2. Executive Summary
The Challenges (from page 5)
• We all collaborate with each other in our everyday lives, but we miss many opportunities to collaborate more
closely in the way we work and learn.
• At the same time, old models of learning at work are no longer effective - people forget 70% of formal learning
within 1 week – while nearly 9 in 10 of employees say they learn what they need through collaborating with
colleagues.
• Technology means that collaboration at work has never been easier. Many see the potential for collaborative
learning but don’t know how to show its business value in a workplace context.
Surfing the Collaboration Wave (from page 8)
We engaged a panel of 100 leading HR and L&D practitioners in the UK and internationally in surveys and interviews,
to show how businesses can harness the potential of collaborative learning. Our research revealed that those who
place collaborative learning at the centre of their organisational learning strategy:-
• Register significantly higher take up in all other L&D interventions; and
• Enjoy average engagement scores around 10% higher than those that do not.
• In addition, two-thirds (67%) of those surveyed say that a more collaborative approach to working and learning
would help boost productivity by at least 5% in their organisation.
We have called this relationship The Collaborative Learning Wave Effect™ because, like a stone dropped in the water,
it causes waves to ripple out from the centre, encouraging more effective use of other forms of learning, positively
affecting engagement levels and boosting productivity and performance.
Where will Collaborative Learning make the biggest
difference? (from page 19)
To make the best business case, advocates need to know where collaborative learning can have the biggest impact in
the shortest period of time. Our research told us that:-
• Three-quarters of our respondents (75%) felt that leadership development would be the biggest beneficiary from a
more collaborative approach.
• Roughly the same number (77%) felt that collaborative learning would promote a “project mentality” in the
business – that is to say learning in specific situations or projects through sharing knowledge across the business.
• Nearly half (47%) believed that a more collaborative approach would help career development and career
induction programmes.
Frequently Asked Questions about Collaborative Learning
(from page 23)
• Does successful Collaborative Learning depend on senior sponsorship?
• How do we get collaboration through to our middle managers?
• Can any size of business embrace collaborative learning?
2
3. Contents
Executive Summary 2
Contents 3
Introduction 5
Collaboration – making the move from Rhetoric to Reality 8
How to develop the case for Collaborative Learning 9
The Collaborative Learning Wave Effect™ 11
The impact on other forms of learning 13
The impact on engagement … 14
Case Study: How MBNA drove up engagement levels by 36% 16
The impact on productivity 17
Where will collaborative learning make the biggest difference? 19
Conclusion and next steps 22
Appendix 1: Does successful collaborative learning depend on senior sponsorship? 23
Appendix 2: How do we get collaboration through to our middle managers? 24
Appendix 3: Can any size of business embrace collaborative learning? 25
Who we are 27
3
4.
5. Introduction
Even so, almost all of us would admit that we miss many opportunities every single day to collaborate more closely in
the way we work and learn from one another.
• If we work on a project we learn from it, but do we instinctively share the knowledge we have with others?
• We talk to another person who has knowledge we could benefit from, but could another colleague be gaining from
it at the same time?
• We go to conferences and hear great speakers, but how good are we at passing on their knowledge beyond those
already in the room?
• And even if we are fortunate to work and learn in highly collaborative teams, do our sharing instincts extend to
those outside our own organisational tribe?
We all “do” collaboration, but we all want to do it better. In organisations, we work and learn in restrictive bubbles
around ourselves or our immediate teams. Knowledge is clearly valuable for those inside the bubble - and it could be
invaluable for others in the organisation. The alternative is something we all see every day – a wasteful duplication of
effort in the course of building knowledge.
.... and now the rules have changed forever
Until very recently, the desire for greater collaboration within organisations was no more than a good intention, often
stated but seldom realised. But something important has changed. The impact of technology - and the radical redesign
of the workplace that it has driven - has moved the term “collaboration” to the front of the stage.
