Why You Must Learn to Work With Other Departments

In the past, the only time the tech department and those in finance or business operations might have interacted was at the annual holiday party. But even then, the employees pretty much huddled with their own department, like Super Bowl teams plotting the next interception.

But it’s a different story these days, as more companies encourage – or even require – cross-functional collaboration. For example, a recent Robert Half Management Resources and Robert Half Technology survey finds that 51% of CFOs report they’re collaborating more frequently with their company’s CIO, compared to three years ago.

“Before, these functions were run as silos,” says Tim Hird, executive director for Robert Half Management Resources. “But business has become more complex and organizations continue to invest in technology to make strategic decisions. A few years ago it wasn’t necessary to work together – now it’s essential.”

This cross-functional collaboration will not only change how a company operates now, but also how it hires for the future, Hird says. Specifically, more organizations will seek those who can not only do their jobs – such as data collection – but are also able to communicate and collaborate with those in finance, sales or operations.

“Teams that make it a priority to focus on collaboration help pave the way for smoother integration of new systems and processes,” he says.

Still, it’s not always easy to achieve full cross-functional collaboration, especially since research shows that 20% to 35% of value-added collaborations come from only 3% to 5% of employees. These employees who go the extra mile and become top collaborators can become real bottlenecks as work doesn’t move forward until they weigh in. Another problem is that these collaborators often don’t get credit for their contributions.

Currently, it’s easier to find examples of cross-functional teams that don’t work. Benham Tabrizi, who teaches transformational leadership at Stanford University’s Department of Management Science and Engineering, says his research finds that in a study of 95 teams in 25 leading corporations, 75% of cross-functional teams are dysfunctional.

“Cross-functional teams often fail because the organization lacks a systemic approach. Teams are hurt by unclear governance, by a lack of accountability, by goals that lack specificity, and by organizations’ failure to prioritize the success of cross-functional projects,” he says.

However, those teams that had support by a high-level executive leader who championed their efforts had a 76% success rate, he says.

In their research, Robert Half recommends that companies seeking to successfully boost collaboration among various departments must begin with a company-wide effort. They suggest, for example:

• Providing greet and learn opportunities. Guest speakers from other departments can meet with employees or set up mentoring programs to help new and long-time employees stay current (read more here)