Smarter Collaboration - by Heidi K Gardner & Ivan A Matviak (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Market volatility. Sustainability demands. Opportunities and hazards of fast-changing technology and regulations. The challenges for companies in a VUCA world are more daunting than ever. How can we collaborate in our organizations-and with outside partners-to solve problems, innovate, and succeed? In her bestselling first book, Smart Collaboration, Heidi K. Gardner brought her years of research and experience at Harvard Business School, Harvard Law School, and McKinsey to the thorny problem of how to collaborate in professional service firms. Her key insight: firms that collaborate across silos generate higher revenues and profits, innovate faster, build stronger client relationships, and attract and retain better talent. The book quickly became the go-to resource on collaboration for PSFs. Since then, Gardner has engaged with tens of thousands of senior business leaders from around the world. Turns out that the challenge of smart collaboration exists far more broadly, in organizations in such diverse industries as financial services, healthcare, biotech/pharma, consumer products, automotive, technology, and more. Now, in Smarter Collaboration, Gardner teams up with senior executive Ivan Matviak to help any organization implement the principles of smart collaboration. As with all fast-growing business trends, the key question quickly becomes how to execute on the ideas and avoid the potential pitfalls. Gardner and Matviak combine their wisdom to advance the state of the art of smart collaboration. Filled with rich stories and cases, new empirical research, and loads of practical tips and advice, Smarter Collaboration is essential reading for leaders and managers in today's complex, data-rich, war-for-talent environment"--

Book Synopsis

We need a new approach for solving tough problems in a complex world--we need to collaborate smarter.

Market volatility. Sustainability demands. Hybrid working. Opportunities and hazards of fast-changing technology and regulations. Companies and nonprofits face more daunting challenges than ever. How can we collaborate in our organizations--and with outside partners--to solve problems, innovate, and succeed?

Smarter Collaboration offers groundbreaking solutions. This indispensable new book lays out a pragmatic action plan blending rich stories, new empirical research, and loads of practical advice to help companies thrive by collaborating more effectively. As Harvard professor Heidi K. Gardner and senior executive Ivan A. Matviak show, firms that collaborate smarter consistently generate higher revenues and profits, boost innovation, strengthen client relationships, and attract and retain better talent. In this successor to Gardner's bestselling first book, Smart Collaboration, the authors expand their mandate, illustrating the fundamental dynamics of collaborating well across industries like financial services, health care, biotech/pharma, consumer products, automotive, and technology.

Based on their research with thousands of executives from around the world, they share deep insights on how to implement smarter collaboration and avoid the potential pitfalls. They also help leaders troubleshoot thorny challenges like misaligned incentives, collaboration overload, and unintended consequences on diversity and inclusion. Complete with how-tos and cases, the book concludes with inspiring examples of groups harnessing smarter collaboration to tackle society's biggest challenges such as saving the oceans, eradicating diseases, and tackling global warming.

Smarter Collaboration is the essential guide for forward-thinking leaders to transform their organizations, reshape the way they work, and increase impact and success.

Review Quotes

"This is an essential guide for forward-thinking leaders who want to transform their organizations, reshape the way they work, and increase impact and success." -- SHRM (Society of Human Resource Management)

Advance Praise for Smarter Collaboration:

"In the coming years, one of the most significant private-sector divides will be between companies that embrace collaboration, bridge-building, and collective action to help them thrive and those that remain limited by siloed thinking and poor partnership skills. Gardner and Matviak will help your business ensure it is on the right side of that line." -- Paul Polman, former CEO, Unilever; business leader; campaigner; coauthor, Net Positive

"The authors' deep grasp of the business world combines with expertise in the psychology underpinning our human foibles. The result is actionable advice for implementing smarter collaboration to capture its financial and human benefits." -- Amy C. Edmondson, professor, Harvard Business School; author, The Fearless Organization

"Gardner and Matviak provide leaders with a clear guide to making smarter collaboration happen. It's full of tips on today's most pressing topics, including hybrid working, inclusion, diversity and equity, and the role of technology and analytics. This is a must-read for any business leader." -- Nhlamu Dlomu, Global Head of People, KPMG International

"An organization's culture determines its destiny. Smarter Collaboration does an excellent job of showing you how to get a great one." -- Ray Dalio, Founder, Bridgewater Associates; author, Principles

"Everyone talks about collaboration, but relatively few people actually know how to do it effectively. Gardner and Matviak have written the go-to guide for doing collaboration right. Their use cases for smarter collaboration will resonate deeply with any business leader who's seeking to rev up innovation, profitability, and employee engagement." -- Gunjan Kedia, Vice Chairman, U.S. Bank

"With the scale and complexity of challenges facing business and society today, knowing how to collaborate--how to really collaborate--is one of the most important skills of our time. Through pragmatic insight and engaging examples, Gardner and Matviak illuminate a path for leaders that begins with truly valuing the wisdom people bring, and results in innovations beyond what any one group could create alone." -- Sandy Speicher, former CEO, IDEO

About the Author

Heidi K. Gardner is a Distinguished Fellow at Harvard Law School and a former professor at Harvard Business School. Previously a McKinsey consultant and Fulbright Fellow, she is the author of Smart Collaboration: How Professionals and Their Firms Succeed by Breaking Down Silos, a Washington Post bestseller. She was named by Thinkers50 as a Next Generation Business Guru and is cofounder of both the research and advisory firm Gardner & Co and Smart Collaboration International.

Ivan A. Matviak is a senior executive in the global financial services and fintech sectors. Formerly chair of multiple software companies, adviser to private equity firms, and Bain consultant, Matviak is a cofounder of Smart Collaboration International.

Connect with the Heidi K. Gardner and Ivan A. Matviak at gardnerandco.co