What’s Missing in Our Schools: Shifting from Diversity to Collaboration
Here's something I think we all inherently know but don't want to admit: Our obsession with individual identities will be our downfall.
However, our commitment to valuing one another through collaboration will be our answer.
Collaboration is not just a corporate strategy, it is a human calling.
For an organization or team, the real question is whether these commitments translate into something larger. They do, but only if the organization champions collaboration between individuals. Collaboration is what turns personal identity into shared progress, because what we contribute to an organization is more important to its sustainability than other unique individual factors.
Value comes from the perspectives, insights, and problem-solving approaches individuals bring into the same room. When an organization creates the conditions where those differences interact, challenge each other, and build on each other, the result is greater than any single initiative. It's Collaborative Intelligence.
It is the moment where outcomes are measured not by how diverse the roster looks, but by the quality of the collaborative output. It is where diversity becomes more than represe ntation and starts becoming creation.
Check out my previous newsletter posts on indicators of collaborative intelligence:
I am (and will continue to be) a staunch advocate of neurodiversity. I do so through the lens and aim of collaboration, and the value that neurodiverse individuals bring to the table to create better, more robust, and more holistic solutions to teams and organizations around the world.
When the streams of our differences flow together - toward a mission, a vision, and shared outcomes, they form a greater body of water. That body is collaboration. And collaboration is what sustains life, creativity, and sustainability in a truly great organization.
"And all the streams flow as one river to wash away our brokenness."
The band Delirious? wrote those words three decades ago. They echo here as a reminder that collaboration is not just a corporate strategy, it is a human calling.
Collaborating with my favorite client on her first Rocky Mountain hike
