Collaborative leadership is a style of leadership that tries to get feedback and ideas from many different people before making decisions or acting. The traditional boss is seen as an individual director in collaborative leadership, a relatively new way of running a business.
Collaborative leadership means that everyone on the team shares information, the group makes choices, and solutions are found after taking everyone’s ideas into account. Besides that, everyone is responsible for both their work and the work of the group as a whole.
Collaborative Leadership Characteristics
Collaborative managers want to encourage a group approach while still having a leadership mindset. To make sure they can balance leadership and management with facilitation and guidance, these people need to build a particular set of skills and traits. To do this, managers who work together will often:
Build trust
The team needs to trust their boss as well. Most creative leaders go out of their way to build trust with their employees by talking to them openly, giving them freedom, and asking for their opinions.
Use positivity to inspire
Excellent motivators are leaders who encourage collaboration. Not like some other types of leadership that use fear and harsh consequences to get people to work hard, collaborative leaders use rewards and positive feedback to get people to do their best work instead of fear and mistrust.
Give tasks to other people
Collaborative leadership is all about getting everyone on the team to agree on something and talk about it. The collaborative leader knows that everyone on the team has their own skills. By giving specific, skill-based tasks to team members, the collaborative leader wants to give everyone the freedom to offer as much as possible.
Clear communication
Communication is necessary for a boss to get people to work together. When there are meetings, especially when they want to get input or feedback, the joint leader needs to be able to set clear goals for the meeting or situation and collect and sort the information that the team gives them.
Not afraid to fail
A lot of the time, creative leaders are willing to take risks. To get their team members to try new things and develop new ways to solve problems, they create a community and environment based on respect and imagination. Leaders who encourage collaboration are ready to give up some productivity when an idea doesn’t work out in order to find very creative and new solutions.
Figure out issues
Collaborative leader needs to know the basics about their business and the company’s goals in order to guide their teams well, but they should also be open to learning more. It is very important to know how to use that knowledge to have intelligent conversations and make creative choices.
Believe in being honest
Leaders who want to work together must be honest with their teams. They need to give their employees the information they need about business metrics and goals so that they can make decisions based on data since they are actively asking for input and suggestions.
Be a peacemaker
Leaders who work well with others are open to disagreement. They know that disagreement is a normal part of working with other people. When disagreements happen in team meetings, collaborative leaders don’t try to avoid them. Instead, they encourage a healthy conversation that aims to solve the problem at hand and improve things between everyone in the group.
Meet new people
Collaborative leaders must want to work with other people. In many classic management styles, the boss is at the top, and the people they oversee are below them. Leaders who are collaborative try to build relationships both up and down and side to side so that everyone in the company can contribute.
Example of Collaborative Leadership
There are different ways to be a collaborative leader. Look at these examples of joint leadership at work to get an idea of what it could mean for you or your company:
Meetings and teams working across
A traditional leader is likened to a “silo” or a vertical arrangement of workers, with the boss at the very top setting the direction and making the choices. On the other hand, collaborative leaders will get the whole team to talk about their choices, set priorities, and figure out the best way to move forward.
This method is shown during a brainstorming session, where ideas flow around and from side to side instead of coming from the top and going down. An all-hands meeting is another example. All employees are welcome to attend and are urged to ask questions and participate.
Support for diversity
Different thoughts and ideas are valued in collaborative leadership. Promoting variety in the company as a whole, at meetings, and in work sessions all help to bring more ideas to the table when the company talks. Look for people on your teams with different looks, backgrounds, and points of view. If you see a spread, you may work for a company that uses collaborative leadership.
Building up soft skills
Some businesses and industries put much effort into helping their workers improve their hard skills. For instance, a tech company might tell its workers to get better at coding or take training in Go Language, both of which are hard skills. Collaborative leaders know how important soft skills like communication and empathy are and make sure their workers work on improving them along with the hard skills needed for their jobs.
Setting goals
Setting goals is the most important part of joint leadership. The collaborative leader not only makes sure that their tasks are in line with the organisation’s general goals, but they also make sure that each team member has their own professional development goals to work toward. Employers who help their workers set and reach their goals build a strong group of driven workers.
Making rejection normal
If employees don’t meet their metrics or set up a suitable procedure, the collaborative leader doesn’t punish them. Instead, they use that as a chance to teach their employees something and help them use what they’ve learned to do better on their next try.
FAQs
What is the difference between leadership and collaborative leadership?
Traditional leadership involves a hierarchical structure with clear roles and responsibilities. In contrast, collaborative leadership focuses on teamwork, shared decision-making, and valuing diverse perspectives. Both styles have their strengths and can be effective in different contexts, depending on the specific needs and goals of the team or organisation. Collaborative leaders value differences, develop shared decision-making processes, manage conflict, and foster trust among team members. They also seek feedback and insights from employees, ensuring equal information sharing among teams.
What are the values of collaborative leadership?
Collaborative leadership is a style that emphasises teamwork and cooperation, valuing diverse perspectives and fostering a sense of ownership and commitment. Key values include trustworthiness, active listening, understanding different motivations, fostering inter-department collaboration, managing conflict, creating networks, and focusing on asking good questions. Trustworthiness involves being reliable, consistent, and honest, while active listening involves understanding nonverbal cues and providing feedback.
Collaborative leaders recognise different motivations and use these factors to achieve company benefits. They also encourage open conversation and resolve conflicts, fostering a network system that includes all stakeholders. Building potential by asking good questions is crucial for generating innovative ideas and solutions. Effective collaborative leadership requires a reception of new ideas, viewpoints, and skillsets and an understanding of the operational strengths of the business.
Is collaborative leadership good?
Collaborative leadership is a leadership style that promotes teamwork, shared decision-making, and mutual respect. It fosters innovation, creativity, and trust among team members. It can lead to agile, innovative, and high-functioning teams. However, it requires careful management, balancing freedom of expression with unity and cohesion. To effectively practice, leaders should lead by example, foster an open process, establish norms, and understand the leadership context. Collaborative leadership can drive innovation, engagement, and success in an organisation but requires careful management and commitment to open communication, respect, and shared decision-making.
How do you show collaborative leadership?
Collaborative leadership involves effective communication, connecting ideas, unified strategy, leading by example, establishing cross-functional projects, managing conflict, and celebrating victories. Leaders should listen to employees, use appropriate tools, and encourage circulating new ideas. They should balance diverse views and make final decisions when necessary. Leaders should establish cross-functional projects, manage conflicts, and celebrate achievements to foster collaboration and innovation. The goal is to create an environment where everyone feels valued, heard, and motivated to contribute to the team’s success.
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