8 Trends to Ride to Improve Collaboration at Work

Collaboration is an essential ingredient within a company. It’s all the more so today, in an era where digital change is continuously transforming the world of work. How could you possibly overlook internal social networks that mirror “classic” social media, artificial intelligence, hybrid work, remote work, or the collaboration tools available on desktop or mobile to work together anywhere in the world? Impossible!

Collaboration is everywhere today because it’s a driver of productivity and performance. Asana’s Anatomy of Work report (2023) reveals that 55% of companies that have adopted collaborative work management have seen their revenue grow over the past three years. That’s almost twice as high as in organizations where collaboration is less developed.

There are several emerging trends in collaboration you can explore. To get the most out of them, here are 8 trends to ride to improve collaboration at work!

Use a SaaS collaboration tool

You’ve probably noticed: the use of the “cloud” is more and more popular. But let’s take a closer look at SaaS (Software as a Service), one of the models the cloud offers! SaaS lets users access online applications, rather than installing and running them on their own computer.

It’s been a major collaboration trend in recent years, because SaaS tools offer greater flexibility and greater scalability! Easier to install than conventional software and more accessible, they enable real-time collaboration on projects from anywhere in the world. Just one thing is required: an internet connection.

Among the most effective SaaS solutions is Talkspirit, the French-built SaaS! A communication and collaboration platform for the workplace, it lets employees work together, interact easily, share files, and schedule meetings thanks to a range of features: chat and video conferencing, a secure drive, a document co-editing tool, a shared calendar… and many more!

Talkspirit is most likely the answer to your collaboration needs at work. Discover our sovereign solution now 👇

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Embrace new ways of working

Since the health crisis, several new ways of working have emerged, and continue to be in high demand today. Among them are hybrid work or remote work, but also the smart office, co-working, and so on. All these ways of working help foster flexibility. And flexibility makes collaboration easier! For example, hybrid work enables agile collaboration based on location, availability, and the type of exchange, and so improves the efficiency of teamwork.

This trend of new ways of working gives a new shape to collaboration within your company, resulting in exchanges that are more fluid, more respectful of everyone’s work environment, and more collaborative!

Introduce asynchronous collaboration

By “workplace collaboration”, we generally mean synchronized work, governed by various processes so that employees work together productively. But do you know about asynchronous collaboration?

This trend in workplace collaboration runs counter to the traditional view we have of collaboration. Asynchronous collaboration is a collaborative working method that lets team members work together, at their own pace and without necessarily being online at the same time or in the same place, to manage their shared projects.

Asynchronous collaboration addresses the issues of coordination, exchanges, and dependence on others that we can run into day to day. Each employee has their own role, work preferences, and needs. And collaborating means respecting them! Adding asynchronous elements to your ways of collaborating gives you greater flexibility. Your teams can work independently and flexibly, while still being able to maintain effective communication and productive collaboration!

Collaborating also means managing your time, organizing your tasks, and being transparent about your availability to work better with others. Thanks to features like chat, which you’ll find on the Talkspirit platform, you can customize your notifications and switch to “do not disturb” mode to collaborate with your peers at the right moments, and make the best contribution based on your availability and preferences.

But be careful, the trend isn’t to do away with synchronization in our working methods, far from it! It’s rather to take your needs and those of others into account, and to work in a team spirit under the best conditions. Let’s stay in sync, asynchronously!

Invest in well-being at work

Investing in well-being at work is not only a trend, but above all a necessity for companies, and for employees!

In a study by Alan, 85% of employees say that improving their well-being at work would strengthen their loyalty to their company. Your employees are making it clear: their well-being matters, and they want you to take it into account, because it’s a driver of motivation and cohesion. By investing in your employees’ well-being, you prevent the risk of burnout, improve working conditions, and lift the overall atmosphere.

A few years ago, the trend was to offer employees a foosball table, a coffee machine, and a relaxation area. But expectations are different today. To improve collaboration between your employees, you can encourage them to build connections with their colleagues outside of work hours, to get to know each other better, build trust, and create a positive company culture!

Annual celebrations like birthdays, April Fools’ Day, Christmas, and so on, are great opportunities to create moments of exchange outside work and strengthen relationships between teams! For example, at Talkspirit, we celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with colleagues in a bar by setting each other challenges. The first challenge went to our CEO Philippe Pinault!

