Collaboration Nation: How to Promote a More Harmonious Workplace

Collaboration is king in the workplace - at least that's what we tell ourselves. A lot of businesses talk a big game about encouraging collaboration between different departments and teams, but in the end, are they actually stepping up and putting their money where their mouths are?

Research would suggest no, they're not. As we've noted before, 86 percent of employees cite poor internal communication and collaboration as a significant reason for failed initiatives in the office or other workplace. That communication breakdown can lead to friction between departments, causing further employee unrest and dissatisfaction.

Businesses have an opportunity to ease tensions and cultivate a more collaborative workforce with the help of issue tracking software. Here's how:

Alleviate internal frustration

When something goes wrong, people will always look for someone to blame - that's just part of human nature. This can play out in the workplace when a request slips through the cracks and never gets addressed. If an employee files an expense report and it goes unanswered for weeks on end, that will reflect poorly on the payroll department, even if the delay was caused by a breakdown in the submission workflow rather than because of any one person's mistake.

In another scenario, a customer service representative may turn to the IT department to address a customer complaint. If that ticket isn't filled in a timely manner, the rep might feel like the IT team is unreliable and just making his job that much harder by creating a delay.

Issue tracking software provides more oversight into internal processes, allowing stakeholders to see what tasks have been assigned and who is responsible for carrying them out. This, in turn, enables teams to be more proactive about catching things that slipped through the cracks, rather than waiting for an angry co-worker or customer to follow up with them. That responsiveness and attention to detail will go a long way toward cultivating goodwill with other departments.

Broken workflows can easily frustrate employees and pit different departments against one another.

Bring teams together

More complex issues require collaboration across different departments. Onboarding is a classic example of the internal legwork needed to address a seemingly straightforward request. Once a candidate accepts an employment offer, a flurry of internal requests are sent off to different departments. From the time a new person is hired to the moment they step foot into the office, a number of small tasks have been issued, assigned and, hopefully, completed. Those seemingly minor requests - setting up a desk phone, for example - add up to a much larger picture.

Issue tracking software facilitates these kinds of complex demands by providing comprehensive oversight across each step in the process. Everyone knows what's been completed and what work is left to be done. Best of all, everyone is working toward the same goal.

Your employees should be working together in lockstep. Don't let technology be a barrier to better internal collaboration. Issue tracking software could be just the ticket to a more harmonious workforce.