This post offers our survey findings on the theme: Successful collaboration requires mostly the good principles of project management applied to dispersed teams.

We undertook this study on the State of Collaboration to understand and assess current practices in collaboration and future outlook on collaboration. Over 450 respondents participated in the survey conducted by All Collaboration in January and February 2010.

Key findings. Three main messages emerged from our survey responses.

1. Complex collaboration is already a significant work activity for many people, and will only grow in importance.
2. Successful collaboration requires mostly the good principles of project management applied to dispersed teams.
3. Keep it simple on the collaboration tools.

Successful collaboration requires mostly the good principles of project management applied to dispersed teams

We asked the respondents to assess their collaboration experiences and offer guidance on making collaborative efforts more effective.

The good news is that most respondents judged their latest collaboration project a success (Figure 1). Success requires getting a range of old-fashioned basic elements right (Figures 2-4). These findings also reinforce that collaboration requires a holistic approach: shared and valued objectives, right mix of people and skills, basic project management discipline, and collaboration tools that are appropriate for the context.

Figure 1. How would you judge the success of your ONE recently-completed collaboration experience?

Figure 2. Which of these elements contributed to the success or failure of your ONE recently-completed collaboration experience?

Figure 3. What weighting points would you assign (must add to 10) to each of the following to improve effectiveness of collaboration in your organization?

Figure 4. What is the most important advice you would give to someone who is about to lead a major collaborative project? What is the 2^nd most important?

The most or 2^nd most important advice for effective collaboration (Figure 4) corresponds with our view that teams must balance the 4Ps for effective collaboration, namely: Purpose, People, Process and Place (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Most or 2^nd most important advice for effective collaboration in the context of the 4 Ps Framework for Effective Collaboration.

It is interesting to note that the elements of Place (including tools) received 16% relative weighting for the most or 2^nd most important for effective collaboration, out of proportion to the hype. This confirms that collaboration is a whole lot more than the tools and meetings. Undue emphasis on tools – looking for the most sophisticated collaboration tools – to enable collaboration is not necessarily a recipe for effective collaboration.

Assessing the State of Collaboration: Return to Essential report expands on all key themes, illustrated by survey findings and quotes from respondents.  The appendix provides other survey responses.

The subtitle of this report, Return to Essentials, captures these themes.  It helps emphasize that collaboration has become or is becoming an essential for how enterprises get their business done.  At the same time we must all be careful about the latest fads in tools and approaches, because our survey respondents point out the importance of time-tested meeting-management practices and well-travelled communications tools as the best way to make collaboration effective.

About the Study

The primary objective of the study was to assess the state of Collaboration among individuals and in organizations. This includes:

• expectations, purpose and level of collaboration,
• use of collaboration tools and their effectiveness, and
• barriers to collaboration.

By collaboration, we mean working jointly with others.

Over 450 respondents participated in the survey conducted by All Collaboration in January and February 2010. Respondents came from all levels within organizations, all functional areas, a wide range of organization sizes, a wide range of industries with some concentration in consulting, and different regions although mostly North Americans. While there are some differences in emphasis, the general findings and conclusions are consistent across most of these groups.