We are moving into an era of full-on collaboration in the workplace where the rhetoric of yesterday potentially
becomes the reality of today. Technology means that collaboration has never been easier and this paper will show
that a resulting deeper and broader sense of collaboration can help organisations move on from good intentions to
positive actions. And in the process it will lead them to:-
1. A far more effective blueprint for organisational learning;
2. A positive step change in employee engagement levels; and
3. Greatly increased levels of productivity.
Many HR LD professionals now see the opportunity for collaborative learning but need help to exploit it. When it
comes to accelerating the development of collaborative working and learning in their organisation, it is clear that they
want to understand more and make the case for action. So the engagement specialists 10Eighty and the content
and collaborative learning experts Merriborn Media have joined forces to help decision makers to understand the
transformative impact that a culture of collaboration can bring.
For this reason, we engaged 100 leading HR and LD practitioners in the UK and internationally in surveys and
interviews to show how businesses can and must harness the potential of collaborative learning. As one of our 100,
Jenny Thow, LD Advisor for Sika, explains:
“I think everyone instinctively “gets” collaboration – but many don’t really know how to talk about it with real
business value in a workplace context.”
The starting point therefore is to see what is currently understood by collaboration at work.
Collaboration is very simple …
In one respect, there is nothing new about the idea of collaboration. Humans have been collaborating with one
another for many thousands of years. It’s part of our mental DNA - and a key driver of our development.
5
6. What do we mean by collaborative working?
What is striking about the term “collaborative working” is that it means very different things to different organisations.
We asked our panel to select from various statements which they felt matched their organisation’s attitude.
30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Working in ways to that unleashes
energy in an organisation
Making decisions by consensus
A means of breaking down
silos in any organisations
Working in ways that bring
together a broad range of
talents to a project/task
Working on projects/tasks
in close physical proximity
to others
Please select those statements you feel match your organisation’s
attitude towards collaborative working (tick all those that apply):
The answers fell into two broad camps. These were those who thought about collaborative working either:-
1. In terms of the business benefits it could bring; or
2. As a process through which work was organised.
Among those thinking mainly of the business benefits we found:-
a) Over 7/10 (72%) said they thought of collaborative working as a way to bring together a broad range of talents to
a project or task;
b) More than 6/10 (62%) said they considered it as a means to break down silos in an organisation;
c) A third of those who replied (37%) saw it as working in ways that “unleash energy” in an organisation;
Among those thinking mostly about collaborative working more as a process:-
a) Over half (55%) believed the collaborative working meant working on projects or tasks in close physical
proximity to one another; and
b) A significant minority of over 4/10 (43%) believed that collaborative working effectively meant “making
decisions by consensus”.
6
7. We believe that collaboration, when explained simply as a process with no clear line of sight to the business benefits,
leads to confusion rather than clarity. Our experience, in particular from working with multinational organisations
with highly dispersed workforces using collaborative learning platforms, shows that collaboration need
not be confined to those working in close physical proximity to one another. And neither should the term
“collaboration” be confused with “consensus”. Lindsay Crump, Director, HR Shared Services, Talent NA at BTG
International puts it superbly well:-
When creating a debate around collaboration in your organisation, start with the end in mind. Those
who successfully introduce more collaborative forms of working into their organisation do so by first
understanding and then explaining its benefits to other stakeholders, rather than attempting to “sell” the
detail of the process too soon to their colleagues.
So collaboration means getting the best out of understanding and using different approaches to a challenge and not
necessarily a consensus solution.
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
“It’s true that a few people think that collaboration means slowing the decision-making process down. But
collaboration is not the same thing as “consensus” and leaders are challenged with finding the right
balance whilst still being decisive and taking action quickly. In reality, collaboration should mean
much better decisions for any business..”
7
8. Collaboration – making the move
from Rhetoric to Reality
We asked our 100 strong panel whether they felt there was a collaborative approach to working and
learning in their organisation. Nearly 6 in 10 (59%) told us that a collaborative mentality exists
only in some parts of their organisation, but not in others.
Further in-depth interviews with these HR and LD professionals revealed that even this “patchy”
picture of collaboration in their organisations is currently the result of a happy coincidence of a
collaborative leader mixed together with a receptive team mindset, rather than through any
carefully thought through and joined-up collaborative strategy. A Global Talent Development
Lead at one multinational organisation put it very well:
One senior HR professional told us the story of Keith (not his real name). He was promoted
to the position of partner in a professional services firm not known for collaborative instincts
between its various practices.
Keith broke the mould by working in a very different style to any of his peers. In developing his
own clients, he took time to research the practices of his colleagues and proceeded to cross-
sell their services into the clients, as well as his own.
