Collaboration, even simple collaboration, seems to make people feel closer

We have a Aussie Rules Footy tipping competition running for the company. The system is a Domino database that allows our customers to register for the competition (the prize is an iPod) and then tip on a weekly basis. Each week reminder emails are automatically sent out and people need to submit their weekly tips before the cut off date and time. They can then see what everyone else has tiped and where they are on the ladder etc. It is a pretty simple system that was just whacked together but it does a really good job.

It is really pretty cool and we have developed quite a following of customers and friends that tip every week. The competition is hotly contested and monday morning conversations are often about who tiped the best this round. It is pretty exciting. Many emails and messages bounce around with people braging or commenting that they pipped someone on the tipping.

An interesting thing that I have noticed is how the whole process seems to bring us all closer, customers, our staff, and friends. This simple bit of collaboration means that we all have more in common. My sister Georgi lives interstate and while we are still very close we don't get to see each other often enough. We are also pretty slack on the phone calls and even emails updating each other. So this year Georgi joined the tipping competition (she wants the iPod bad.) and while I am sure I will beat her (she is ahead at the moment but it is early season yet) the great thing is that it is encouraging us to chat more. Even just that simple email saying "good tipping" seems to make it feel as though we are closer and that being interstate isn't really an issue. Our Dad has joined the competition as well which is great. (P.S. To Georgi... You still owe me that money for the shoes;)

Extend this simple collaboration to how we work with people and collaborate every day. Products like Sametime and Groove mean that we have an awareness of who is online. We can see where they are (in the office, at home, on the road etc) and we can instantly interact with them. We can connect to people far easier than we ever have before, share resources, work together and generally collaborate. Even though they maybe 1000's of miles away they seem to be closer. I have experienced this feeling with many people around the world now, many of whom I have never actually met face to face. Even though I still consider them good friends. I think that if organisations can take advantage of this capability it can only encourage greater collaboration and teamwork across teams and boundaries. This can only be for the better.