Don't skimp on collaboration if you want to innovate

In an increasingly competitive environment SMB owners must leverage the creativity of their employees to better predict market trends and deliver quick solutions. This is particularly important when it comes to digital transformation. It’s an approach that can foster an entrepreneurial spirit across the business and enable greater agility and creativity.

Innovation is for everyone

Innovation leaders encourage teamwork, sharing of ideas, and a collective vision to achieve common goals.

Collaboration is a requirement to realise expected project outcomes. It enhances the implementation of innovative ideas and solutions by creating joint ownership and spreading risk to a wider group of people. Collaboration also encourages more innovative practices by enabling knowledge sharing across business units and functions.

Innovation should not be limited to a few select individuals. By giving everyone in the organisation the opportunity to be an innovator, your people will feel entrusted to infuse new ways of thinking into the business.

"In a collaborative scenario, shared ideas allow for services and products to be created cooperatively by members of different teams, bringing together employees with complementary ideas, knowledge and skills within the business ecosystem. It’s about building a team of self-motivated people with a collective vision, and a common goal." Gary Pickford, Chief commercial officer, Tarsus Distribution

Accenture research has shown that companies can achieve more efficient digital transformation by focusing on cross-function collaboration – instead of competition – to drive effective and efficient change. Accenture reported that collaboration champions achieve four times the revenue gains with digital projects, and they grow 13 times more profitably.

Here is what sets collaboration champions apart from other companies:

1. They plan the work and work the plan
   Champions clarify to function leaders what digital transformation means for the organisation and why everyone should collaborate in support of a joint mission. They set the stage by making clear what metrics they are trying to hit, what user pains they are trying to address, and what problems they are trying to solve. They are specific, have a narrow focus, and are clear about the vision and mission for the digital transformation.
2. They find key people and empower them
   Champions assign ownership and responsibility around cross-function collaboration. They hold executives accountable for how well they cooperate and collaborate across the organisation.
3. They pick projects that bring people together
   They have ideas coming in from every team in the organisation because everyone has important pieces of knowledge and skill sets that make them useful. Champions prioritise projects that stimulate cross-function collaboration. They know where and how to allocate resources and choose projects that generate value for the organisation as a whole.
4. Make sure solutions speak the same language
   Champions ensure that their digital solutions and platforms are interoperable. They invest in and rapidly scale platforms that empower continuous collaboration—this helps solve the problem created by silos.
5. Create rules for the road
   Champions build smart information technology governance policies from the start, establishing clear rules for the journey.

Reference:

https://www.accenture.com/us-en/blogs/industry-digitization/why-collaboration-is-at-the-heart-of-digital-transformation

ENDS