Over the past few years, managers have been constantly developing new practices to meet their employees’ expectations. After agile management, the trend is now towards collaborative management. This is a new organizational style whose aim is to put people back at the heart of the organization. With this management style, pyramidal organizations are a thing of the past. Make way for initiative and creativity. Indeed, the collaborative approach emphasizes the desire to make decisions together. And that’s what sets it apart from traditional management.

Are you a manager in a company who wants to know all about this new management system? Find out in this article all you need to know about the subject and its benefits for your company.

Collaborative management: what is it?

Also known as collaborative leadership, this organizational style first appeared in North America in 1994. It was first published in the Harvard Business Review. Since then, however, it has enjoyed great success with managers the world over. And today, its application continues to spread. This management method is totally different from the traditional hierarchical model. In fact, it aims to encourage employees to take the initiative by offering them freedom of speech. It relies on the flexibility, interaction and collaboration of employees to achieve a common goal.

Collaborative management therefore requires a horizontal approach. Specifically, the absence of hierarchical pressure. Its principle is to allow employees to assert their ideas for better transmission of information. As such, it implies a flattened hierarchy. In other words, an organizational system with fewer levels of relationship.

As a general rule, the key points of this management style include :

Developing communication;
Encouraging empowerment;
Establishing a collaborative mindset;
Reinforcing employee well-being and fulfillment.

Collaborative management: best practices to adopt

Collaboration. It has been shown that a participative and collaborative approach allows everyone to express themselves and mobilize collective intelligence. What’s more, it’s also a great way to create moments of conviviality. So, if you want to create a good relationship with your partners and employees, exchanges are the best way to achieve your objectives. In fact, it’s the best way to get feedback on the problems that employees encounter on a daily basis, and to find common solutions.
Trust. In collaborative management, the whole team has to work together. This is impossible when there is a lack of trust between team members. So it’s essential to establish a relationship of trust. You need to share clear, reliable information with your employees. Transparency is also important. This will create a sense of belonging and increase motivation at work.
Pleasure and well-being. Most people are unhappy at work. And yet, to be competent, motivation is essential. In terms of collaborative management, pleasure at work is therefore one of the essential criteria to be considered. To remedy this, managers must do everything in their power to improve working conditions for their staff. They need to establish a positive social climate. And the same goes for an environment of trust. This will motivate employees, and boredom at work will no longer be a problem.

What are the benefits for your company?

There are many benefits to this collaborative approach. Whether it’s for staff or management, there are many benefits to be gained.

THE HUMAN BENEFITS OF COLLABORATIVE MANAGEMENT
With this system, employees will feel more involved in the company. And this will generate a sense of remotivation at work. What’s more, they’ll have greater self-confidence. In addition, this configuration will reinforce the closeness between employees and managers. This makes it easier to work together on different projects.

IMPROVED PERFORMANCE
This way of working improves team performance. This is because, if employees are more fulfilled in their workspace, they will become more efficient. In companies that have implemented collaborative management, we often see significant improvements in stress reduction. Absenteeism rates are also minimal.

This will have a positive impact on their productivity, enabling them to achieve company objectives more quickly. In accomplishing their tasks, employees rely on collective intelligence and cooperation. And when employees feel more fulfilled, this has a direct impact on company performance.

SAVING TIME
This is a significant advantage of this type of organization. There is no longer an intermediary between employees and managers in collaborative management. And information flows quickly. As a result, this type of management is more responsive and efficient. What’s more, teams can easily help each other via collaborative platforms to ensure optimal operation.

In short, the benefits of this type of management are threefold. In particular, the development of accessible knowledge, the fluid transmission of information and the incentive to work together.

The role of the manager in this type of organization

To give importance to their employees’ missions, managers need to adopt a clear strategy. If everyone is to be involved in collaborative management projects, this strategy must be shared with the whole team. Indeed, it’s very important that information flows between all managers and the rest of the staff. This is one of the key conditions for achieving your company’s objectives. It also makes the team more efficient, because every employee will feel valued.