Keith spent time building relationships, understanding the challenges and proposing joint
initiatives with his partners. In the process he generated millions of pounds of extra work for
the business. And when the senior partners were each asked to share their own practice’s
strategy at a business away day, they all wanted to use Keith’s work as an example of superb
collaborative working and learning.
A true story of collaborative success
Our experiences tell us that all HR and LD practitioners need to find and share “stories” of
collaborative success. As well as this being part of the aim of this paper, we would encourage
all readers to look for outstanding examples of success in collaborative learning. Get in
contact with us for further examples should you wish to (see our details at the end of this
paper).
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
“I’ve no doubt that a more strategic approach to collaboration would work for us, but there’s
so much pressure on the way people think, especially when we’re working across different
time zones. To move this forward, we need real stories of collaborative success in some
parts of our organisation, which really do exist, to be brought alive and shared to encourage
the others. Our strategy means getting much better as an organisation at telling and
spreading these stories.”
8
9. How to develop the case for
Collaborative Learning
Collaborative learning, allied with technology, is rapidly generating interest among our clients here
at 10Eighty and Merriborn Media because the models of learning still used by many organisations
are so clearly broken. The issue then becomes more one of how to make a strong positive case for
collaborative learning. Let’s start by considering these statistics:-
1) People forget 70% of formal learning within 1 week – and 87% after a month
The ineffectiveness of classroom training has now become clear to many. We know that classroom
training does not embed learning - and neither does it change behaviour. And yet many HR and
LD professionals persist with the former. Einstein’s definition of insanity - that of “doing the same
thing over and over again and expecting different results” - seems very apt. As one Head of HR we
interviewed admitted:
LD professionals need to make the case to stakeholders across their business that old
models of formal classroom learning are no longer effective. Collaborative technology
is becoming embedded through social media and businesses will never have a better
opportunity to harness the power of technology to foster collaborative learning.
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
2) Nearly 9/10 (86%) of employees say they learn what they need through collaboration
In this respect, individual instincts may be ahead of organisational attitudes. The pace of change of
work today dictates that you need to learn fast to respond to opportunities. And when opportunities
arrive, it’s so important to consider the knowledge and experience of those around you that you can
draw on. There may be many solutions to complex problems. Think of the Einstein quote again, but
in reverse. Perfect sanity, by contrast, may lie in “finding lots of different ways to achieve the same
successful results”. We all know instinctively that we learn from our peers and this is because we
know they may be looking at the same problem, yet able to use their own set of experiences to find a
completely different and possibly better solution. So collaborative learning fosters learning agility and
organisations need to make it easier for this happen.
3) Trainees increase their performance by 22% through deliberate reflection and sharing of
lessons with others
This matters more than ever because we now have the opportunity to reflect and share knowledge
in ways we never have before. In the past, a few lucky people went to learn at top universities and
kept their knowledge to themselves. But now so many resources for learning are available for others
to use, reflect on and share. We can access YouTube and TED Talks and interact with presentations
and media content, record notes and raise questions with others in a way that embeds learning and
improves performance. And we have significantly enhanced our ability as individuals to learn things at
a time that suits our own learning preferences. Again, organisations need to find ways to accelerate
this learning process.
“There hasn’t been a big focus on collaborative learning here - when our people think of
learning they think of training they think of external courses, even though we know many of
them have little impact.”
9
10. It’s important though to be clear about one thing - there is plenty of work to do in shifting the balance of organisational
learning. Currently, in terms of the form of learning that are undertaken in those organisations we surveyed, the
biggest take-up of learning is still in formal classroom learning.
50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
On the job training
Leadership development
Mentoring
Coaching
Collaborative learning
E-learning
Formal classroom training
Please indicate the methods of learning you use in your organisation
(tick all that apply):
Formal classroom training is still conducted by more than 9/10 (93%) of those that we surveyed. On the job training
also features prominently, but not really as part of wider collaborative learning strategy. At the bottom of the responses,
with, at present, barely half of those respondents (57%) have a thought through approach to collaborative learning..
