Sharing insights through collaboration By FirstWatch September 8, 2021 “Alone we can do so little… together we can do so much.”Helen Keller Ronald Reagan once described information as “the oxygen of the modern age”. Information is invaluable – but only if we have an adequate ‘oxygen’ supply. Organizational teams need to be empowered to share information – their oxygen – in order for the organization as a whole to breathe. Over the past year and a half, the way that we operate collaboratively has been challenged as our physical work locations have shifted. According to the Economist, the percentage of time Americans spent working from home increased from 5% pre-pandemic to 60% by the spring of 2020. This trend is only set to continue, with a recent ONS survey reporting that 85% of those currently working from home wish to maintain a hybrid of home and office working as we start to move into a post-pandemic world. However, the same survey found that collaborative challenges were the greatest obstacle faced by remote workers. Collaborative challenges can include everything from ensuring transparency, to maintaining a clear vision, to our ability to share critical insights to other team members efficiently and effectively. Insights which will not only ensure our organization can breathe, but ultimately thrive. Luckily, technology holds the key; not only empowering your organization to surface these insights, but ensuring that the process of sharing and collaborating on these insights is seamless. Don’t let physical disconnection breed organizational disconnection. Find a technology solution built to drive collaboration, and just… breathe. Collaborate using FirstWatch So, collaboration is key – but how can we help you achieve this? The perfect collaborative environment may differ slightly depending on both organization and individual employee preferences, but will often encompass the following… Your team communicates seamlessly with both each other and the other teams in the organization. Everyone is working towards a common vision, with high engagement and productivity. This clear focus prevents an overload of ideas or information. Teams are both internally and externally transparent, promoting a willingness to share information that diminishes organizational silos. Meanwhile, the use of unified programs and servers prevent technological silos, so no critical insights are missed. Pre-pandemic, a physically proximate workplace might have seemed most conducive to this. But it’s 2021, and with remote working on the rise, this is no longer our reality. Think… less workplace, more workspace. Specifically, a single platform that empowers employees to share insights effortlessly with their colleagues – whether they’re in or out of the office. FirstWatch is that platform (some things aren’t too good to be true). A centralized and collaborative information management solution, empowering teams with the insights they need, their way. Alongside their personal workspaces, individuals can create multiple shared workspaces with different groups of users to support their various collaborative needs. Share insights for your team to read on the train home; email your colleague an article to discuss later; collaborate to edit and add relevant articles to be published in a company-wide newsletter. To be specific, here’s a list of FirstWatch’s collaborative features… ✅ Comment on and edit articles in shared workspaces ✅ Share articles with other users via user groups or email ✅ Publish your own articles and newsletters to share with colleagues ✅ Add relevant topics to Company Topics for your colleagues to see Impressed? Well… FirstWatch might be built for collaboration, but its capabilities don’t stop there. Before you even get started, our experienced editorial team will pre-pack your FirstWatch platform with expert topics, tailored to you, so you can browse as you please. FirstWatch also lets you shape your experience to align with your own interests and needs… Because while collaboration is key, we all value our personal space. Subscribe to alerts on topics you want, at a frequency that suits you, and personalize your FirstWatch homepage to present up-to-date insights on your chosen topics. Find out more about how FirstWatch can help you organize your workflow here. We discussed what the ideal scenario for insights collaboration might look like. Make it your reality, today – with FirstWatch. All this, on a single platform… Why wait? Expecting the workplace to empower the effortless sharing of insights is so 2019. Let’s move with the times, and create the workspace of the future. To find out more about how to drive insights collaboration using the power of FirstWatch, click here to request a demo with the FirstWatch team.