I’m a great collaborator – but you wouldn’t know that from anything I’ve done lately. Working solo in a home office, tucked away in a quaint little New England town, with nary a pharmaceutical company, colleague, or marketing agency for miles, my collaborative efforts for the past few years have been relegated to being a team player with other virtual colleagues. Not much to go on when you’ve been asked to write a blog entry about collaboration.

But that is exactly why I am doing it. When I read Fard’s all-call for writers for his new Path of the Blue Eye project blog, I thought, what a great opportunity to become part of a community where knowledge and ideas are shared.  I’d like to reach beyond what happens in my little office, shake some dust off my brain, and get involved in something that will force me to think a little broader, participate in some lively discussions, form opinions, and look for solutions.

As a reporter, I spend a lot of time each day digesting information — some that I use to do my job better, because it helps me track what is going on in the pharmaceutical industry and gives me the ability to determine what trade readers are most likely to be interested in — but I’d say a lot of it is just information that might be handy for entertainment value at an after conference cocktail party. Much of what I learn is not really actionable, so I think what Fard is trying to do with the Path of the Blue Eye project — to create an environment where information can be turned into knowledge and knowledge can be turned into solutions — is not only forward thinking, but admirable.

A recent assignment had me reading the letters to stakeholders from the heads of pharmaceutical companies in their annual reports, and what struck me was the number of times the word “collaboration” was used. (Last year’s buzzword was “acquisition,” BTW)  Most of the collaboration being cited was between R&D (research and development) and outside groups — contract research companies, universities, public-sector research institutes, and partner companies.

But no one is speaking about what is happening inside drug companies in terms of collaboration. I would think that the current market climate would be forcing collaboration between silos – or at the very least, some bridges.  We know that technology and the advent of enterprise software, as well as increased regulatory pressure, has started to break down some of the walls, but what could it mean to the industry if it started collaborating its marketing efforts between the various departments that also touch the patient — like patient education and persistency campaigns, for example. Does anyone know if this is happening, or does anyone predict that this will happen?

With all the buzz about social media and how pharma should be using it to reach consumers, I wonder if leaders should concentrate on getting a social network for exchanging ideas and information started internally first. Wouldn’t collaboration and better cross-functional communication produce better outcomes for consumer-focused business, marketing or research efforts?

A year ago, Harvard Business School conducted a study on corporate silos, and determined that they are still alive and well.  The report outlined three major boundaries for communication: the strategic business unit, the organizational function, and the geographic office location.

I also read a piece citing an executive from The Table Group consultancy pointing out that the presence of a crisis will break down silos – as everyone’s attention is focused on a  common goal and not on the differences. I would think that today’s climate could be the impetus for some companies to encourage their organizations to become less focused on their parts of the organization and more on the whole.

The managers will know when collaboration is working, the Table Group said, because:

• Good ideas are shared
• Success is celebrated and genuinely recognized across organizations
• People create, innovate, and take responsible risks
• People like and trust each other
• People spend their energy undermining the competition, not each other.

Along those lines, Fard’s goal to build an online home for those interested in serious collaboration and knowledge exchange is not only admirable, but necessary, because the time of crisis is now. Let’s hope those inside the industry open up and follow suit.

Read More from Walking the Path:

1. Digital Technologies, Collaboration, Knowledge Exchange and Health: Why Impact Should Be the Ultimate ROI
2. How Ángel González is Leveraging Community and Collaboration to Push Europe into the Social Age
3. Join Us for a Casual Conversation Webinar on Collaboration