So to make the case for such a strategy, it’s important to compare the performance of those organisations with a
collaborative learning strategy against those that do not. The rest of this paper, therefore, shows the strong correlation
between those who do make a clear commitment to collaborative learning and:-
1) A far more effective blueprint for organisational learning;
2) A positive step change in employee engagement levels; and
3) Greatly increased levels of productivity.
We have called this relationship The Collaborative Learning Wave Effect™
10
13. 1) Collaborative learning – the positive link with all learning
We divided up our sample into those who embraced collaborative learning as part of the learning mix in their
organisation - and compared them with those who did not.
Whatwefoundwassignificant–thatthoseorganisationsusingcollaborativelearning
registerasignificantlyhighertakeupinotherelementsoftheirlearningspend.
50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Using Collaborative
Learning Methods
Not using Collaborative
Learning Methods
On the job training
Leadership development
Mentoring
Coaching
E-learning
Formal classroom training
Please indicate the methods of
learning you use in your organisation
(tick all those that apply)
This is clearly something of significance for any learning and development director or HR director wanting
to get the most from their budget. Essentially, collaborative learning appears as a sort of positive catalyst for other
forms of learning.
10Eighty worked in partnership with MBNA to deliver a leadership development programme based on what
it called the “mass customisation” of learning using a collaborative social learning platform. This used tools
specifically designed to help users to learn from each other and work collaboratively.
The catalytic impact came through the positive impact of the collaborative leadership and learning
culture upon all elements of learning (including leadership development, self-awareness tools, mentoring,
coaching, CSR, and reflective learning) all delivered through the platform. (see main case study on page 16)
How collaboration acts as a catalyst for other learning
13
14. 2) Collaborative Learning – the link with engagement
We also know workplaces all over the world have an engagement problem. Here are 10 great stats to quote to others
in your organisation over the cost of doing nothing to turn around a disengaged workforce.
• Only a third (35%) of managers are engaged in their jobs.
• Four in five (80%) of employees dissatisfied with their direct manager are disengaged
• Over a quarter (26%) of employees plan to leave their employers within the next 2 years
• Barely half (55%) of employees feel inspired by their leaders
• Managers account for over two-thirds (70%) of variance in employee engagement scores across business units
• Less than one in five (18%) of those currently in management roles demonstrate a high level of talent for
managing others
• Over two-thirds (69%) of employees report engagement is a problem in their organisation.
• Four in five (82%) of employees said it’s very important their organisation address their engagement problem.
• Employees who feel valued by their employer are 60% more likely to report they are motivated to do their very
best for their employer
• Only a quarter (28%) of Millennials feel that their current organisations are making “full use” of the skills they
currently have to offer
Sources: Gallup, Dale Carnegie Institute, Towers Watson, Deloitte, American Psychology Association
With this in mind we asked our 100+ panel of HR and LD professionals for their assessment of engagement levels
in their organisation. We again split our sample between those who use collaborative learning as part of their mix and
those who do not.
14
15. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40%
Using Collaborative
Learning
Not using
Collaborative Learning
80% or more
engagement levels
70% - 80%
engagement level
60% - 70%
engagement level
50% – 60%
engagement levels
Less than 50%
engagement levels
What do you estimate (or know) the engagement levels of your
organisation to be in terms of the percentage of the workforce who say
they are engaged)
The results, shown above, tell us that lower levels of workplace engagement are associated among those without a
collaborative learning method in their mix, while higher levels of engagement are associated with those who do use
collaborative learning.
Collaborativelearningandengagement,inotherwords,appeartogohandinhand.
Overall,theaverageengagementscoreofthoseorganisationsusingcollaborative
learningaspartoftheirLDframeworkarearound10%higherrelativetothosewho
donot.
In the course of our research, it was disappointing to realise that two thirds of businesses (67%) we
surveyed only assess the level of engagement in their business annually or not at all. Those who survey their
employees with lower frequency have significantly lower rates of engagement amongst their employees,
according to our survey split. Technology enables us to survey people in the moment and certainly more
regularly than annually. There is no excuse for not knowing how engaged your employees are, so our
recommendation is to take the engagement temperature with simpler questions, but asked much more often.
No excuse not to know how engaged your employees are
15
16. The Background: MBNA is one of the U.K.’s largest credit card lenders and part of the bank of America.
Based in Chester with approximately 2000 employees it is one of the region’s biggest private employers.
