3 Ways You Can Encourage Workforce Collaboration
Unplanned and 'free range' interactions between employees happen all the time, however unless the fruits of those interactions are captured and expanded upon, it's a serious lost opportunity for businesses. Companies live and die on the concepts generated by their most precious capital - people. Help your company succeed by empowering your workforce to share and capture ideas, as great ideas can happen anywhere - not just in the meeting room. When employees bump into each other and mental magic starts happening, the company needs that organic interaction to be encouraged to run its course and result in positive action. Think about how many great ideas are conceived in situations other than planned two hour meetings with snacks and far too many attendees! Spontaneous 15 minute sessions in the work hallway can often be just as inspired and educational. The goal here is to enhance the work environment to promote intuitive, natural idea flow - where it may strike. Of course, this depends on the layout and floorplan of your office, however in most work environments there are small changes that can be made to encourage the facilitation of these types of discussions. Does your office have a natural nook or a lounge area? Simply mounting a whiteboard and leaving some markers in a particular area can turn it into a collaborate hotspot. Here are some areas perfect for considering making small changes to, to encourage workplace conversation.
- Water-cooler hubs - Observe where people congregate or have a tendency to stop and talk. Mounting a whiteboard in this area can engage your team to have a pop-up meeting.
- Untapped workspaces - Look for places where there is less foot traffic. This prime real estate can be converted into a robust collaboration hot spot, where projects can transform from ideation to realization.
- Productivity pods - Take inventory of empty cubicles and turn them into strategic productivity pods, where teams can count on having all the tools from their desk in a more collaborative environment. If the cubicles are adjacent they can be merged, affording space for several people to collaborate.
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