Christine Hastie

  • Home
  • Blog
    • Collaboration
      • Collaboration Tables
      • Creativity
    • Collaborative writing
      • The 10 Laws of Collaborative Writing
      • Writing Processes
      • Writing & Editing
  • Leadership
  • About
    • Services
  • Contact
  • Resources
    • Writing your way
  • Home/
  • Collaboration /
  • Is your organization losing its mind?

Is your organization losing its mind?

Christine November 16, 2013 Leave a Comment 2336

Your team is compiling hundreds of pages to support your organization’s product. It takes months, sometimes years. So you can expect the faces at the table to change over time. Writing in organizations takes planning. If the team members take all the expertise with them, the collaborative writing project could be affected. And the organization might feel the pinch.

You will see this scenario play out, for example, in a writing shop. At first, the work is divided up nicely according to the knowledge and ability of each team member. The project chugs on merrily. Then some players are taken away for an urgent assignment; others leave to pursue new opportunities, often based on the great work they did on this very project. New writers are brought in and they dive into the project bringing new ideas and gusto. They have a list of what to accomplish and each job is getting done.

In the rush to the finish line, though, cracks are appearing the pavement. For some reason, the document is no longer consistent. Putting it together has becomes a nightmare; there is too much text to be edited at once and version control has become an issue. When the dust settles, there will be questions.

Ensure the sharing of knowledge in collaborative writing projects

People who work together on a document share some key knowledge about:

  • its guiding vision, aims, and objectives
  • what makes for stylistic consistency and quality
  • how to measure and evaluate its success

We all know these are essential for good documents, then we forget to apply them to our teamwork.

The first team had specific knowledge about the objectives of the project, source information, terminology and definitions, project interdependencies, and many nuances about the subject. The relay team has writing skills but they work in a completely different context.

Writers are not interchangeable parts, with the ability to transfer knowledge at the changing of the guard. Project databases only capture information they are set up to manage, and we all know that a tool is not a project.

Good collaborative strategies

The question every member of the team should be prepared to answer at every phase in the project is: Are we all sharing and agreeing to all the essential elements for success on this project?

Start with the end in mind. Once you know the project aims and objectives, identify the key measures for success, and map the path. Build your knowledge database and toolbox to fit the project requirements. Look at the project timeframe and let your tools support, not define, the project over that term.

Featured image is Losing my mind … by Mark Auer via Photo pin

Christine
2013-11-16
Tags:
business continuity business writing project Collaboration collaborative writing essentials collaborative writing group collaborative writing how to collaborative writing project collaborative writing tips collaborative writing tools content management document development managing information milestones quality measurements supporting collaborative writing team writing process team writing projects team writing strategies team writing tips timelines tools writing consistency writing database writing groups writing metrics writing objectives writing performance metrics writing performance standards writing process writing project definition writing project management writing quality writing strategy writing team writing team continuity writing team integration writing team lead writing team strategy writing tools
Share story:
← PreviousModel 3 – Collaborative teams
Next →Your collaboration tools may be useless

Written by Christine

Christine Hastie specializes in coaching writers, collaborators, and teams to success. Working in creative, technical, and therapeutic fields, she guides people to find their true message, especially when producing written resources that advance knowledge and help others.

View all articles by Christine

Website: http://christinehastie.com

Related Articles

  • Are all team members on the same collaborative page?

  • Listen, sculpture by Tom Nussbaum, photo by

    Listening: A key skill for collaboration

  • Collaboration, Crowdfunding and Kickstarting a Project

  • Chemotherapy room collaboration table

    Collaboration Tables 3: A Chemotherapy Room Table

  • Photo by The Guy with the Yellow Bike via Flickr CC

    Collaborate better: A guide for teams and partners

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Social networks

Subscribe To My Newsletter

Recent Posts

  • Are all team members on the same collaborative page?
  • Listening: A key skill for collaboration
  • Collaboration, Crowdfunding and Kickstarting a Project
  • Collaboration Tables 3: A Chemotherapy Room Table
  • Collaborate better: A guide for teams and partners
You can use WP menu builder to build menus

Copyright © 2014 Pratico, All Rights Reserved.