The business was and is very profitable but its future had been thrown into considerable doubt in 2011 and
the business had been formally told by its parent company that it would be exiting the credit card business in
Europe.
The Challenge: There were significant uncertainty for MBNA staff and a restructuring exercise resulted in
people leaving the business. Morale was low, not least because people did not have clarity on whether or not
their jobs would be secure, but MBNA decided the best route to a positive outcome was through a positive
and engaged workforce.
What MBNA and 10Eighty did: 10Eighty worked in partnership with MBNA to deliver a leadership
development programme based on what it called the “mass customisation” of learning using a collaborative
learning platform called the “Leadership Cloud”. This used tools specifically designed to help users to learn
from each other and work collaboratively. The Leadership Cloud facilitated the overall learning experience for
most elements of learning.
Other key factors: Because the Leadership Cloud has no set office hours, the delivery of learning became
24-7 and could be delivered via desktop, laptop, smart phones or mobiles at a time which suits individuals and
the business.
Impact: The leadership cloud reconnected re-engage leaders and teams within the business during a period
of great uncertainty. The technology has:-
• Transformed collective thinking skills, intelligence gathering cooperation across the business;
• Established cross functional team working as the rule rather than the exception;
• Provided leadership with a powerful tool to transform engagement in times of change and uncertainty;
and
• Underpinned how it develops leaders - and how they communicate and engage with one another.
Results: Alongside other factors, collaborative learning at MBNA has helped to facilitate an increase in
engagement levels at MBNA of 36% over 5 years. Crucially MBNA, in buying into the mindset of collaborative
learning, also then identified in collaborative working groups ways to add real business benefits in brand and
product development.
Case Study – how MBNA drove up engagement scores
by 36%
Key Quote: “No matter how experienced you are, no matter how long your tenure or how
senior you are, there is always an opportunity to learn something new.” – Gill Taylor, SVP –
Human Resources Executive, MBNA.
16
17. 3) Collaborative Learning – the link with productivity
The 10 per cent leap in engagement scores associated with those using collaborative learning is important for another
reason,as it handily relates to another key piece of evidence in the engagement lexicon of evidence.
In 2013, the Employee Engagement Task Force’s produced “The Evidence” – a compendium of statistics and
research directly linking engagement with business productivity and profitability.
Perhapsthemostpowerfulandmostquotedpieceofevidencediscoveredwasthat
theimpactofengagementlevelsintheworkforceonproductivity:ifengagement
wentupby10%,theevidencesuggested,thenitwouldaddanaverageof£1500per
persontothebottomlineofabusiness.Soifabusinessemployed1,000workers,an
increaseinengagementlevelsof10%couldadd£1.5million.
In other words, the link between collaborative learning on engagement – with a 10 percentage points gain in
engagement scores for those who practised it as part of their learning mix – should also have a clear positive “wave
effect” rippling out to impact on productivity in the workplace.
To verify this with our 100 strong panel, we asked the following question:
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
A significant amount (10% or more
increase in productivity)
A fair amount (5 - 10% increase
in productivity)
A small increase (0-5% increase
in productivity)
Negative or zero (no change
in productivity)
Do you think a more collaborative approach to working and learning
would help productivity in your organisation?
17
18. In the UK Government’s recent budget, much was made of the failure of the economy to produce any
productivity gains. Research (and common sense) tell us that the productivity gains driven by higher levels of
engagement are more sustainable than simply asking your workforce to “work harder”. In the very short term,
usually about 6 months, a “crack the whip” culture can produce transitory gains in productivity. But a very
large body of research, most recently brought together by the Harvard Business Review in 2015, quite clearly
shows that in the longer term productivity gains achieved in this way are not only transitory but are then
emphatically reversed.
At the core of any modern productivity miracle there needs to be employee engagement and the impact that
this will have on productivity in the UK economy. We all know that engaged workers get through a lot more
work; and because they do, there is no need for them to work longer hours, just smarter hours. Similarly,
engaged workers create their own motivation and don’t or want need a fearful culture to get them
going. A collaborative approach to learning, driven by HR and LD departments, could be at the core
of productivity gains.
