Apr 17, 2018
5 tips for inspiring collaboration where Millennials can thrive
I have seen a lot of companies struggling with keeping their Millennial generation happy. Some try to treat them with drinks, while some gives them the flexibility to work or provide open workspaces to keep them contend. The truth is, Millennials want a lot more than this: more purposeful work, methods to bring creativity and ideas, speak to their interests, align with their values and feel good.
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And if you are a manager or a boss who wants to attract the Millennial generation, you have to have a culture that knows how to be collaborative.
According to a survey, 85% of executives and project managers consider the lack of project collaboration as one of the main reasons behind workplace failure. Another latest study suggests that almost 40% employees are not happy with how people collaborate in the workplace.
The ideal Millennial working culture
What does a millennials ideal culture look like? Millennials are setting a standard for what a 21st-century company should be like as they are growing up in time where the digital revolution is striking to hit its pace.
MILLENNIALS HAVE GROWN UP IN THE TIME OF RAPID CHANGE, WHERE THE INFORMATION IS AT THEIR FINGERTIPS, SO THEY ARE CREATIVE AND CRITICAL THINKERS.
A recent study shows that a culture of collaboration is one of the top things millennials desire in a workplace. In fact, 88 percent of millennials prefer a collaborative workplace over a competitive one. Collaboration between team members is becoming critical for successful projects. So, the companies need to make some changes in the workplace environment.
Why is collaboration so important in the workplace?
Communication in the workplace stimulates the flow of ideas within an organization. The teams better understand each other and do contribute more to the organization. They harness their strengths to reach the common goals. This applies to businesses of all size and shape.
Here’s why you should encourage collaboration in the workplace:
- Speed up solutions
- Better flow of ideas
- More problem solving
- Break down barriers
- Increase job satisfaction
- Better customer experience
- More engaged employees
Without collaboration, the organization falls into chaos.
Businesses in 2018 are largely committed to trying out numerous independent apps — such as ProofHub for messaging, Skype for video calls, DropBox for file storage, etc. — to build up a platform for ideal collaboration to emerge.
Some of today’s most successful companies build a great collaborative working culture by following these tricks and tips. Let’s take a closer look at what are the tricks and tips for successful teams.
- Use a team collaboration software
Working together collectively is hard for a lot of reasons. With team collaboration software, people involved in a common task can achieve goals by working together. Commonly “team collaboration software” is becoming pretty much ideal in today’s professional landscape.
What are the advantages of using an online collaboration software?
Streamlining activities — Keep a check on who is working on what at the given time to make sure there is no-one making the mistake.
Improve communication — Send private messages and group message and post comments to avoid email mess.
Engage your employees — Engage employees meaningfully at work by giving feedback and reach out for help.
Share information — You will save a lot of time when everyone has access to your files. Work together by keeping your files in one location to end long trails of emails.
Think outside the box — Bring together everyone from stakeholders to team members to your online workspace and discuss your project.
The quality of tools often dictates the quality of craftsman.
2. Diversify your workplace
One way out to let your employees make better decisions for your organization is to make them understand their role and value they add to the company. When employees get together in interactive sessions, they usually bring out some great ideas.
The more variety of skills and knowledge you have in a team the better the teams will be able to solve a difficult problem. There will be more creativity and more energy. And more likely the employees will achieve their obligations.
3. Streamline goals
If you are a manager or a leader, you would probably know the importance of setting SMART goals — Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-related. To promote collaboration, the goals should be reached by assigning the role and responsibilities to team members that are aligned with their personal and professional development needs.
A research study concluded that employees who were involved in setting goals for themselves felt “more involved, (and) satisfied with the system” which is directly related to the value of collaborative goal setting.
For this, you need to:
- Know the expectations or overall purpose of the team
- Review roles of each member
- Cross-check their responsibilities
- Encourage them to learn from other members
Give your individual members the goals that form the foundation of a successful and flexible team, and align with your business objectives.
4. Conduct team building activities
This generation has grown up inspired by working on teams — be it playing football team, school or any. They show their sportsman spirit to work best in the team. When working in an office, you can encourage team-building exercise with a Millennial workforce. Get them participate in virtual games — indoor, outdoor to promote collaboration. Conduct few fun activities by taking them offsite, take them for team lunch or a movie together. Ultimately, you see more success, your teams growing and people working together towards a common goal.
5. Promote teamwork
Every successful team says, “ People who work together will win.” This is the central theme of collaboration. There is no way individuals can achieve their goals if they are not working collectively. Look for promoting teamwork within the group by dividing the work, asking help for each of them, build a review process, line up towards a common goal and celebrate together. At ProofHub, we are much concerned about how the teams interact, what can encourage them to work together and make them highly engaged.
Something incredible will surely happen when teams are in place. A healthy team produces benefits for individual, organization, and business as a whole.
Beyond this, as leaders, we have to give our team regular opportunity to express gratitude towards team members. As more millennials are getting into the workforce, teams must keep collaboration at top of mind. You have to be a good leader while also adopting best practices, better collaboration software, and greater visibility into teams’ objective.
Which of these collaboration habits is yours? What’s your next plan?
Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
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Author Bio:
Sandeep Kashyap is the Founder of ProofHub — a leading project management and collaboration software. A passionate leader, Sandeep is always on the lookout for innovative ideas about filling the communication gap between groups, teams and companies.
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