Leading Beyond Your Department

What happens when teams work in silos within the organization? How can the organization be successful when departments isolate themselves from one another? While each department has their own responsibilities and goals, it is crucial to remember that they all drive the mission of the organization and are pursuing the same overall objectives. Collaboration and communication across the organization increases the likelihood of everyone’s success. Because of this, the leaders within each department play an important part in bridging the gap between teams.

Part of how silos form in an organization is teams start withholding resources and information from others. They are so heavily focused on their own team’s success that they lose sight of what is best for the organization. This creates a divide, which often requires a leader’s intervention. Another reason teams become siloed is that employees often don’t understand what the other departments do for the organization.

I once worked in a department that I quickly learned the rest of the departments were not particularly fond of. They had a misconception of what our department’s responsibilities were, and many employees thought we contributed less to the organization than any other department. The reality was that we actually had more pressure on us from the higher-ups because of how strongly our department affected the organization’s profitability, we were responsible for many of the same things as other departments in addition to our own unique responsibilities, and we were often judged more harshly than other departments for our customer care.

The reason that so many employees thought our department didn’t produce as much is because none of them truly understood our role within the company. It wasn’t until the leaders of each department started collaborating that other employees recognized what we contributed to the organization. It took multiple leaders working beyond their own departments to eliminate any misconceptions or misunderstandings, resentment, bitterness, etc. between teams. 

There are four main roles of a leader: the connector, the corrector, the visionary, and the transformer. The first of these roles, the connector, means that the leader intentionally builds trust, motivation, and clear communication among team members and beyond. They ensure that employees work well together and understand their responsibilities. They set the tone for the culture of their team and for how collaboration is approached. Often, the leader acts as a messenger and mediator between employees, various departments, and upper management. 

In the words of Henry Ford, “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” If you want your organization to be successful, leaders need to align individual efforts with the company’s goals and objectives. This requires them to lead beyond just their own department and foster relationships across the organization. Empower your organization by equipping leaders with the tools they need to communicate and collaborate with one another effectively.

-Meghan Slaughter