Overview

During your education, you've probably had to work in groups many times. The process of working with others is called collaboration and collaborative teams have become the dominant model in the professional workplace. Collaborative work is an idea that has permeated education, business, the nonprofit sector, and government. Collaboratively we are often able to accomplish what we cannot do individually. By working with others we can sharpen our interpersonal skills, increase creativity and productivity, and extend our working community to a global context.

However, working collaboratively also carries hazards. Many students develop a strong aversion to group work in a school setting because they've "been burned before." As you've no doubt already experienced, problems like differences in personality, gender, and culture can all contribute to conflict.

Usually students experience the frustrations of working with "slacker" group members. This phenomenon grows specifically out of student cultures indoctrinated into passive learning experiences. Many students resist project-based class work that forces them to do more than simply fill their chairs. By luck of the draw you may have to work with an uncooperative or uncommunicative classmate in your group projects. Wise teachers will listen carefully to your feedback and progress reports and take steps to protect your group from the sabotage of an unengaged, resistant team member.

Learning to overcome these conflicts is key in the professional workplace as well, but in that environment you are more likely to encounter varying levels of competence than completely non-cooperative group members. The reason? In the workplace non-performers are fired more easily than they can be in a required class where some students quite frankly just don't want to be there. And sandbagging group members should take heed. The competitive workplace will waste little time on such coasting.

There are rewards for becoming adept at collaborative communication while taking classes, particularly computer-supported collaborative work in interactive environments. A positive attitude will take you a long way. Computer communication skills make you a global asset in distant locations. Your teams will perform creatively and well. You may move into leadership positions. Some companies demand the constant ranking of team members, and this ranking system affects promotions, raises, and more importantly, layoffs.