Defining collaboration and cooperation

Luis Suarez and Harold Jarche have been covering network theory, knowledge management, and better organisational dynamics for ages. Check out these two good articles on cooperation and collaboration in our networked age.

“It’s all about building the commitment, the intent, the context, and the ability to transform our daily work routines into the networked economy, because, for as long as social networks, communities and teams exist out there, we are no longer talking about the future of work, but the present of work. The continuous today. The one we can all collectively influence each and every time, because, after all, it still is our choice.”

Collaborators, co-operators and people I learn from | Elsua | Luis Suarez, Sept. 2015

”collaboration happens around some kind of plan or structure, while cooperation presumes the freedom of individuals to join and participate. He also says that cooperation, not collaboration, is a driver of creativity. It is difficult to be creative while collaborating, because the objective has already been established.”

” Work in networks requires different skills than in directed hierarchies. Cooperation is a foundational behaviour for effectively working in networks, and it’s in networks where most of us, and our children, will be working.”

Cooperation for the network era | Harold Jarche, August 2015