7 principles of smart collaboration

7/30/2019 7 principles of smart collaboration

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Insmartcollabora-onwith &

Sustainable development can only be achieved in partnership with others


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The challenges brought by the need for are of such proportions that they cannot be

addressed by individual organizations anymore.More and more people are convinced that systemic changes are required, that different actors from society have

to work together. Co-creation and shared values are gaining an increasing importance as they lie at the basis

of structural par tnerships.

This booklet and its related website is not an end result, but merely a star ting point.It marks KAURIs search to find the key principles of smart collaboration - inspiring cases, insights, tips and

tricks. It is based on the input of its broad and diversified membership of private sector companies, NGOs,

academics and public authorities.

written and composed by KAURI, Antwerp Management School and Studio Spark


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Content 7 principles of smart collaboration, tips and best practices


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On September 18th, 2012, 35 KAURI members got together to share their experience, expertise, insights and thoughts on multi-actor

collaboration. Representatives of NGOs, companies, governmental organisations and research institutions tapped into a set of statements

that were based on years of research by Dr.Patrick Kenis of Antwerp Management School. The discussion resulted in 7 principles on how

to identify a smart collaboration on sustainability. These 7 basics are a star ting point for further discussion and will hopefully evolve theupcoming years, powered by the progressive insight of all of us.

KAURI

members on

collaboration35 KAURI members spend half a day discussing their

views and experience on collaboration



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KAURIsmission For a more sustainable world, we need to movefrom inspiration to collaboration

Dear Reader,

KAURI is very proud to present this electronic publication on smart collaboration to jointly addresssustainability challenges.. The blog and e-booklet have been created to celebrate our 15 th anniversary

and aim to represent what KAURI is all about: stimulating interaction between stakeholders in Belgium

on sustainability in a climate of trust and in an innovative way.

Sustainability in 2012 has become mature and is more and more integrated into the strategy of our members than it was when KAURI

was founded in 1997. KAURI members are linking societal challenges more and more to their values and core business strategy.In the coming years, we would like to empower and support our members in moving from inspiration to collaboration when addressing

their sustainable development. We would like to use the power of our members to co-create systemic and profound change towards a

more sustainable world. We can only make significant steps by identifying a relevant challenge and working together with different

stakeholders in order to achieve common goals. The central theme of the 15th anniversary of KAURI is therefore completely dedicated

to this topic of creating collaborative advantages.

To help our members in this process, we launch the KAURI principles on Smar t Collaboration. These KAURI principles have been

created in tandem with our members, and are illustrated with examples, and tips and tricks on our website.We have deliberately chosen an open ended approach as opposed to an A-to-Z manual. We will continue to use online tools to gather

the insights and experiences from our members and make these accessible to our broad network of 270 member-organisations.

We welcome you to contribute to these principles on www.smartcollaboration.be , by sharing your comments, and publishing your

experiences on what went well and what could be improved when engaging in partnerships on sustainable development.

Kind regards

[David Leyssens, Network Director KAURI, @smartcollabo ]

[Wouter Vermeulen, Chairman of the Board]



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Prof. dr. Patrick Kenis Why collaboration matters

Collaboration has become a new mantra in the world of organisations. On the one hand this is

surprising, but on the other hand it is not. It is surprising because, from a management perspective,collaboration is the most complicated way to get things done. In a collaboration you not only have to

steer your own organisation into achieving results but you also have to make sure that the

collaboration (made up of organizations facing similar internal problems as yours) also produces

results. You become dependent on others to get things done.

So why is there so much (effective and much less effective) collaboration these days? An important

reason is that modern societies are facing many threats and have many opportunities that cannot

be handled by a single organisation. There are threats like the consequences of climate change,

limits to mobility and a decreasing quality of life for many. There are also numerous opportunities

which can only be materialised through the collaboration of entire organisations, for exampleproduct innovations, new forms of crisis prevention or new ways of learning.

It is fascinating to see that more and more organisations are ready and willing to give up part of

their sovereignty and co-create value with others. If only Management and Business Schools would

follow and start teaching a course Collaborative Strategy rather than Competitive Strategy.

[Professor Dr. Patrick Kenis, Antwerp Management School, @patrick_kenis]



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Smart Principle #1 Identify a challenge core to your sustainability strategyand relevant to stakeholder

During our workshop, everyone agreed that it is important to focus and think of those

sustainability challenges that your organisation and people may have a positive impact on.