However, such a transition requires the involvement of the management team and, above all, the manager. Indeed, it is the manager who is most involved in the development and implementation of this organizational mode. In the context of collaborative management, the manager’s role is to ensure the smooth flow of information within the company. The manager must also ensure that all employees understand the organization in place. In short, every member of the team needs to participate if the organizational change is to be effective. On the other hand, employees must commit themselves voluntarily. You must never force them.

In principle, participative management rests on four pillars. These are the 4 Cs:

Cooperation;
Trust;
Choice;
Conviviality.

These are the hallmarks of collaborative management. To set up the organization, the manager is required to put in place a good strategy to facilitate employee involvement. This mainly involves :

Giving employees a voice;
Giving them a choice;
Involving them in important decision-making.

The 5 keys to successful implementation of this type of management

Have a clear vision of the company’s goals. Once you’ve defined the main objectives to be achieved, share your vision in a variety of ways. You can do this by drawing up a strategic plan with your employees. Indeed, for successful collaborative management, this is the best way to ensure that the whole team has a clear idea of the way forward.
Trust your employees. While it’s important for a manager to know every detail about the organization, it’s also essential to listen to what others have to say. It’s the best way to get new ideas. But you also need to be aware of other people’s constraints. So, for example, you can rotate tasks so that everyone has a chance to speak.
Adopt a flat hierarchy for greater efficiency. Collaborative management requires everyone to be on an equal footing. This enables your employees to express their ideas freely, and to be more motivated at work. If there’s no distance between you, employees will also feel more empowered. And they’ll take more initiative.
Share as much information as possible. It’s easier to set up a project when there are a lot of you involved. So don’t hesitate to share your ideas so that your colleagues know what you’re working on. Set up meetings and talk about your project.
Ask questions. For collaborative management to work, you need to know what your employees think. To do this, formulate an agenda before the meetings. This way, your employees will be better prepared. If they don’t agree with your ideas, don’t hesitate to open a debate.

What you need to know before taking the plunge

Before implementing any change in your management system, you need to determine whether you and your team are ready for this transition. Normally, your employees will automatically follow your decisions. Especially if they find them coherent. So, before embarking on collaborative management, the right question to ask yourself is: are you ready for this challenge? And if so, what are your limits? After all, it involves making decisions together, and in some cases.

When you’re a leader, it’s hard to accept that your ideas will be refuted. This is a problem we often encounter when making important decisions. Not everyone is supposed to be on the same wavelength in a given situation. However, the adoption of collaborative management doesn’t happen overnight. In fact, the idea is to gradually change the way you organize your business, not to make a 180° turn.

What’s more, there’s no such thing as “one-size-fits-all management”. So it’s up to you to apply the rules that best suit your business. To do this, you need to adopt a strategy that’s right for you, that improves motivation at work. But also one that highlights your strengths and talents. You also need to identify the limits of your current management model before introducing collaborative management. This will enable you to easily define your needs and put in place a concrete action plan.

What it takes to be a good manager

To introduce collaborative management in a company, the manager must possess the following qualities in terms of skills and behavior:

A positive spirit. This is an essential quality for a good manager. He must be positive at all times. And he must be able to identify and assess complex problems.
Adaptability. Because the world of work is constantly changing, adaptability is a personality trait required for collaborative management.
Creativity. Although they must adapt to new ways of working, they must also seek out new ideas to optimize the organization.
A sense of collaboration. To help his team achieve the company’s objectives, the manager must emphasize collaboration and the sharing of ideas in his strategies.
A leadership attitude. As a leader, the manager is required to have a certain authority over his team. But in terms of collaboration, he must also be a source of inspiration for his colleagues.

In short, to move towards collaborative management, the manager must be able to lead a team properly. This means reinventing their practices and evolving their managerial strategies. This not only boosts employee motivation. And to develop real collective intelligence.