Focus Magazine - Fall 2016 - 17

NEUROSCIENCE Merrill Collier The Science of Collaboration "Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much." -Helen Keller A dvances in technology allow us to access each other at an exponential rate. But, does digital interconnectedness really drive collaboration? Observational science provides us with a diﬀerent raison d'être. Since the early 1800s, Charles Darwin's holistic view of nature stressed cooperation over struggle. Darwin posited that the species that prevailed learned to collaborate most eﬀectively. Social neuroscience asserts that survival instincts motivate us to collaborate. Social psychologist Matthew Lieberman's research demonstrates our brains react to social pleasure and pain much like we react to physical pleasure and pain. While oen on a subconscious level, the brain relates social experiences to survival situations. "Relatedness," according to David Rock, oﬀers a sense of safety with others and drives team behavior, much like in a tribe or community where individuals band together to thrive and seek protection. Neuroscientist John Cacioppo believes the absence of safe social interactions or meeting someone unknown causes our brain to generate a threat response. However, when the brain releases the hormone oxytocin during positive social experiences, far greater collaboration results. Relatedness results in trust, which drives collaboration. NeuroCollaboration ink back on our lives when collaboration catapulted our ability to achieve a new or life goal: * e first day at school, when we had to figure out where classes were and which textbooks to buy and quick conversations with other classmates helped us get there. * Studying with a group for an exam. * e first weeks at a new job, where we were provided an onboarding buddy or just had to network to acclimate. * e first days in a new city, neighborhood, in a marriage, having children, etc. We have all experienced diﬀerent degrees of marked collaboration when we achieved results faster with the help of colleagues, friends, family or community. LTEN provides a model example of eﬀective collaboration, as it is founded upon providing and rewarding relatedness by leveraging a collaborative network to achieve greater clarity, sharpen our skills and expand career opportunities. NeuroTransformation Collaborative or social technologies are increasingly more prevalent in the workplace. Indeed, the technological promise to "harness the wisdom of the crowds" is compelling. e reality is, collaboration can metamorphose the group's ability to achieve results. But, before collaboration can integrate people, processes and technology to improve human productive capacity, leadership needs to communicate a clear vision that is aligned with business objectives. Secondly, everyone needs to clearly understand the business enablement drivers. What do we need, to accomplish our goals? Are we driving employee engagement, knowledge sharing, feedback loops, skills development? ese steps should enhance the sense of "relatedness" designed to minimize any halo of siloed eﬀorts, and maximize the reward of improved productivity and results. Collaboration shouldn't happen by accident. ■ Merrill Collier is a senior director of life sciences and health care at Bluewater. This article expresses the personal perspectives of the author. Merrill Collier can be reached at merrillcollier@bluewaterlearning.com FOCUS | FALL 2016 | www.L-TEN.org 17 http://www.L-TEN.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Focus Magazine - Fall 2016