9 signs of effective collaboration

1. Collaboration is understood by members as a perspective and way of relating, not merely a tactic or set of skills or tools.
2. The motivation to collaborate is shared and high.
3. There is a clear and elevating goal for the joint work.
4. Trust has overcome initial hesitance or suspicions.
5. The members work to satisfy, not just their own but rather, the interests of all members.
6. There is broad inclusion of, and openness to, all needed perspectives.
7. Members build on successes, and promptly remedy shortcomings as they arise.
8. Relationships and dialogue lead to creative options to address common problems.
9. The collaboration produces tangible, substantial and sustainable results by moving from formational stages to joint action.

Drawn from the counsel, among others, of Carl Larson and David Chrislip in Collaborative Leadership and Chrislip’s Collaborative Leadership Fieldbook