Good collaboration between departments is a sign of positive work culture. When staff feel comfortable working together and are aware of other departments’ roles and responsibilities, it’s reflected in the customer experience. Use these tips to help build cross-departmental collaboration. 

Get to Know Other Department Processes

Learning about other departments’ work and their processes allows staff to appreciate the whole business process, not just their part of it. Foster collaboration between departments by allowing staff to “shadow” other departments, schedule formal staff meetings during store projects and encourage informal check-ins with team members in other departments.

Encourage Open Communication

Open communication will increase understanding, transparency and appreciation across teams. Build a healthy understanding of each team’s role in the co-op by sharing goals and timelines associated with different departments. Use staff newsletters, posters and meetings for sharing and communication.  

Encourage Feedback

Providing and receiving regular feedback can help build strong working relationships between departments, empower team members and improve processes. Encourage each team at your co-op to give feedback and work to create an environment in which team members feel comfortable speaking up and sharing their opinions. Don’t just put a suggestion box in the break room — actively seek feedback by asking the team what is working and what is not. 

Celebrate Wins

Celebrating wins and acknowledging each department’s role in those wins helps cultivate trust and respect among team members from different departments. Don’t wait for the huge milestones. Celebrating small successes can help sustain momentum and motivation while breaking down barriers.