Wie können Sie die Zusammenarbeit zwischen den Abteilungen während einer Kulturveränderungsinitiative fördern?

I actually don't believe defining a vision or purpose is adequate any longer. Where we often fall short is clear outcomes of what the cultural change will bring about and associated metrics or measures if that success. Too often change programs take a left to right approacg meaning we go about a change program through a set of activities and hope it delivers the intended outcome. As such a clear outcome statement and metrics that suggests what success looks like in a tangible manner can create a North Star from which people can work backwards to develop a plan for change!

Having guided and supported over 300 culture transformations I’ve noticed that establishing the ‘why’ of culture change is often seen as the first and most important starting point by organizations. Yet anthropology insights show that identifying our ‘who’ before clarifying our why is far more effective clarifying inspiring and leads to a more sustainable culture outcome.

A change has to first redefine the perspective of the vision. When the vision of change is aligned with the outcomes that associate with the purpose, it creates a behavioural loop that the people can identify with. A common purpose or a shared vision, is not only about the people taking ownership of the vision of the organisation but it also includes the association of the vision of the organisation with its people. This is when the vision becomes inclusive and creates accountability without enforcing.

It is much easier if people are motivated to change behavior. This is especially true with respect to changing organizational culture, which requires hundreds or thousands of people changing how they do things each day. To change the culture you need to engage people's hearts and minds in the endeavor.

A common vision and purpose are just the starting point. Two more elements MUST be included. First, common values are essential. The vision provides the what, the purpose defines the why, and values provide the how. At its most basic level, every change involves decision-making, and values provide the guardrails for how decisions will be made. For example, if “collaboration” is a new value to one of the orgs, showing how to live this value may radically transform how people approach making decisions. This is critical to making the future culture come to life. Second, don’t stop at vision, purpose, and values. Get hyper-clear about goals and roles as well. Define what success truly looks like so that everyone is sharing those targets.

The most effective way is to create a coalition of culture change ambassadors from different functions who welcome and encourage change across the entire organisation. Culture is like a virus. It needs to spread and creating such coalition will accelerate the adoption of the new and expected behaviours.

Sin duda la integración se consigue con el roce, con el conocimiento del otro, con la comprensión de las conductas y comportamientos del otro. Se dice que el roce hace el cariño. Una de las vías es buscar (intencionadamente) proyectos donde aporten diferentes perfiles de diferentes procedencias (equipos, áreas, funciones, unidades de negocio, geografías). Desde mi experiencia, si se realiza sin forzar innecesariamente, se consiguen mejores resultados por el incremento de la creatividad e innovación, y por la gestión de la diversidad, traducida en tolerancia. Nuestra labor es conseguir que los líderes del cambio lo entiendan y ayudarles a ponerlo en marcha, por ejemplo utilizando herramientas del estilo Belbin.

True collaboration between departments hinges on understanding and embracing differences. Start by seeing that teams may value and define success differently. They also have varied communication styles, whether it's the frequency, intensity, or level of detail. Power dynamics can also impact participation, creating real or perceived imbalances. To foster genuine collaboration, it's crucial to understand these nuances and advocate for mutual success. When each team feels the other “has their back”, that's a hallmark of effective alliance and teamwork. If you’re leading a cross-team initiative , particularly one that’s months or years long, plan to take a day away from distractions for a rapid norming session. Everyone will thank you.

To make cross-functional teams successful, they must work on a task they can only master if they collaborate. If there is a slight chance of one group 'winning' at the account of another group, it will end badly. I've seen too many cross-functional teams come and go - because they did NOT collaborate, but rather block each other. Therefore, ONLY if they MUST work together to achieve the desired outcome or they fail, there is a chance of being successful.

It is helpful to view other teams as contributing to the same mission rather than playing the 'us' vs 'them' or blame games. One way to begin is to ask, "Is there anything we do that contributes positively or negatively to how you do your work?" Then, look for the intersections where these things occur and find ways to protect the positive impacts and solve the negative impacts. This is serving their good before demanding they serve yours. The door is then open for honest dialogue, and oftentimes, what you do to help them comes back to your team with more benefits than imagined. Collaboration dies where a lack of honest communication or blame thrives.

