Creating and keeping collaboration alive

COLLABORATION - How central and vital is this to everything we do as Professional Congress Organizers? The ‘C’ in PCO could almost be replaced by the word Collaboration, because without efficient collaboration how could the meeting industry possibly progress and actually work? Collaboration really is the basis of working within an organization, within teams that interact with each other on a daily basis and obviously with all common key-stakeholders, suppliers of various kind; so, that the end result, the final shiny product is a successful event. There would be no event, and certainly no successful event without collaboration.

In moving to new offices from January 2023, OIC Group has begun a new chapter of its wonderful story that spans five decades.

The new office isn’t far from where the old building was, but this new modern area will certainly embrace and trigger more and better collaboration between teams; the new open-space format tends to unify, bringing together rather than closing off, this is important to how teams work and collaborate.

There are so many elements to being able to successfully collaborate in the workplace and more specifically within a team. What are the foundations to good collaboration? Is there a need to have a defined common goal and how should this be communicated, and what about if obstacles appear, how is this dealt with?

Considering the centrality of the topic, OIC Group decided to ask these all-important questions, by interviewing three key-account managers, asking them their thoughts and perspective on this topic.

A. Collaboration in my world means love and passion, without these two elements there is no way that we can work in this business, or within a team.

B. Collaborating means sharing the same objectives, working as a single ‘body’ and ‘mind’ directed towards satisfying the client and bringing a positive result to the company. It means planning out the steps together, sharing the solutions and to not get disheartened along the way, as there will always be somebody with the experience and competence to give support.

C. Collaboration is the ‘keyword’ in the work we do. We run quite complex projects and even the most skilled manager would not achieve good results without good team collaboration.

A. There is only one goal to having success in the congress business and this is making people happy, all the rest is a series of consequences.

B. Absolutely! The objectives need to be clear, defined and obtainable, both for the individual and the whole team.

C. It is of utmost importance to share team objectives in order to have a clear view, a common goal and to move together as a team in the same direction.

A. For sure any activity that happens within an agreed timeline within the team, to make things work but also the understanding and consideration for major or urgent/ unexpected questions that need to be addressed during the organisational process.

B. In OIC Group this happens often as we have specialists in specific strategic areas. Therefore, if for example, we need advice and suggestions in regards to social events, I will refer to that person who has expertise in that area. Competence is one of the most valuable assets within a company, therefore, it is essential to create the right conditions for this asset to be adequately ‘used’ by other people in the company, without the asset being lost or not adequately ‘used’ altogether.

C. We need different qualities and competence from each individual in the team, each person brings their own experience contributing to the project as a whole.

A. In my experience with professional team members, the only real obstacles which occur from time to time are personal attitudes, that can emerge from external situations. These situations can be overcome and supported with some understanding and love and care. That’s the real point of working together, problems and obstacles can be solved if you care.

B. The biggest obstacle to collaboration (excluding personality aspects) are without doubt changes that are market-led. Adapting to a world that is changing requires work and effort, as we need to put aside what we knew up until that point and learn something new in a humble way. So, fear and not accepting change, mean that sometimes people barricade themselves defensively in their own position, and they don’t accept to grow as a team. The famous and well-known phrase sums it up nicely “I don’t know why we \ need to change, we’ve always done things this way”.

C. An obstacle could derive from unclear communication within the team. We try to overcome these problems by regular updates and briefings.

A. It’s very similar to motivation in a sports team, where you need to let people feel and understand that you are there for them, both in good and bad situations. The team also need to know that you don’t have a magic wand though, a key account manager needs to be a leader for team members but also a human being too.

B. I try to motivate individual team members by using an individualized approach. It’s important for me that each member feels important and of value to the team as a whole, and the company. It’s necessary to find the time to follow and support the growth and development of each of the team members, so they understand their value and worth. Sometimes it’s also important to say “no” and to pinpoint the areas which need to be improved, by doing this, each team member understands how much they are being supported and valued in a thorough manner. I think the best way to motivate people is to make them aware of their role, of their responsibilities and the trust that the company and I hold in them.

C. The team members can count on a solid guide, nonetheless, they are free to express themselves, by finding their own way to face work challenges. The biggest motivation of all derives from the success of the project and satisfaction from client feedback.

It’s highly interesting to see how the account managers answered these five questions, and to notice how there are common themes that clearly emerge.

Collaboration has been looked at in a strategic and rational manner as well as through a more romantic and emotional lens, these perspectives complement each other as two sides of the same coin, that coexist.

Overall the idea of having clear objectives is a common thread as well as the need for leadership and guidance, especially in challenging moments, this is essentially seen in a flexible way, which enables a team and a company to embrace change. Finally, motivation and individuality within the team are also highly important in keeping the team- collaboration alive, but an all-important ingredient which needs to exist is care, one needs to care!