Power in Collaboration
When we talk about collaboration, we will often have to grapple with concepts of power. Specifically, we feel that an organization or a sponsor needs to be willing to ‘give up some of their power’ or ‘share their power’ in order to collaborate.
Here’s how the thinking goes. Take for example a situation where a government department wants to work collaboratively with its stakeholders to create a policy. The stakeholders don’t have the power to influence the policy unless they are invited to do by the department, so it stands to reason that the department needs to share power with the group. The more influence the collaborative group has in the decision (aka the power to decide), the more the department needs to share. Some even feel the department would be giving up power (to decide on the policy, in this example). After all, if the department isn’t sharing its power, then how do the stakeholders have any sway on the decision?
I think it’s important to talk a bit about power versus authority. As I see it, the power I am speaking of in collaboration refers to the ability to influence the final outcome, the decision, the product. Authority is quite specific and it’s about the legal responsibility to make that decision. In the example, the department has the authority to make the policy, not the stakeholders.
I’ve sat at the table representing an organization that had chosen to collaborate with its stakeholders and, if you believe the sharing power reasoning, had chosen to give power to this group of stakeholders. It sure didn’t feel like I (or my organization) was losing power or even sharing power. It felt exactly the opposite, especially once our group got itself organized. It felt like an expansion of possibility.
In the beginning, I though that it might a kind of boomerang effect. The organizations power was given to the stakeholders and then they were giving it back when it was all done. Seemed like a great concept, the power boomerang. Like some kind of superhero tool. It seemed to explain why my organization hadn’t lost anything through its collaboration.
And then I read a piece on power called Making Change Happen: Power – Concepts for Revisioning Power for Justice, Equality and Peace by Just Associates, and my thinking began to evolve. The article is fundamentally about the role of power in creating movements for social justice and equality. The descriptions of Power Over contrasted with Power With, Power To, and Power Within helped my think about this a little differently. Here’s what I figured out (so far).
Everyone who collaborates is contributing their power. In collaboration, everyone is ‘coming to the table’ with a sphere of influence and unique experience, their own power. Unlike the premise from the example above, where power is provided from one to another, collaboration is a willingness to bring together power from everyone.
Collaboration transforms power. It seems that collaboration is really an opportunity to transform from a mindset of Power Over to Power With/To/Within (the article mentioned above describes these different types of power). Power Over is when power is finite and collaboration means one has to give up their power to the group, while Power With/To/Within is about building strength in the common ground among different interests and recognizing and then acknowledging our potential as individuals. When collaboration succeeds, it is often because our power (as an individual or an organization) has shifted from Over to With/To/Within.
Collaboration expands our power. Recognizing that collaboration is a contribution of power from everyone and a transformation in the power being exercised allows us to collectively expand power with our fellow collaborators (and beyond). The very act of recognizing #1 and #2 builds relationships and builds trust, both of which allow us to carry, to a degree, the power of our fellow collaborators with us in the future.
I have to say my thinking on this topic of power in collaboration is evolving, so I can’t say this is the definitive end word on it. What I do know is that my thinking on the concept of power (the influence on the decision or the end product) isn’t something that is shared or given up like there isn’t enough to go around. Rather, it is something that grows through good collaboration, so there is more at the end than at the beginning.
I would love to hear your thoughts on power and collaboration (or any other collaboration topic). You can connect by emailing scott.millar@collaboration-dynamics.com.
Happy collaborating.
Scott Millar, through Collaboration Dynamics, often works as a "peacemaker" by gathering people with different experiences and values and helping them navigate beyond their differences to tackle complex problems together. As the host of the Cool Collaborations podcast where he explores fun stories and insights of successful collaboration with guests from around the world, and then dives into what made them work. Cool Collaborations is currently available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify.