It is easy to identify societal and environmental challenges that will sooner or later affect

your organisation. But if you reverse this, youll also find that every organisation has the

potential to provide a positive contribution to a challenge. It requires introspection and a

more strategic thought process, but is a valuable exercise. In what field does your core

activity, expertise and know-how increase the likelihood of making significant steps forward?

If you find an answer to that question and form a coalition with partners that provide

complementary services in terms of expertise and leverage, the chances are you will make a

huge difference. Thats what we consider as relevance.

It is not size or scale that legitimises collaboration. It is complexity, because complexity

requires more than one perspective to think and act. If you have influence, competence and

capacity enough to face the issue on your own, then you do not require collaboration.

The challenges we meet today require an increasing diversity of well orchestratedcompetences in order to succeed.

Were used to meeting individual needs in a competitive environment. Today we haveto prepare meeting societal concerns in a collaborative environment.

Different actors need to recognize the big challenges and the leverage ofcollaboration in order to overcome individual self-interest.

No matter the complexity of the challenge, the process of collaborative actingshould be lean and mean in order to succeed.

Collaboration between multiple societal actors, provides us with the potential

to address and anticipate the big challenges in sustainability on a systemic

level that would not be possible on an individual scale.

[ Wouter Vermeulen, Coca-Cola Europe ]

Read here, how WWF and Delhaize work together to make sure people can still enjoy

fish tomorrow.



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After you have identified a challenge, it is time to look for structural par tners. Find actors that share thesame challenge. Take a holistic approach and include societal actors regardless if you perceive them as

being favourable or not towards your organisation. Look across the value chain and assess how suppliers

and customers are involved with the issue at hand. Consider reaching out to competitors.

Only by broadening the scope of potentially involved partners, you will find the expertise, approaches,

beliefs and support that are different than yours and will contribute towards a successful partnership.

The only prerequisite that needs to be met is the willingness of all partners to learn form,

share and work with others.

At the basis of this question is ambivalence. Most people feel that the fewer actors involved, the easier

and faster your process. Yet consider the opposite and we see that the more organisations involved, the

stronger your potential leverage. As partnerships are dynamic processes, the number of actors in

involved can change over time. Also, the more diverse the audience you can mobilise, the more

opportunities you create for systemic change. The result is win-win.

These days, collaboration is creating a lot of buzz, but it doesnt always lead to happy, like-minded people and togetherness.

The more systemic the challenge that needs to be approached, the less likely it is that you canface the challenge on your own or with organizations with a simi lar DNA. Most of the time, actors are brought together based on trust. Therefore, they might agree too

much, and risk not challenging each other enough.

When it comes to representation ask yourself the key question: Do we have everyone around thetable? For example: If the farmers unionis in, does that also mean that farmers are represented?

Dont mix up people with organisations, especially not when you require competences and input

from daily reality.

Smart Principle #2 Mobilize a team of complementary actors

A current project between different players in passive housing illustrates that

it is perfectly possible to be very different in terms of company DNA, values

and corporate mission. One organisation aims to fight global warming,

another just wants to sell materials or build houses. Yet as a consortium, both

can succeed - teaming up to build climate neutral neighbourhoods.

[Katrien Barrat, Futureproofed, @katrienbarat]

Read here how Vredeseilanden and Colruyt team up with farmers of Benin

To increase the quality of rice



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EVA and Boerenbond won't become friends overnight,but despite of that, we've both put our cards on thetable and opened a dialogue to discover area's where

we can wor k together.

[Tobias Leenaert, Eva vzw, @evaveggies ]

Smart Principle #3

Previous principles show that actors don't have to share the same world view in order to collaborate successfully.

But what is important is openness among organizations as to why they are participating. Stay true to who you are: NGOs

dont need to pretend to be businesses and businesses dont need to pretend they act li ke an NGO. Rather accept the

diversity and the unique contribution each partner brings to the table. So don't try to be perfect. Don't hide any agendas;

instead be honest about your position, other projects, and potential changes to occur. Be open about your intentions and

motivations to support collaborative project.

Pro-actively explain and defend the partnership: not everyone of your internal of external stakeholders might appreciateyour involvement in a partnership with certain partners. Acknowledge this, engage with these stakeholders on the

importance of the partnership for your organisations and keep them informed as the work progresses.

You will reduce the risk of conflicts if all parties declare at what point they consider the outcome of the project to be asuccess.

