Interdepartmental Collaboration Frameworks

75% of cross-functional teams underperform. (Source: Harvard Business Review) Why? Because lack of role clarity derails even the most talented teams. In today’s fast-moving business environment, collaboration is non-negotiable—but without clear decision rights and defined responsibilities, projects stall, accountability blurs, and outcomes suffer. The fix: Clarity. And two proven frameworks can help: DACI (Decision-making clarity) • Driver → Orchestrates the process. • Approver → Owns the final call. • Contributors → Bring expertise. • Informed → Stay updated. Example: In a product launch, the Driver could be the Product Manager, the Approver the Business Head, Contributors the Design & Marketing leads, and Informed the Sales team. RACI (Execution clarity) • Responsible → Do the work. • Accountable → Own the outcome. • Consulted → Provide inputs. • Informed → Get progress updates. Example: In a client implementation, the Responsible team could be Engineering, the Accountable person the Project Manager, Consulted might be Legal, and Informed the Client Success Lead. Key difference: • DACI = Who decides. • RACI = Who does what. When applied correctly, both frameworks: Reduce conflict Increase speed of execution Build trust across teams Pro tip: Don’t apply them blindly. Choose DACI when decisions stall. Choose RACI when execution responsibilities blur. At the end of the day, frameworks don’t replace leadership—but they amplify alignment. #decisionmaking #leadership #organisationalculture #KPA #reponsiblity

Case for Collaboration: Why Aligning Cross-Functional Teams is Essential for BPM Success Effective Business Process Management (BPM) isn’t just about tools and frameworks; it’s about people. Aligning cross-functional teams is the backbone of a successful BPM initiative. Here’s why collaboration matters: 1️. Holistic Process Design Processes often cut across departments—finance, operations, IT, and beyond. When teams collaborate, they bring different perspectives to the table. This ensures that the process isn’t just optimized for one department but works seamlessly across the organization. 2️. Smoother Implementation Without alignment, BPM initiatives risk facing delays, misunderstandings, or outright failure. When teams share a unified vision, they can anticipate dependencies, communicate effectively, and execute plans efficiently. 3️. Enhanced Innovation Diverse teams mean diverse ideas. Aligning cross-functional groups fosters innovation, as team members challenge assumptions, propose fresh solutions, and identify opportunities for improvement. 4️. Accountability and Ownership Collaboration ensures that everyone feels responsible for the process’s success. This shared accountability drives commitment and encourages teams to actively engage in improvements. 5️. Improved Customer Focus When teams work together, they can better map out the customer journey, aligning internal processes with external needs. This ensures a consistent and delightful customer experience. Practical Steps to Align Teams: Communicate Goals Clearly: Ensure all teams understand the overarching business objectives. Leverage BPM Governance: Establish a governance framework to define clear roles and responsibilities during digital transformation. This helps ensure accountability, clarity, and alignment. BPM governance also facilitates the creation and agreement on templates and workflows, enabling smoother execution. Empower with Tools: Equip teams with shared platforms and BPM systems for transparency and collaboration. Encourage Open Dialogue: Create channels where ideas and concerns can flow freely. Celebrate Wins: Recognize team efforts to reinforce the value of collaboration. Collaboration powered by governance ensures a robust foundation for BPM success. 💬 As Roger Tregear puts it: "Effective BPM demands collaboration that spans organizational boundaries and focuses on delivering value." Start by fostering open communication, defining shared goals, and empowering teams with the right tools. BPM success isn’t a solo journey—it’s a team effort! #BPM #TeamCollaboration #ProcessManagement #BusinessAlignment #OperationalExcellence #BPMG

Cross-functional collaboration isn’t just a buzzword at NielsenIQ, it’s a requirement. But simply saying “collaborate more” or “work together” doesn’t make it happen. If everyone’s running in different directions trying to coalesce, you end up with confusion, missed deadlines, and finger-pointing. You need a framework that offers direction and alignment. Two suggestions: 1. Someone needs to own the outcome. Collaboration doesn’t work without clear ownership. It’s not about hierarchy or titles; it’s about clarity. Who’s the end-to-end leader for this initiative? Anyone can own the project. In fact, it’s a great way to empower those who don’t always get to lead initiatives. But however you go about it, someone should be responsible. Without that, priorities get fuzzy, and decisions stall. Whether it’s the most senior person or a new hire getting a shot at leadership, someone has to step up and say, “This is mine to drive.” 2. Set expectations upfront. When you kick off a project, be clear: What’s the objective? What’s needed from each person? And by when? It sounds simple, but it’s amazing how often this step gets skipped. You need a clear process, and defined deadlines, even if they’re not binding. But you can be reasonable about it: “Would it be a problem to get this done by the 29th?” Yes, this all takes effort, and yes, some people might prefer to avoid it. But in a large organization with many moving parts, skipping these steps isn’t faster—it’s messier. Ultimately, fostering collaboration isn’t about encouragement, it’s about building a model that makes it possible. Ownership, clarity, and accountability create the conditions for success. Without them, you’re just hoping things will work out.

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐦 A process without enforcement is just a 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. And without involving stakeholders, it’s already broken. Example: IT and Cybersecurity aren’t failing because they don’t want to collaborate. They fail because the governance framework doesn’t 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞 them to align. IT moves forward without cybersecurity’s approval. Cybersecurity launches projects without IT’s input. Both teams then waste time fixing alignment problems that a strong governance framework should have prevented. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 A governance that makes 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬-𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝. Effective governance creates 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬 where teams 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫'𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠. It establishes shared accountability for business outcomes, not just departmental KPIs. When governance is clear, collaboration becomes automatic.