The urgent need for a productivity miracle
Twothirds(67%)saidthatamorecollaborativeapproachtoworkingandlearning
wouldhelpboostproductivitybyatleastafair(5-10%)orasignificant(10%+)amount
intheirorganisation.
18
19. Where will collaborative learning make the
biggest difference?
We have so far seen a triple impact of “waves” radiating outwards through an organisation through the introduction of
collaborative learning into any organisation. Our survey and interviews have revealed that Collaborative Learning is
associated with:-
1) More effective overall LD programmes – through a much higher take up of all other forms of learning and the
efficiencies of a more “joined up” approach..
2) Higher levels of employee engagement – an average of almost 10% for organisations according to our survey.
3) Increases in workplace productivity – two-thirds of respondents estimate at least 5%+ gains through the use of
collaborative learning in their organisation.
Tomakethebestbusinesscasefortheirorganisation,however,HRandLD
practitionersneedtounderstandhowandwherecollaborativelearningcanhave
thebiggestimpactintheshortestperiodoftime,inordertogetthat“waveeffect”
cascadingthroughtheirorganisation.
19
20. 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Learning in specific
situations/projects through
sharing knowledge
Induction in career development
Mentoring
Coaching
Leadership development
Which aspects of learning do you think would most benefit from a more
collaborative approach in your organisation (tick all those that apply)?
Where to start in introducing Collaborative Learning?
It’s important in making the case for collaborative learning to register some early wins. So we asked our 100 strong
panel another set of important questions:-
1) Leadership Development
Three-quarters of our respondents (75%) felt that leadership development would be the biggest beneficiary from a
more collaborative approach. One senior HR professional at an international professionals services partnership told
us:
In the view of another senior LD professional:
“All firms in our sector need a more collaborative approach when it comes to leadership development. It’s
a feature of professional services firms but is particularly acute within our sector because when they bring
young talent in they are taught to pursue their own individual contribution to the partnership, often at the
expense of the team. And when they move into leadership roles they just don’t know how to collaborate and
lead other people.”
“We have a very narrow view here on what leadership looks like. To many it is essentially the technical
supervision of work, rather than the leadership and development of other employees.”
20
21. 2) Developing a project mentality – sharing knowledge
across business functions
Roughly the same number (77%) felt that collaborative learning would promote a project mentality in the business-that
is to say learning in specific situations or projects through sharing knowledge across the business.
A great example of this is seen 10Eighty’s work with MBNA. The Leadership Cloud has transformed the ability of
leaders across the business to collaborate and this was epitomised by the terrible flooding across the UK in early
2014. Life was clearly not easy for the victims of the floods and Dan, a Risk Operations Unit Manager, wanted to do
something to help customers, including pro-actively texting and emailing customers to give reassurance and offer
payment holidays and credit extensions.
Both CEO Ian O’Doherty and Gill Taylor (Senior Vice-President, HR Executive) saw the post and the potential for
a project to embrace talents from across the business. Dan was quickly empowered to a present a proposal to the
board about what could be done. Returning to the Cloud again, he consulted colleagues, who shared their expertise to
help shape his proposal. Dan’s proposal was accepted and he became part of the team driving the initiative forward.
The initiative went from idea to proposal to approval in a way that would not have been possible previously. (see box
for the full MBNA story).
3) Career development
Nearly half (47%) of our panel believed that collaborative approach would help career development programmes.
Helen Fitzpatrick, Head of Executive and Leadership Development at DWF, a law firm says::
Onboarding is crucial, says Michael Moran, CEO of 10Eighty: “Collaboration in this area is so important, particularly in
peer support or mentoring for new colleagues. The first 90 days are critical here. First impressions will count for a lot.”
Separately, a LD Director agrees on the importance of starting collaborative learning early on:
“It’s really important that the relationships we see within a new cohort of recruits carries on beyond Day 1.
Our young entrants can only benefit from getting each other’s inputs.”
“We have an induction programme on a bi-weekly basis, a culture of living our values and a collaborative
approach can only help us.”
21
22. Conclusion and next steps
Our research and interviews among a 100-strong panel of HR LD practitioners has shown the prize of a well
thought through collaborative learning strategy. It has revealed that those who place collaborative learning at the
centre of their organisational learning strategy register significantly higher usage of other LD interventions
and average engagement scores around 10% higher than those that do not. In addition, two-thirds of those
surveyed say that a more collaborative approach to working and learning would help boost productivity by at
least 5% in their organisation.
