Communication and Collaboration

When it comes to international collaborations, the interpersonal dimension has an important, if not decisive, influence on the success of a project. Nevertheless, this is an aspect that is unfortunately often neglected among the plethora of technical and organizational implementation issues. Bearing in mind that personal relationships are one of the central pillars of cooperation, it is crucial to take an appropriate amount of time to consider how you would like to work together.

Here are a few suggestions as to how to go about this:

• Once thing that you must be aware of is that communication with your partners throughout the project will take time and energy. Ultimately, however, it is vital to build the necessary trust and a sense of commitment. See the time with your partners as a valuable opportunity to make the project successful and to have fun developing something new together.
• Establish contact early: Ideally, you should set aside some the time at the beginning of your collaboration to meet up in person, preferably in a 1–2 day meeting. Incorporating some kind of social event into this is another good option to help you get to know each other better. If possible, try and work out all the key points of your cooperation together: do not try to “sell” an already finished idea to your partners.
• The “how” of cooperation: Working together, develop a structure defining the responsibilities as well as a coordinator role. There should be consensus about the distribution of tasks and responsibilities and there should be clear communication between the partners to ensure everyone knows what they have to do and when. It is also worth defining one or more preferred communication channels through which documents can be shared. The FernUni ToolGuide for teachers provides an overview of possible tools that can be used in an international context.
• Academic hierarchies: Different hierarchical levels can be involved in a cooperation. These may not always be openly communicated and made clear. Be diplomatic, but also openly discuss issues of responsibilities, workload, and decision-making.
• Diverse labor practices: Communicate up front about how you plan to handle deadlines and content submissions. Keep in mind that different local or cultural customs may result in different expectations.
• Support any new or younger colleagues: If new, less experienced colleagues are involved, make sure they are introduced to the consortium. Do not bring new employees into an ongoing collaboration without making them known to your partners.