The key to a successful interfunctional collaboration

Interfunctional collaboration: decompose silos to succeed

Let's see a common scenario in the workplace. While working on a project, he can often feel as if you were alone. You may need perspectives of other departments, but they can be occupied with their own tasks or deadlines, so it is difficult for you to feel understood and supported. This is where effective interfunctional collaboration becomes essential. Interfunctional collaboration concerns teams from different departments working together towards a common objective. Instead, the teams remain in their own tasks, they are starting to combine their expertise. And in modern workplaces where everything must be done quickly and that everyone is busy, this approach is more important than ever. The challenges we face are too complex for a team to take up alone. So how do you bring everyone together? You break down the departmental silos.

The silos are your different departments: marketing, sales, HR, finance, product, etc. In these, people focus only on their own tasks and priorities. Although it seems effective, all those who have their own tasks on which to work create barriers. Communication becomes difficult, teams can do dual work and no one has a common goal. So why do these silos exist? Just because people don't want to collaborate. This is because organizations focus on ministerial objectives. Each team has its own kpi, chronologies and ways to work. This creates a natural trend for each team to prioritize their own work on the whole business. In addition, some departments have no reason to communicate, because their tasks do not compensate. Below, we will see how you can break them and promote transparent interfunctional collaboration to drive your business to success.

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Why is interfunctional collaboration important?

Stimulating innovation

When people from different teams come together, they bring perspectives, experiences and different ideas to the table. Interfunctional collaboration encourages this. After all, innovation is not only to offer new ideas. These are also smaller interactions, such as a customer service agent sharing customer comments with the product development team. This can lead to better products or better customer experience, which would not happen if the teams did not collaborate.

Improvement of efficiency

Each organization wants efficiency. A company can waste so much time and money when the teams work in isolation. A department could develop one tool that another department has already created, or it could solve the same problem in different ways. On the contrary, when the teams speak regularly, they can share their daily tasks, avoid duplicate work and exchange resources more effectively. It does not only work people faster but also smarter, because everyone is always on the same wavelength.

Improve adaptability

Organizations must be adaptable as new trends are emerging, customer expectations change and the market becomes unpredictable. Companies that can respond to everything that arises are generally more successful, and interfunctional collaboration can get there. Indeed, when the teams collaborate, they exchange information. Decisions can then be made in real time, with the contribution of experts and without delay the approval of managers. For example, an interfunctional team can quickly think about a solution if a competitor does something that can harm your brand. In addition, the teams that work together are better to identify new trends, adapt strategies and provide new ideas.

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Encourage employee engagement

When the people of Different teams collaborateThey learn from each other. They acquire new skills and discover different ways of thinking. This questions employees and makes them feel that their contribution is valued, which makes the workplace more satisfactory. Collaboration also gives your staff members an additional objective. When the teams see how their efforts contribute to a wider goal, they are more motivated to give their best. And, as your workforce realizes that their work is significant and has an impact, they will be more likely to stay.

How to break the silos in the workplace

Promote collaborative culture

Culture is everything. If collaboration is not part of the identity of your organization, nothing will repair it. So how do you build a collaborative culture? Start by encouraging transparency and confidence. Managers must be open to comments and celebrate the successes of the team, especially when they involve interfunctional efforts. In addition, they can share successes where collaboration between the teams has led to excellent results. Or, even better, show them the immediate impact that their collaboration has.

Align objectives with all departments

The collaboration becomes delicate if each team works towards their own objectives without any alignment, so be sure to align objectives between the teams. For example, establish shared objectives related to the mission and vision of the company. Therefore, if the objective of your organization is to improve customer satisfaction, this should be an objective for all departments, not just customer support. In this way, everyone's work will lead to this. And don't forget to reward the teams for achieving certain objectives through collaboration.

Improve communication

If the teams do not speak to each other, there are necessarily silos. In other words, Improve communication is a must. You can start by implementing regular interfunctional meetings where different departments meet to share updates, challenges and opportunities. The tools also count. Think of platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams or Asana. These allow teams to stay more easily connected, share files and immediately monitor the progress of their projects. Listening is also an important part of communication. This is why you should encourage teams to actively listen to the challenges and ideas of others.

Involve leadership

If managers do not model collaborative behavior, employees are unlikely to do it. Managers should actively engage in other departments, search for their comments and support them. From CEO to team leaders, they should join meetings and interfunctional projects, work with other department directors and help if necessary. In addition, it is good for leaders to discuss their own collaboration success or start open discussions. This creates a safe space for others to do the same.

Create interfunctional teams

One of the most effective ways to break silos is to literally create interfunctional teams. These can be trained for key projects, bringing together people from different departments to work towards a common objective. For example, if you launch a new product, bring together product designers, marketing specialists, sellers and customer support staff. Each member brings their expertise and know-how, and together, they can face challenges and find opportunities that a team could miss.

Conclusion

For an interfunctional collaboration, you must first modify the state of mind of your business. It is a question of changing the old way of thinking where the departments work alone. Instead, you have to adopt the idea that real progress occurs when the teams work with each other. This requires openness, creativity and a real desire to share ideas and resources. So find an opportunity to bring together the teams and see the speed with which collaboration can transform your entire organization.