Collaboration is always key to success, productivity, and innovation the collaboration between employees and employers is what keeps an organisation standing. Collaboration can be a wide range of people, each bringing something special to the table and the end results are products and services that closely align with your buyers’ needs and solve problems.

According to Digital workplace, collaboration in a workplace involves a group of people sharing their ideas and skills in order to achieve a common goal. Working collaboratively, instead of individually, helps improve productivity and gives employees a sense of purpose in the organisation. It also becomes easier to brainstorm ideas to solve an existing problem or deliver the required work on time.

Eddy Ruhumuriza a business advisor says that the power of collaboration is often under-looked by employers and even companies.

"One thing leaders don’t pay attention to is what collaborating with employees can bring to a company instead of giving orders and expecting them to do things their way, it is the perfect way and approach to give an opportunity to your employers in providing their best in innovating and developing the company, a good collaboration also permits an employer to view things from the perspective of other members in the company and therefore they can be able to know how to elevate the company’s services,” he says.

Aline Umuhoza who works in the management team of a cleaning company says that different ideas and skills create innovative solutions.

"In a company, employees are very different and they think differently which is a good advantage because no one can think on their own for the whole company, which is why an effective collaboration opens eyes to many possibilities and solutions to building the company’s development, giving all members in an organisation or company the right to collaborate helps employees feel like they are also included and their ideas are valid too,” she explains.

Why is collaboration important

Collaboration in a workplace brings out the best in employees and boosts their productivity, Emmanuel Ingabire who works at Klab an open space for IT entrepreneurs argues.

"It is the leader’s job to understand why collaborating with employees is an advantage, for example where I work from if you have an idea, a suggestion, or even a critique the managers are always willing to listen and also share theirs for feedback and interaction,” he says.

In a blog article by checkify on why collaboration is important they listed down the benefits of collaboration in an organisation or company:

Innovation

Collaboration drives innovation. When colleagues with different experiences work together, they have an opportunity to create something great. Workplace collaboration brings together varying skills that try to complement each other. If a problem arises, workers combine expertise to develop solutions.

Problem-solving

Collaboration offers the opportunity the call upon diverse knowledge, experience, and skillsets. Each individual brings to the table different skills which can help solve problems more creatively and effectively because they can see the problem in a different way and are able to see all the blind spots.

Communication 

A collaborative workplace builds better communication. If team members are to work together, they have to find ways to communicate. A collaborative workplace presents a chance to discover new, more effective modes of communication, which benefits the enterprise in the long run.

Relationships

Collaboration fosters good relationships between employees. As workers spend more time collaborating, they learn about one another and how to get along. Because collaboration eliminates isolation silos, it brings people and departments closer. It helps build a healthy corporate culture and more satisfied employees.

Knowledge

Collaboration offers a tremendous opportunity to boost knowledge. No two people in the workplace have the same ideas, knowledge, or experiences. Collaboration allows the transfer of knowledge between team members, enabling each member to expand their skills and learn from each other.

Remote teams

Collaboration of remote teams is critical so they feel like part of the team. Keeping them updated, aligned, and connected with other members of the team. Loneliness can be common among remote workers, which negatively impacts their productivity and employee retention.