Harvest Group

Fundamental 5 of 10

by Bill Arman On

CollaborationTo date, we have reviewed three fundamentals:
1 – Work Hard (and Smart) and Perform
2 – Radiate Confidence and Optimism
3 – Enlist and Enroll vs. Command and Control
4 – Drive Change and Innovation

In this e-newsletter, the Harvesters present the 5th fundamental behavior that “Growing Forward Leaders” must model for their team during challenging times. It’s also a behavior that will help when things may not always be going the right way or perhaps as well as planned.

Growing Forward Leaders need to: Foster Cooperation and Collaboration

Growing Forward leaders recognize that they are better together than they are by themselves. They know that shared knowledge and experiences bring about great ideas and solutions. Challenging times are the best time to call upon your team to cooperate and collaborate.

Big problems require company wide solutions. Leaders need to tear down the walls and silos and start working across boundaries like: sales vs. operation, construction vs. maintenance, support/administration vs. operations.

Does this sound familiar within your organization? Do you often wonder why some companies call these divisions? In most cases they really are divided. Rather than being focused on the overall betterment of the company they are focused strictly on their “division.”

Now is the time for the business leader to get these teams working together.

Here’s How:

  • Try assembling task forces with a blend of people from different departments
  • Form some committees to bring about change or improvement i.e.,  Safety, Sales, Client Relations etc.
  • Give some great assignments with measurable goals

Now Ask Yourself:

  • How well do your people cooperate with each other especially from different “divisions”?
  • What needs to be done to foster better collaboration?
  • What key areas can be improved by tapping into the collective talent of your organization? How would you measure the improvements?
  • Always remember that you and your organization have one heck of a lot of potential, especially if you the Growing Forward Leader can foster cooperation and collaboration.

Contact us at if you would like to learn more about becoming a Growing Forward Leader.

Suggested Reading:
“How To Be A Fierce Competitor” What Winning Companies and Great Managers Do in Tough Times by Jeffrey J. Fox

– Harvester Bill

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Bill Arman

worked for and helped grow one of the biggest landscape outfits in the country. He’s seen how the big boys do it, how their systems and structures work. So his know-how is rooted in recruiting, hiring, training and growing great people—that along with quality assurance. Bill, alone, has gone on 15,000 quality site visits in his career. Nobody else has that, not that we know of anyway. He received Lawn and Landscape/ Bayer Environmental Science's 2006 Leadership Award. Read Bill's full bio.

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