Facilitating teamwork is often regarded as a matter for HR, while technology is seen as solely an infrastructural concern. But is it really as simple as that? In Tool Sprawl and How To Stop It, we exposed the productivity costs of poorly integrated tools. Now, let’s examine what these conditions can do to hinder collaboration.
An IT Origin Myth
If the IT industry had an origin myth, it might go something like this… In the beginning, there was information traveling wildly around the atmosphere. Humans built tools to store, process, and share this information. For a time, there was harmony in every organization. Access to reliable, accurate information meant individuals could communicate confidently. They could connect, understand one another, and work toward shared goals. But (plot twist) things took a turn for the worse. Organizations grew ever larger and their systems more complex. The sheer amount of tools producing information meant that knowledge became partial and fragmented. Unable to determine what was true, human relationships became strained, making true collaboration impossible. The IT world was thrown into chaos!
Enterprises in the Information Age
Ok, it’s hardly a tale for the ages, but it does point to some fundamental truths about how people relate to their tools. An organization relies on the seamless transfer of accurate information to the right people at the right time. As an organization expands, it requires more tools to manage this information. Before long, navigating reams of info becomes a full-time job, distracting from the true mission at hand. Deciding what info is accurate, relevant, or urgent gets tricky. Several sources of truth require the laborious interpretation of findings, breeding conflict and uncertainty. At its heart, collaboration requires agreement on core principles. Teams ask themselves: “What do we know?” “What data are we basing our actions on?” “Are we all acting according to the same knowledge?” If there's doubt, the prospect of effective teamwork becomes increasingly remote.
Three Tales of Tools Versus Teams
Let’s take a look at how these dynamics might play out in practice at three fictional companies. Company A is a retail giant with a footprint in over 20 countries. The IT team works to maintain network health using one set of monitoring tools, while the application support team is hunkered down with a different toolkit. When an unexpected upsurge in network traffic rattles the performance of a crucial application, the clock starts ticking. The respective team leads strive to coordinate a joint response, but the clash of tools amounts to extra minutes spent on correlating data, compounding downtime costs and leaving stakeholder relations strained.
Picture Company B, a Silicon Valley startup known for its cutting-edge cloud services. The firm's rapid expansion has led to an accumulation of overlapping monitoring tools. The mishmash yields performance reports as unreliable as they are inconsistent, putting the CTO in a tight spot during executive meetings. When she presents these figures, debates erupt over their accuracy, casting shadows of doubt on the IT department's credibility.
How else can tool sprawl cause tension? Company C is an international banking and investment firm. Here, the Chief Security Officer is tasked with overseeing the firm's cybersecurity. With separate tools for threat detection and vulnerability management, their efforts to maintain a unified security overview feel like piecing together a puzzle with missing parts. This fragmented approach not only slows the firm's response to potential security incidents but also complicates interactions with the legal and compliance departments. These teams, already under the gun to ensure the company meets stringent industry regulations, find their stress levels soaring during audits. A weak security posture fosters a culture of frustration and blame.
How To Drive Teamwork By Optimizing Your Technology
Do any of the scenarios above sound familiar? If your teams are not collaborating as well as you would like, it is important to examine whether your tool stack facilitates or hinders teamwork. Start by conducting an audit of existing tools. Tag in stakeholders from IT, operations, and other functional teams to get hard facts on how each one is being used. You may find your setup plagued with inefficiencies. If it is, build a strategy to simplify the toolset by selecting versatile core platforms or adopting solutions with better integration capabilities. The implementation of a new system should be gradual. Try a phased rollout that allows for feedback and adjustments, along with training, to make the benefits of changes clear to employees. Ongoing support and resources, along with establishing mechanisms for evaluation and adjustment, are crucial for aligning the technology stack with the organization's evolving needs. Today, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning also play a role in automating the process of deciphering relevant information, buying teams time that would otherwise be spent picking through data or interpreting findings.
Nurturing Conditions for Collaboration
Communication barriers, trust issues, resistance to change, ego, personal agendas, lack of commitment, cultural differences, and skill disparities… with so many forces to contend with, uniting your teams can be challenging at the best of times. The last thing you want is for poorly integrated tools to throw up even more barriers. By gaining a deep understanding of how technology affects human connections, then working to eliminate silos and inconsistencies, leaders can create an environment where accurate information flows freely across teams, fueling real collaboration. Perhaps achieving total harmony across your organization remains the stuff of myth–but fluid and consistent teamwork may not be out of reach.
