Collaboration Fosters Creative Problem Solving
by Bonnie Benard

The benefits commonly identified in the literature from using a collaborative model are as follows: (1) While we have a scarcity of research documenting program effectiveness, the literature on collaboration consistently identifies program effectiveness as a major benefit of collaboration. This is not only the result of the creation of a solution that addresses system-wide and not symptomatic change but also because ownership is spread among systems, thereby increasing the number of"stakeholders, "those that have invested themselves and are committed to working on the problem. (2) The pooling of resources (time and money) reduces the loss from duplicated and fragmented interventions and provides a cost-effective way to address problems. (3) The process of collaborating (communicating, planning, problem solving, decision making, resolving conflicts, and laughter together) breaks down the isolation people often experience working alone and creates a stimulating, empowering, creative experience that builds nurturing and supportive relationships among the participants.

The following attributes have been consistently identified as essential to effective collaborative efforts, be they community task forces of concerned citizens, interagency, or inter-professional collaboratives, or statewide or national networks:

1. As Shirley Hord explains, "The extent to which organizations share interests and needs before joining is a major determinant of their propensity to work together. There must be a sense of gain for each."

2. Time is necessary to do joint planning and consensual decision making, the essence of collaboration. Furthermore, as Lieberman states, "Groups of people who work together need enough time together to strip away the stereotypes held by people in different positions doing different kinds of work."

3. Roy Park claims energetic people are the heart of a collaborative team, and Shirley Hod concludes that "Reaching-out, action-taking individuals are needed to initiate and sustain the collaborative effort."

4. Sharing of resources - funds, staff etc. - is the modus operandi for collaborating organizations. The rewards, or expected outcomes, must be worth the investment to each participant.

5. Group meetings are ongoing and frequent in successful collaboratives. As Hord concludes, "The collaborating mode is a sharing one, and sharing is grounded in communication."

6. The importance of institutional support to a collaborative effort is reiterated throughout the literature. According to Adrienne Baily, "At a minimum, effective collaboration must have the enthusiastic backing of top leadership if not their actual participation."

7. Broad-based representation - including youth - is critical to make sure not only elites are represented.

8. According to several authors the failure to establish mutual goals and objectives is a major reason collaborations fail.

9. While attention to group task, that is, goal accomplishment, is essential, we must remember that collaboration is an interpersonal process. This requires close attention to group process as well as group process skills.

10. Probably no quality better captures the essence of collaboration than the spirit of mutual respect; collaboration rests upon the principle that each person is capable and has something to offer.

11. In collaboration, power, control and responsibilities must be shared; in fact several "experts" recommended sharing leadership and thus giving each person the opportunity to develop leadership and group facilitation skills. Linda Clements states: "In a genuine collaboration, all partners learn and all partners teach."

12. Shared planning, decision making, evaluation, and leadership among partners creates a sense of ownership on the part of each participant. The principle of shared ownership has been a cornerstone for community development theory and practice for decades and is a critical component of any successful change effort.

13. Commitment is also the direct out-growth of equal participation by collaborating partners. According to Roberta Colbertson, "Wherever they are and whatever their goals, prevention programs are successful to the degree that they address one thing: people's commitment and responsibility for a positive and supportive community."

14. What is often overlooked and yet is unanimously identified in the literature as essential to successful collaboration are the incentives and rewards, be they funding, recognition, or just plain fun!

15. Traits like patience, persistence, initiative, flexibility, risk taking, empathy, self-assurance and self-realization have all been identified by various researchers and practitioners as critical to working in a collaborative relationship with others. Essentially, these all reflect an openness to life and new experience and a willingness to share with others. The resounding conclusion of panelists, presenters, and researchers at the 1989 Society for Applied Anthropology's Conference on Collaboration was that collaboration is a "people process" and requires, first and foremost, attention to "people issues". Comments like the following echoed throughout the conference: "Collaboration is a social process," "Human dynamics is the basis for any collaborative effort," "Collaboration is person-to-person. "Furthermore, those who have studied successful schools and organizations have found them to be people-centered. All this reiterates a central tenet of prevention philosophy: the need to create positive and caring environments which encourage our working and playing together in our families, schools, work-places, and communities. How we relate to each other in these arenas determines how successful we will actually be in achieving our goals of reducing alcohol and drug use by youth. Gandhi's dictum that our means will determine our ends, i.e., that there is no way to peace but peace is the way, is advice well heeded.