Departmental Isolationism and other Collaboration Fallacies

Departmental isolationism fosters a safe place in which legacy mindset hides out.

For starters, that type of mindset impedes horizontal, cross-functional collaboration.  Talented individuals are segmented and separated from working with each other.

Then, lack of shared insights impacts the ability to provide better and better customer experience for clients. Finally, poor communication results in poor service delivery quality, which gradually erodes customer success and customer retention strategy.

Us versus Them mindset does not work, folks. In fact, it never worked.

Ultimately, is Collaboration even perceived as being valuable to your organization? Do you realistically understand how to capture, measure and articulate how a collaboration culture contributes to your organization’s value stream?

The best recipe for reinforcing mediocrity is permitting departmental isolationism to continue as the workplace norm.

First, you cannot have each other’s backs when departments are at each other’s throats. When hiring strategy reinforces departmental isolationism – even in companies of five or less –  teams think linearly rather than cross-functionally.

Second, using historical incidents to reinforce departmental isolationism are just that: ancient history. The current and future workforce cares little about Who did What to Whom. All employees understand is that they cannot access critical data for decision-making because it is hoarded in data kingdoms more fiercely protected than in any Game of Thrones™ subplot.

Third, linear thinking within departmental silos breeds professional complacency. However, complacency runs counter to the dynamic, not static, nature of today’s globally competitive business ecosystem.

Fourth, technology advances within the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) ecosystem create continuous workplace momentum. Consequently, clients you served yesterday wake up somewhere new, each day. Are you keeping pace, lagging behind or becoming increasingly proactive and anticipatory of their needs?

How do you liberate yourself from departmental isolationism?

1. Acknowledging and translating the issue becomes a healthy organizational start.
2. Seeking collaborative, non-linear solutions, rather than applying isolated training-as-usual to individual, departments, reinforces translational thinking.
3. Treating the system as an organic whole, rather than as specific, isolated symptoms, accelerates cross-functional, departmental collaboration and organizational transformation.

However, chew on this thought.

You can continue to read blogs like mine and download resources. However, while continuous self-learning is a solid strategy, collaborative learning blossoms outside of that vacuum inside your head. If you currently work within a rigid environment, taking the first step to learn how to cross train your brain takes courage.

That next step is where many professionals hold themselves back from moving forward with commitment and momentum.

What steps will you take, today, that positively impact your professional credibility, tomorrow? Overcoming departmental isolationism, both your own organization’s and your client’s, leverages continuous professional development. Start here, today.

Planning your next team, corporate or association meeting? Searching for a one-on-one catalyst to get you unstuck? Engage me to present a One Millimeter Mindset ™ program! Delivered virtually or in-person. Contact me here.

Babette Ten Haken | Change Catalyst | Purpose-Driven Professional Innovation | Cross-Functional Team Leadership | Trust-Based Client Retention | In Person & Virtual Speaker, Consultant, Coach, Author |

Babette Ten Haken, Founder & President of One Millimeter Mindset™ Speaking & Consulting, catalyzes trust-based, purpose-driven, cross-functional leadership. She leverages Voice of the Customer and storytelling to translate across communication and collaboration disconnects impacting successful business outcomes across people and professional disciplines. Babette is a cross-functional business-oriented STEM professional, qualitative Voice of the Customer facilitator, and Six Sigma Green Belt (Quality). She is a member of the ASQ, SHRM, PMI, the National Speakers Association. Her playbook of cross-functional collaboration, Do YOU Mean Business? is available on Amazon.com. Contact Babette here. Image source: Adobe Stock.