Creating a culture of collaborative Innovation

What is the key ingredient of true collaborative culture and where does this originate?

Did you know the current school going students are known as generation-Z?   I even saw a t-shirt on social media bearing   slogan ‘’when am bored I google myself’’. We currently have six generations the builders 70+ years, baby boomers 51-69 years, generation-X 36-50 years, generation-Y 21-35 years and generation-Z 6-20 years.

 Generation-Z are born between 1995 and 2009 and when they talk about library they actually mean of their play list in itunes. They speak, and write short message service (sms)  in a new language and if they can shorten it further they will. Their idea of an encyclopaedia is one that they can change and  contribute to while they constantly rate it.

This generation-Z in my view spent a huge amount of their time online chatting with friends and relatives each day, so what will be the future work force be like from this group of individuals?. We are in the brink of a significant intergenerational transition at the workplaces, the baby boomers who are in leadership roles  are approaching their retirement years and transitioning  out of the work force.

At the other end of the spectrum are the generation-Z, as they  enter into the work force  things are going to change, they are the most materially endowed, technologically literate, formally educated and globally connected generation to ever grace  planet earth. The way they approach work, problem solving, collaboration, communication and innovation will be completely different.

Every generation will have their own challenges and fears to overcome in fact generation-Z are global and visual generation, you can communicate their three top fears simply through visual icons.

The first fear is the poor wifi signal, it’s quite a crisis with generation-Z  if  they are not  connected to the internet, The second fear which i think is even a greater problem for them is the buffering signal. I mean this is a generation that did not have to wait for anything not even   dialogue, and the biggest challenge is when their phone battery is out of charge, phone without charge life ceases to exist with this group of individuals.

 I personally experience this every time my home internet goes off during the school holidays; I will receive a series of sms from my kids indicating that our internet is offline.

Generation-Z are growing at a time of extraordinary and unprecedented change and that  is how they will approach their careers. How will this phenomenon shape the way generate-Z approach work in the future?

The world population is growing and becoming more culturally rich and diverse in every Country of the world through net overseas migration and this will be reflected in our work place community.

 The generation to follow  Z were born since 2010, the year marked by the launch of the electric car station, the launch of the ipad, the launch of Instagram and the beginning of generation alpha. I heard a story of a mum talking to her generation apha son about grandma who was not feeling well. She explained that ‘you know grandma is sick she  caught a virus and  needs to see a doctor’. The boy replies and says ‘don’t be silly mum only computers get viruses’. This confirms that we are growing up in different times. Perhaps wifi will be at bottom of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs based on the fundamental demand and consistent use of internet by these two generations.

Productivity in the work place will increase significantly through technology, innovation and collaboration and we are seeing sectors being transformed. Let’s take hospitality sector for example Hilton Hotel  was established in 1919 with presence in 91 Countries with approximately 600,000 beds however compare that with Airbnb  an American company which operates an online marketplace and hospitality service for people to lease or rent short-term lodging including holiday cottages, apartments, homestays, hostel beds or hotel rooms. Established in 2008 and is in 190 countries with over 1.5 million listings.

Now what Airbnb has done is an innovative approach to accommodation that has released the collaborative power of community for all of us to become accommodation providers if you want to, and it has leveraged this over a technology platform. We can also see this with  Uber taxi service they don’t own even a single taxi vehicle but have presence in the many cities in the world, we can all be drivers using the uber application.

The traditional leadership styles of command and control that is based on position and hierarchy is shifting to a more collaborative and contribution approach for the younger generation where they can participation and have a voice.

Effective leadership of the future are not just those with highly developed skills set and expertise in an area but rather those who are able to create a culture of collaborative innovation. These leaders will understand that as people we are designed to connect and constantly connecting over the online platforms to the extent that we are now able to telecommute full time at the comfort of our homes.

We are also designed to contribute and it’s interesting that the platforms that we spend  most of our time online not just as consumers but contributors as well these social media platforms like whatsapp, facebook and blogs just to mention a few. This online culture will also enable us to create content like in youtube, did you know that there are over 100 hours of youtube content being uploaded every single minute?

How will the future workplace culture of collaborative and innovation look like?

Well, it will be inclusive of multi-generational, multi-cultural and multi skilled community that draws its strength on the diversity built on the foundation of  shared values such as humility, respect and authenticity. Productivity, outcome and output will be increasingly important in every workplace. As we shift our focus from  process to developing people, from not just outcomes but creating space for opportunity and innovation, from transactional to transformational leadership and create vibrant, dynamic and healthy workplace community then outcome and productivity will be higher than ever in a thriving culture of collaborative innovation.

Let us all collaborate.

The Author,

Chair, Turkana Professionals Association (TPA)

https://ekaaleekuam.blogspot.co.ke/