So, challenge accepted?

Develop recognition

According to a survey on workplace recognition conducted by My Happy Job, 41% of employees say that recognition at work affects their motivation. It’s therefore crucial for companies to give employees recognition so that their motivation fuels teamwork. This can take several forms—here are a few ideas.

Every success deserves to be celebrated! For example, you can share a post on the news feed of your collaboration platform to congratulate or encourage the team that reaches or gets close to its goals. Giving a team public recognition is a way to boost their self-esteem, increase their engagement, and strengthen group cohesion. This recognition is also a chance for you to encourage fruitful new collaborations!

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Use gamification

Gamification is a trend that makes work more fun and strengthens collaboration between colleagues. It consists of using game mechanics to make an activity more engaging, by incorporating elements originally found in games, such as: points, levels, badges, leaderboards, challenges, quests, rewards, and so on. This method brings teams together around a shared goal, and lets people work while having a good time together!

Using gamification tools is another way to encourage your employees to go above and beyond, set goals, track their performance, and earn rewards for their achievements. It’s the surefire technique to boost employee motivation and engagement!

Embracing playfulness is the new trend to follow to make work more enjoyable and stimulating for everyone, and to improve collaboration. The only thing is, to put gamification mechanics in place, it helps to have a platform that supports it.

For example, the Talkspirit platform offers features like likes and comments to give positive feedback to users who have shared a post. But also fun features, such as polls that let you make your communication more participatory in just a few clicks!

Even naming a room can become fun. So for your company, it’s easy—go for it!

Make room for innovation

It’s no longer a surprise to see that technology is constantly evolving. For companies, this means they have to adapt quickly to stay competitive and keep their employees engaged. Imagine your employees’ satisfaction in saying they work for a company that’s up to date on the latest trends? Making room for ideas and innovation can help you achieve remarkable results when it comes to collaboration!

If you thought artificial intelligence was reserved for science-fiction films, think again—it can also improve collaboration at work! Solutions such as chatbots, capable of answering frequently asked questions, or recommendation algorithms, can help make collaboration easier by offering suggestions or automating certain tasks. This automation saves time and simplifies exchanges, while fostering effective collaboration.

For example, you can very easily chat with Talkspirit’s chatbot! Ask it whatever you want to know, and the FAQ assistant answers you instantly and accurately. Its big pluses: it’s available 7 days a week and 24 hours a day, and it’s customizable!

Innovation can also find its place internally, at the heart of your company, thanks to the bright ideas of your talent. By combining the ideas and skills of your employees, you create the opportunity to generate innovative projects, fueled by everyone’s contribution. What’s more, you give meaning to their work and strengthen the bond of trust already established. Working as a team is good. But working as a team using collective intelligence is even better!

Foster a culture of transparency and trust

To avoid falling into the trap of overly intrusive management, it’s important to strike a balance between oversight and autonomy. The solution? Foster a culture of transparency and trust at work!

By encouraging open-mindedness and trust, you create a positive work environment that’s conducive to collaboration. As a result, your teams will be more inclined to share their ideas and knowledge with one another, as well as with leadership.

Read also: Managers, build a feedback culture within your team!

This trend is a real boost for management! Transparency and trust are key ingredients for improving collaboration at work, and leaders need to take action to encourage a culture that promotes these values. This can be achieved by setting clear policies.

To remove all the potential barriers to collaboration, it’s essential to identify:

• The topic-based discussion groups to create on your collaboration tool to encourage employees to speak up. For example, to track a project’s progress, on Talkspirit you can create a discussion group dedicated to that topic, adding ONLY the relevant members!

• The people in charge of managing and energizing these groups.

• The channels through which it’s best to share your information. If an employee wants to reach you, we recommend favoring chat over internal email.

• The days and times to favor for meetings, so you have the time and the right means to tackle a topic.

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You’re now up to date on the latest trends to ride to improve collaboration at work. All that’s left is to choose the ones that suit you best, to make collaboration within your company your greatest asset!

Wondering about the benefits of collaboration tools to add to your efforts to improve collaboration? We’ve got just what you need! Discover our infographic on the 9 key figures to know about collaboration tools, which will make you an expert on the subject.

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In our infographic “9 key figures to know about collaboration tools”, you’ll discover: who uses collaboration tools, the benefits and limitations of these platforms, as well as their impact on the future of work.

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