I’ve been thinking…
Collaborate: working together across teams.
Cooperate: working together toward a common goal.
Coordinate: working together in an organized way.
Put differently…
Collaborate: we’re working together.
Cooperate: we’re working together and agree on the intended outcome.
Coordinate: we’re working together and agree on the intended outcome, operating within a defined structure.
Put differently again…
Collaborating is key.
Cooperating is vital.
Coordinating is critical.
Put differently in conclusion…
Collaborating is step one. (Good)
Cooperating is step two. (Great)
Coordinating is step three. (Awesome)
Postscript…
A thriving corporate culture is often defined by how well we simultaneously collaborate, cooperate and coordinate. All three steps are necessary. Failure in any step is a failure to put your organization’s priorities first.
