It’s a matter of fact that no matter what career field you pursue you will need to collaborate with a peer at some point. Yes, you will have to crawl out of that shell and let down that guard! You will have to talk to this person and you will need to create something beautiful that will ultimately somehow (hopefully) make the company money. Because that’s how life is, right? If everything was made up of individual decisions and projects the world would be a bit one-sided and the economy would probably be pretty terrible.

Lucky for us, in this age collaboration can be done from opposite ends of the country, from continent to continent, and even in the same room (the more traditional route, of course). Technology has made this easier than ever to share ideas to create an efficient and successful project. First it started with telephones, then video calls, then Google Docs, and now we have virtual reality meeting rooms. There really is no excuse nowadays to say you never got the memo (thank you, read receipts) or that there was a delay of information. I think this has in turn given employees increased accountability.

This is a jarring juxtaposition of what it was like to collaborate with your coworkers, let’s say, in the 1950s … seventy years ago (yes, the 50s were seventy years ago). Benjamin F. Jones, Professor of Strategy from Kellogg Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative, puts it as this:

“In everything, teams beat solo,” Jones says. “In the 1950s and 60s, in lots of fields, solo beat teams. It’s flipped. Now teams always have a higher home-run probability than solo.”

https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/the-science-behind-the-growing-importance-of-collaboration

Collaboration today is all about teams, committees, special task forces, etc. Scientists started to see in the 50s that collaboration within companies produced better quality outputs and was more efficient, too. However, this idea wasn’t entirely foreign in the 50s. Even in the early 1900s in the days of Henry Ford, the assembly line was invented and drastically changed production speed and efficiency. While I’m not an expert why that mentality didn’t translate to the “corporate” level, as in marketing, accounting, finance, etc., we began to see a shift starting in the 50s towards using teams based on specialized skills, common factors, etc.

And I believe that collaboration in the workforce can improve the morale at work. It’s a great way to form and maintain relationships built on trust and accountability. It can suck when someone doesn’t pull their weight, so I guess it’s not always roses and daisies; but when you find the right team, working can be fun sometimes. I think companies recognize that. I remember when I traveled to San Francisco and I stayed right downtown across from Twitter Headquarters. I was able to see the rooftop, which was grassy and featured some outdoor games and plenty of tables. I would see groups of people sitting at these tables with their laptops and phones, sometimes with food. I could only imagine what it’s like to be in their shoes working for a massive influential company that gives them an opportunity to work on the rooftop of a bustling city. I thought it looked fun!

I think collaboration in 2019, especially with the technology that can be utilized, can be a driving force for employers. People especially in Ad/PR want to work in a technologically advanced workforce. Companies can use this appeal to bring in highly motivated and determined employees; this way, they are more apt to collaborate efficiently and bring good ideas to the table.

The fact of the matter is that collaboration is as essential as ever in the workforce. Technology has made this easier than ever, but it still falls on the individual to control their contribution. When a team works well together there is bliss; when they don’t, it can be chaotic. One thing is for certain though: collaboration is not going anywhere anytime soon, so it’s best to learn how to work with others before you start your first big boy job.