Breaking Down Silos: Secrets to Collaboration in Higher Ed Teams

If there’s one thing I’ve learned working in higher ed and talking with folks across this space, it’s that higher ed can be incredibly siloed. With lofty organizational goals, limited resources and constantly shifting priorities, it’s challenging for us as leaders to maintain a collaborative environment in large, complex teams.

I work in communications and marketing at Rutgers Business School in New Jersey with a team of 10. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about, researching and working on team collaboration to help advance our goals and create a welcoming environment for team members. 

There are three primary factors that I focus on to help foster collaboration: setting goals, encouraging open communication and leading by example.

1. Setting Goals

Collaboration doesn’t just happen by filling vacancies, by telling people to talk to each other or by sitting in an office. Collaboration needs to be strategic. 

I like to start by defining what we’re trying to achieve. For example, one of our goals this fiscal year is to reflect on and improve our integrated communications and marketing operations as they relate to enrollment marketing. Beyond organizational outcomes like increased leads, applications and enrolled students (measured by raw data), we want greater visibility into what marketing activities are happening across the team and an increased sense of inclusion by individual team members (measured by honest conversations).

Collaboration needs direction, and clear goals and outcomes give the team something tangible to frame a discussion and strategy.

2. Encouraging Open Communication

Encouraging open communication within a team is just as important as setting goals. It helps clarify roles and responsibilities, fosters understanding of individual work preferences, and promotes collaboration through dialogue and compromise.

Clarifying roles and responsibilities

Team members often need more guidance than static job descriptions provide. Effective collaboration requires intentional, ongoing conversations that clearly define how each person contributes to specific projects and initiatives. These discussions ensure everyone understands their role in the larger context.

Understanding work preferences

Every team member has unique preferences for how they communicate and collaborate. Addressing these early—rather than waiting for conflict to reveal them—can prevent misunderstandings. Regular check-ins about communication styles and work habits help maintain a productive, supportive environment.

Promoting dialogue and compromise

A strong team isn’t just about leaders understanding roles—it’s about everyone having the chance to understand their teammates’ responsibilities and collaboration preferences. Differences are inevitable, but by encouraging open dialogue and mutual respect, teams can find a balance that keeps them aligned and moving forward.This proactive approach fosters a cohesive and adaptable team culture.

3. Leading by Example

Even with written goals and proactive communication, collaboration can still fall apart (or fail to get off the ground) without people who will lead by example. As leaders, we must model collaborative behavior and be the change we wish to see. 

For example, one method I use is simply listening to team members through casual conversations or more formal one-on-one discussions to assess what’s working and not working for the individual and the group as a whole. I can then use that information to help remove barriers or facilitate team-wide discussions around specific issues.

Building collaborative systems and workflows can also reinforce collaboration. I led the implementation of a project management and communication platform for our team eight years ago. It helps organize day-to-day tasks and provides simple ways for everyone to loop each other into the work happening across the team.

Recognizing that maintaining collaborative environments is an ongoing learning process, setting goals, encouraging open communication, and leading by example are great places to start.