Agree what you want to achieve together and put it in some kind of Memorandum of Understanding. Equally important: agree to disagree and accept that major differences between partners will persist but these should

not undermine the common ground found.

Read here how different players in the food

Industry work together for responsible advertising

policies



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Smart Principle #4 Be clear on desired outcome and be resultdriven

In order to manage a collaboration with different players, goals should be single minded,

feasible, and measurable, so different players involved can agree, feel motivated and

understand what to achieve.

Define your goals, when and how to achieve them. Make a difference between goals on

the long term and quick wins. Perform back-casting: define your vision on the long term

and plan your actions in reverse as stepping stones towards your ul timate outcome.

If there are low-hanging fruits, it is easy to make participants act and bemotivated by early successes.

Starting with a compelling vision and a clear set of goals is an important kick-start, but it also needs some intermediate targets in order to keep the process

going.

Make your goal-setting ambitious and clear. Open your collaboration with a bigbang. Fussy goals and fussy kick-starts often lead to a fussy process and fussy

commitment.

Some KAURI members refer to the SMART-model (a model to set objectives, oftencalled key performance indicators: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant,

Timely).Working with this model urges a group to manage expectations and

provokes appropriate debate on roles and responsibilities. It also aligns process

and the planning with the end result.

In our participative projects with citizens, we see that a sense of urgency for

change brings people together, but it is a set of goals and an attractive idea ofthe outcome that pushes their common creative process further.

[Yves Larock, Stichting Lodewijk De Raet, @yves_larcok]

Read here how companies like Colruyt, Pepsico, Sarah Lee and Unilever share tools

and objectives to reduce their carbon footprint



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Smart Principle #5 Share each others assets

Share and value the assets that each partner brings to the table. An effective partnership will leverageand extend each partners assets, so that the partnerships scope is greater than either organisations

individual potential. Ensure that the partnership will further your own mission, but will also offer a

return on investment for your partner organisation and will contribute to the overall societal goal.Make sure your collaboration goes in depth. Take enough time to get to know each others assets and

think out of the box. . Make sure you dont only stick to the evident assets. Keep a holistic overview.

Dont be afraid to bring in experts to challenge the partnership. Outsiders have the ability to look with

a fresh view.

Engage people with field experience, people with technical skill s, well connected people in thesector and people who have strategic and creative input.

Take the effort of in-depth understanding of your partners business or activities. You will findassets like brand-power, presence at retailers, consumer insights, brain power, access to their

networks that are of crucial importance to make the partnership work and are not necessarily

expensive

Sharing is not the issue, the trust to share is. Once you have build trust, the rest will follow. You need competence, but you also need a license to fail. Successful failure exists - we should

allow it to happen and learn from it.

Experiments often lead to happy surprises. If your process is flexible, you can plug in and out of competences if necessary. Do not just pull in knowledge and expertise, you must also manage knowledge and expertise

In most cases, people bring stakeholders and ususal suspects around

the table (the unions, employees, trade organisations, ) But more

and more it would be a terrible mistake to forget about what we call

your beyond peers like professors that are critical about what you

do in the media, bottom-up organisations or experts, artists,

foureigners or even children who can come up with surprising fresh

approaches and thoughts to challenge your thinking

[Cato Lonard, Glassroots, @catoleonard]

Read here how Port of Antwerp aims for a more sustainable port by sharing ideas and

insights



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It is time for a different type of leadership. We learned thatleadership is no longer a defined task, linked to fixed functions

with their status. Leadership in networks and for effective

partnerships is a social process filled in 'on the fly' by multiple

individuals. Shared leadership can by several people from different

types of functions and processes, and also different organizational

frameworks to be filled in.

[Walter Tempst, OVAM and VZW Plan C, @tempstwalter @Plan_C]

Smart Principle #6 Manage the partnership

There are many ways to organize collaboration. Many KAURI-members favor an organizational

partnership model with one lead organization - an internal or external party who is in charge of

overseeing the process. This way one actor is dedicated to pushing and streamlining the process

forward. They tackle potential conflicts of interest and keep focus, which might otherwise blur during

the project. Whether you assign one participant with a mandate to take the lead or not, it should be

clear to everyone what or who decides on rhythm and direction.This provides another learning-opportunity for partners involved who can share their respective

project-management methodology, ensuring the par tnership progresses in the best possible way.

