some mandatory and some not. Make a point to attend one or two outside your area of responsibility occasionally if youre invited. In the spirit of good business collaboration, it can be a great way to find out how other colleagues work.Check preferences. Cross collaboration can help bring you in synch with priorities colleagues in other departments are facing such as deadlines, or even whether they prefer an in-person visit or phone call to emails. Knowing this kind of detail can bring about greater efficiency and foster goodwill. Be inquisitive. Ask about preferences and do your best to accommodate them.Put a face with the name. Get to know your c oworkers, especially those you communicate often with but rarely see. Ask them out for coffee or suggest that you grab lunch together. Being able to put a face with an email address can go a long way toward improving cross collaboration and making your company a friendlier and more productive place.Be sure to read Confronting the Challenges of Cross-Departmental Collaboration.Theres no doubt that navigating disparate protocols and personalities can be tricky however, whether youre a manager or staff member, better efforts at business collaboration can lead to smoother processes and a greater sense of job satisfaction. One of the strengths of any company is its diversity. To extract the maximum value of each team members contribution, managers and staff should put every effort into getting to know their colleagues from other departments. Subscribe to our newsletterWhen you subscribe to the Robert Half newsletter, youll get articles and resources to help you build a successful career in accounting and finance - all sent directly to your inbox. Click the button below to sign up todaySUBSCRIBE NOW