No More Teams!: Mastering the Dynamics of Creative Collaboration

Abstract

For organizations that care about innovation, individual creativity isn't enough anymore -- people need to be in creative, collaborative relationships. For “virtual” organizations, collaborative relationships are a must or the organization won't survive. The world's greatest collaborations -- Picasso/ Braque, Watson/ Crick, Wozniak/Jobs -- relied on “shared spacesi where they could play with their ideas. Shared spaces, however you set them up, provide the neutral ground on which any and all ideas can be aired and considered. Developing a shared space for collaboration is about effectively using tools -- from felt tips on napkins, to whiteboards, to specialized computer software -- that can provide the shared space to keep all the good ideas, to cope with every objection, to handle conflicts as they come up, to make sure everyone gets their say and has it considered.