When a challenge is complex, it is better to slice up the workload into small tasks, poweredwith sub goals. This way the group can evolve from one achievement to another. It also

increases motivation and involvement.

The stronger the consensus on values, the less need for a moderating by a leadorganisation. But the more seamless, the more the coalition risks becoming merely a

chatroom.

It is important that the steering doesnt just happen in the meeting room. A to-do list alsoneeds follow-up with actions in between the status meetings.

Whoever is in charge, they should keep monitoring and managing expectations,understanding the enthusiasms and involvements of all participants.

Avoid mechanisms whereby one partner would become dependent from the other. This oftenhappens when the partnership is financially driven and partners input is not equally

valuated.

Have a partnership contract and be clear on things like internal and external communication,the right to sue each others logos, when the partnership ends, what to do with the

acquired assets etc.

Read how the G1000 sets up a clear framework for managing a massive collaboration

at smartcollaboration.be



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Smart Principle #7 Keep an open and appreciative attitude

As final principle, many of us agreed with the importance of a positive attitude towards each-other and the common goals you have ahead. In a collaborative setup, progress is difficu lt if

we keep thinking in boxes and stick to the traditional oppositions and prejudices of the past.

The key is to be pushed forward by the potential and capabilities of your team as it exists

now, and feed the process with what is, and not being discouraged by what we are not.

Most managers do very well in the context of traditional problem solving: identify a problem,

conduct root cause analysis, think of a solution and develop action plans.

As being said, from a management perspective, collaboration is the most complex way of

getting things done. Management skills are crucial of course, but on top of that,

collaborative progress requires an appreciative openness and a set of additional capabilities.

Think of skills like valueing the best of what is and unlock potential among participating people.

A strong imagination should help us imagining what might be and share it. Our conversational skills

should allow us to agree on what should be, and our creative skills should help us create what will be.

Again, this is a plea to bring people with all kind of skills and backgrounds around the table: the

managers, the policy makers, the scientists, the strategists, the dreamers and the creatives.

The focus of leadership should always be on the allignment of strenghts in order to make ourshortcomings redundant. The right appliication of competence, reliability, integrity and communication are vital to

generate trust in every collaboration. Trust and appreciation go hand-in-hand.

Even the compilation of this booklet was a confrontation of different view points. To tell you the

truth, collaboration is sometimes messy. But it was only by appreciation of contributions from

different corners within the KAURI network, we managed to come up with a compilation of

thoughts that can work as an outset.

We wish you a happy collaboration

[Stefaan Vandist, Studio Spark, @talkwithspark ]

We've seen collaborations where NGO's are considered asa great resource with years of research and expertise in the

field, and NGO's that consider corporations as powerful

levers of change. Appreciation is something that keeps

collaboration on the right temperature.

[Danny Jacobs, Bond Beter Leefmilieu, @dannyjacobs03]

Read here how the KAURIs Job Switch Days engaged Delhaize and Max Havelaar to

create a deeper understanding by exchanging jobs


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BethNoveck:Wedontliveinapassivesociety,aread-onlysociety,butinawritablesociety#smartcollaboration

HisHolinesstheDalaiLama:Happinessisnotsomethingreadymade.Itcomesfromyourownactions#smartcollaborationPeterDrucker:

Thebestwaytopredictthefutureistocreateit#smartcollaboration

HenryFord:Ifeveryoneismovingforwardtogether,thensuccesstakescareofitself#smartcollaboration

CharlesDarwin:Inthelonghistoryofmankind,thosewholearnedtocollaborateandimprovisemosteffectivelyhaveprevailed#smartcollaborationAlbertEinstein:Noproblemcanbesolvedfromthesamelevelofconsciousnessthatcreatedit#smartcollaboration

NapoleonHill:Itisliterallytruethatyoucansucceedbestandquick

estbyhelpingotherstosucceed.#smartcollaborationPeterSenge:Collaborationisvitaltosustainwhatwecallprofoundchange,becausewithoutit,organizationsarejustoverwhelmedbytheforcesofthestatusquo

Feel free to join the conversation, share thoughts, experiences

and best practices via our website

This is the place where wed like to collect and share some

inspiring examples and insights on smart collaboration. We

hope this platform will spark the process of progressive

insight on this challenging topic, and will be a resource ofinspiration for the entire KAURI network.

Follow on twitter to stay tuned with

every update and more.

Stay tuned to smart collaboration


7 principles of smart collaboration

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