To seize this moment, our research also tells us: that three-quarters of our respondents felt that leadership
development would be the biggest immediate beneficiary from a more collaborative approach. Roughly the
same number felt that collaborative learning would promote a business wide “project mentality” to counter
organisational silos and a wasteful duplication of energy and resources. And nearly half believed that a more
collaborative approach would greatly help career induction and development programmes.
Whetheryouwanttoknowhowtomakethecaseforcollaborativelearninginyour
organisation,thinkthroughhowitwouldwork(orworkbetter)foryourorganisation
orevenworkwithustoassesshow“collaborationready”yourbusinessactuallyis,
getincontactwithusviathecontactdetailsonthe“WhoWeAre”pageattheendof
thispaper.
“The way in which knowledge is shared is of vital competitive importance in today’s business environment.
It will define the successful from the also-rans. HR and LD professionals know of the potential of
collaborative learning, but all too often we have failed within current learning initiatives to use it to its
greatest effect. Today’s technology presents a real opportunity to put collaboration at the centre of all
learning initiatives and, in so doing, enable a greater ROI across the organisation.”
This paper has shown that while we all collaborate with each other in our everyday lives, we miss many opportunities
to improve the way that we work and learn. Many advocates of a deeper and broader push towards collaborative
learning struggle to show the business value of collaboration in a workplace context.
The time to surf the Collaboration Wave is now. The CEO and founding director of 10Eighty, Michael Moran sums up
this paper - and the issues it raises - as follows:-
22
23. Appendix 1: Does successful collaborative
learning depend on senior sponsorship?
It certainly helps. One thing we see in younger workers is a rapid development of a collaborative mentality they bring
to the workplace. Yet all businesses can get a head start if current leaders can be encouraged to speak and act in its
favour. Collaborative Learning can be likened to a snowball gathering mass on a downhill run – the higher up
the hill it begins, the bigger it will be by the time it reaches the bottom. The benefits of a collaborative culture in
your business can build quickly over time.
Initially, though, it may feel difficult to decide whether the investment in learning to collaborate will pay off. Even if they
value collaborative work, many managers are hard-pressed to spend time and energy to get started. That some don’t,
in this increasingly collaborative world is understandable, though misguided.
This is why the CEO’s intervention in particular is so important. It’s not good enough for current CEOs to spot the
potential for collaboration and then throw their most talented people together with a vague “get on with it” message.
They must set the standard by being good collaborators themselves in deed, as well as in word. We had the good
fortune to work with Ian O’Doherty, CEO at MBNA, who was already enlightened in promoting closer collaboration
within his business. He wanted to eradicate the infamous “silo mentality” – that cause of so much wasted energy and
mistrust. We asked Ian how he would know when a culture of collaboration had truly taken hold. He told us: “When we
as leaders are delighted to tell our teams that we don’t have all the answers. They are right to look to us for a sense
of direction, but it’s clearly time for us to collaborate too, to embrace knowledge and ideas from our teams.” In other
words CEOs should ideally lead the culture of collaboration, not merely encourage others to do so.
Spend time with your most senior leader available to you in your organisation and explain the need to
rebalance from formal to collaborative approaches to learning, the positive impact it has on all other forms of
learning, engagement and productivity – and how important his or her role is in promoting this change..
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
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24. Appendix 2: How do we get collaboration
through to our middle managers?
We asked our hundred survey and interview respondents whether senior managers, middle managers and younger
workers knew how to apply collaborative working and learning positively to their organisation.
25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 55% 60%
Our middle managers know how to
apply it positively to the organisation
Our younger workers know how to apply
it positively to the organisation
Our senior leaders understand know how
to apply it positively to the organisation
Please indicate which of following statements about collaborative
working and learning you think are applicable to your organisation
At the top and bottom of the organisation over half of senior managers (51%) over four in 10 younger workers (43%)
were seen as clear on the positive appliance of collaborative working and learning. However this figure dropped
significantly when it came to asking this question of middle managers with barely a quarter (27%) judged competent to
apply it to their organisation. There appears to be a lack of confidence in middle managers to understand and deliver
collaborative working and learning.
