Management

Collaborative activity is a tremendous asset for a business or community and a wonderful thing to experience. Unfortunately, it becomes exponentially more challenging - and less common - as the number of participants rises above one.  Too many managers and C-level administrators settle for some lesser form of group activity, often proudly boasting of their collegial and collaborative approach, hoping no one will notice.

Let’s review the characteristics of four kinds of group behavior, arranged along a spectrum ranging from simple compliance to  collegial collaboration.

When we were a group of four primary care providers it was easy to share information, communicate and work collaboratively. Having grown to ten, we struggled. As our lives became more hectic, our time scarcer, and the number and complexity of issues grew, it became impossible to manage practice governance, pursue QI projects, develop work flows, and deal with directives from our parent organization. Keeping everyone in the loop was simply not possible. Even if we could get all ten providers in one place for an hour/week, the task was too large to squeeze into an hour a week.

It’s obvious, of course, and nothing more than basic behavioral psychology: if you reward a behavior, you will get more of it.

Jigsaw puzzles were a traditional part of our family’s summer vacations.

A meeting is an unnecessary gathering of the unwilling, led by the unknowing, doing the impossible for the ungrateful. (Slogan from a popular poster during the 1960s.)