The biggest influencer of change is “communication”. And more than the verbal, it’s the non verbal communication which influences how people think, feel and see the change. You can’t enforce this influence… it can only be created by leaders who understand the diversity of the behaviour of communication and can bridge the gaps by triggering the anchors that stimulate visuals of association.

The more difficulties the parties involved had in the past, the longer it takes to build trust - which is the prerequisite of open communication. You can not 'command' someone to communicate honestly. It's easy, NOT to speak up. And maybe they will never trust each other - but they could still collaborate because they understand that the only way to the other side is to go together.

La comunicación abierta y honesta no tiene que restringirse a procesos de cambio, debe de ser una característica de modelos organizativos evolucionados (hacia los que tendemos). Desde mi experiencia, hay que trabajar los valores que soportan esa condición, como la transparencia, el respeto, o el desarrollo de las personas. En muchas ocasiones me he encontrado con que previamente he tenido que trabajar en elementos como el feedback y las conversaciones de valor, y en el conocimiento de los mecanismos humanos relacionados con las emociones. Trabajando con "pequeñas" conductas en el día a día, como dedicar los 3-5 primeros minutos de todas las reuniones a un check-in emocional, se puede ir construyendo la base para esa cultura.

I'm very cautious regarding 'rewarding' collaboration. The collaboration itself, or rather the goal achieved by collaborating, must be the reward. Otherwise it's like teaching a dog tricks. No treats, no tricks...

Extrinsic rewards can often backfire. In this case, the reward for culture change is culture change. It should be an explicit expectation to be a good teammate and/or leader to do your part to contribute toward that change or improvement needed….no gimmicks, treats or rewards necessary. Otherwise, maybe the culture change that’s needed is the overuse of extrinsic rewards in too many experiences.

Consider implementing cross-departmental "Innovation Pods.", but don't stop at the initial setup. Designate a facilitator from your leadership team to ensure equitable workload distribution and address collaboration challenges. Emphasize open communication and recognition. Most importantly, flexibility is key – be ready to tweak the process based on real-time feedback, facilitating an effective, collaborative environment during the cultural shift.

One thing I've seen not done enough is addressing the "What's In It For Me?" (WIIFM) question. Individuals and teams are more likely to actively participate and work collaboratively when they understand the business rationale (the big WHY) but also how it directly benefits them. The WIIFM question addresses "How does this benefit me?" Recognising and addressing personal motivations is important in overcoming resistance and encouraging enthusiasm for cross-functional collaboration.

First we should understand what departments are ... Departmentalization is actually the process of clubbing the function and activities of an org , this approach organize the work of manager and creates easiness to obtain the desired objectives . according to gullic , i think' department are based on 4 factors function/ products /process and locations therefore when we understand the purpose of departmentalization we do not need any further guidance and its the responsibility of portfolio manager to get benefitted from this approach as S/he should have the conceptual skills as a management along with human skill to make departments goof . if manager could not do so there is helter -skeltor communication and many more to be faced.

The best thing that you can do to promote cross functional collaboration during culture change is to put people on the same team. The more people have the opportunity to work with each other, the better able they are to determine common ground and identify solutions that work for everyone.

Certain elements must be considered: (i) Addressing culture and informal networks. Working on corporate culture in terms of artifacts, and tacit and explicit assumptions (to quote Schein) is crucial. (ii) Designing with people at the center: whether they are consumers, end customers, or employees of your organization, the focus and ultimate goal must be to improve people's experience. (iii) Educate for change. (iv) Provide change and training plans. (v) Involve the entire company in the process. (vi) Proving the value of the transformation journey. (vi) Proceed in stages. (vii) Envisage appropriate investments. (viii) Adopt a co-design approach. (ix) Measure what is happening to set the direction and correct the course.

Em minha jornada profissional, aprendi que o catalisador para uma colaboração efetiva entre departamentos durante uma mudança cultural reside na valorização da diversidade cognitiva. A sutileza está em reconhecer que cada setor possui uma linguagem única e uma abordagem singular para os desafios. Minha dica: promova "diálogos de tradução". Encoraje equipes a compartilhar suas estratégias e desafios, promovendo um entendimento mútuo. Essa abordagem, muitas vezes negligenciada, não apenas integra departamentos, mas também enriquece a compreensão coletiva, gerando soluções mais inovadoras e alinhadas à nova cultura almejada.