A more collaborative approach can give CEOs and other senior leaders an unprecedented “line of sight”
across their managers. For change to happen, managers need the technology available to help them. This,
however, on its own, will not be enough. They also need HR and LD policies aimed at encouraging them to
think beyond their functional expertise and towards rewards and incentives for their collaborative excellence.
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
24
25. Appendix 3: Can any size of business
embrace collaborative learning?
Yes, but the needs of the smallest and largest businesses are likely to be different. We surveyed businesses of
all shapes and sizes. All organisations are different, of course, but these are a few typical patterns that we have
observed.
Smallerbusinessesusecollaborativelearningasaculturaltooltohelpemployees
keeptalkingwhilethecompanyisgrowing
Those businesses with less than 1000 employees generally had much greater faith in the ability of their senior
managers to apply collaborative working and learning positively to their organisation, relative to the whole sample (see
page 24). It’s perhaps easier for CEOs to drive collaborationin smaller businesses but important to get the culture of
collaboration embedded in the early stages of growth, as this can come under pressure as the business develops.
20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Our middle managers know how to
apply it positively to the organisation
Our younger workers know how to apply
it positively to the organisation
Our senior leaders understand know how
to apply it positively to the organisation
Please indicate which of following statements about collaborative
working and learning you think are applicable to your (filtered for 1000
employees)
Three quarters (75%) of these smaller businesses expressed significantly greater confidence in senior leaders to
apply collaborative working and learning versus (51%) for businesses of all sizes. Collaboration for smaller businesses
can be a broader tool for culture and communication and can range from sharing ideas to the practicalities of shaving
costs - allowing a business to house its networks and infrastructure, as well as ideas.
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26. Biggerbusinesseslookmoretoproductivitygains
Larger businesses, however, are often less good at moving quickly to collaborate. And they, in particular, should be
looking inwards before they look outwards – the synergies and savings they can create simply through breaking down
their own organisational silos are among the greatest unrealised competitive advantages of our times.
Businesses with over 5000 employees, according to our survey, were far more likely than smaller businesses to
believe that productivity gains would be significant, with 84% believing among the larger firms versus an average of
barely 2/3 (68%) for the whole sample.
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
A significant amount (10% or
more increase in productivity)
A fair amount (5 - 10%
increase in productivity)
A small increase (0-5%
increase in productivity)
Negative or zero (no
change in productivity)
Do you think a more collaborative approach to working and learning
would help productivity in your organisation? ( filtered for 5000
employees)
To create a common strategy and manage collaboration is hard work for two or more organisations working together
for the first time, but it is often done to good effect. It should therefore be much easier to manage within a single
business, with common values and behaviours. We all know that genuine collaboration within large businesses is
easier said than done, but it really CAN be done.
Think carefully about what your organisation wants from a more collaborative approach to learning. Is it
as a culture change tool? Is it to make gains in productivity? Or is it something else? Every organisation
has its own DNA – there are gains to be made from collaborative learning but to make the most of them,
consider how best to “audit” your own organisation early on in the journey to understand more clearly what
is required.
10Eighty/Merriborn
Recommended Action:
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27. Who we are
About 10Eighty
10Eighty is expert in increasing employee engagement. They know that engaged employees are more productive,
deliver exceptional client service, go the extra mile and stay longer. The key driver of employee engagement is having
a manager who cares, listens, stretches and develops their employees.
10Eighty develop people, giving them confidence, building their self-esteem and give them skills that enrich their
futures. Using a strengths-based philosophy to increase career resilience and enhance career success they
understand the components that drive high team performance.
Find out more at www.10Eighty.co.uk or email CEO michael.moran@10eighty.co.uk
About Merriborn Media
Merriborn Media is a business dedicated to developing clever content, engaged online communities and effective
collaborative working and learning for clients.
We are the experts in delivering clever content, making the most of it to help online communities flourish through
engaging collaborative working and learning techniques. We particularly want readers of this report and other
interested HR LD professionals to join a brand new pioneering community aimed at establishing a Collaborative
Scorecard™ – a chance for all organisations to work out how to identify, assess and benchmark their collaborative
strengths and challenges.
Email Managing Director - trevor.merriden@merribornmedia.co.uk to find out more about this initiative.
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