Departments within a company are necessary for an efficient operation. Essential functions of an organization become compartmentalized so that they can specialize in a particular role, and perform it well. Companies are split into separate divisions for sales, support, finance, research and development, and so on, and these divisions help the company run smoothly. But, there is a downside to this separation; often times these divisions become too self-contained, less effective at collaboration and eventually, farther removed from customer needs or its fulfilment. Consequently, the company starts to lose its competitiveness.

Organizations Strive To Avoid Silos Internally, But Can Themselves Be One

Although organizations strive to avoid the problems associated with silos internally, they may fall into the same trap within the larger business ecosystem. In the modern business world, many companies become too reliant on their employees for innovation and execution. Leaders, of organizations big and small, acknowledge that they are perpetually short on internal talent. Yet,  they forget to collaborate with stakeholders in their supply chain and other potential partners in order to stay competitive, keep in touch with their market’s changing needs, and scope out new areas of growth. If a company becomes too self-reliant, it essentially shuts itself off from the larger business ecosystem and ends up losing out on a lot of opportunities..

Organizations That Collaborate Outperform “Self-Reliant Organizations”

In most industries, companies that engage with their customers, vendors and other strategic partners for collaboration and guidance often outperform companies that solely rely on their own internal capabilities. Traditionally, executives are trained to be influential in the larger ecosystem and to avoid being influenced by other players in order to keep their purpose and goals focused. The force of rapid innovation, disruptive innovation in particular, has caught many of them by surprise. The thinking is quickly shifting in favor of collaboration as a win-win situation for all the parties involved rather than something to be concerned about, especially because different organizations can collaborate to achieve shared goals while completely retaining their unique identity and focus.

Siloed Organizations Are Unsustainable

When companies collaborate with strategic partners, they can achieve their shared missions more quickly. Company leaders must be more willing to learn from others and recognize that there is tremendous value in learning from others’ unique experiences. The future points towards selective collaboration at every level in the business world. In today’s day and age, there is simply no way for one company to be totally self-reliant to achieve every goal that its executives set their sights to. Finding other stakeholders with similar goals but different resources, and working with them, is a wise and effective way to stay relevant in a dynamic marketplace.