What is a Collaborative Management?
To better understand collaborative management, we have to look at traditional management.
Managers have, for years, been seen as the autocratic authority of a business.
They have the first and the last say and hold the majority of control.
Collaborative management is becoming more popular than ever before and tends to turn autocratic management on its head.
Collaborative management is more people-focused than traditional management because a leader will invest time to build relationships, develop emotional intelligence and, most importantly, share their control.
Power and information
Collaborative leaders know that there is power and knowledge in their team and don’t simply rely on themselves for these things.
After all, what’s the point in hiring staff if they’re exactly like you?
A collaborative leader knows that their staff are skilled in different fields and value their opinion and strengths, asking them when they know they have authority on a subject and applying their knowledge and skills.
Ideas and problem solving
A traditional manager assesses a situation based on their view alone and autocratically gives commands to resolve an issue.
Collaborative leaders ask their employees for feedback and their own ideas when it comes to business and solutions.
Collaborative leaders include their employees in brainstorming sessions and value their opinions and ideas, fostering a group approach to solving problems.
Resource allocation and responsibilities
Traditional leaders have a final-say approach to allocating resources which can lead to problems when employees have no say in asking for resources they need or announcing a surplus.
Collaborative leaders are more reactive and rely on trust – they ask their employees to assess what it is they need to work efficiently.
They also trust their employees with tasks best suited to their skills and allow employees to seek collaborative effort where necessary.
In a lot of ways this is better than traditional management and less tasks get dropped when a team is working together!
Collaborative leaders are more inclusive and encouraging and usually foster a much more agile work team!
To better understand management styles, browse our management courses online here.
