Stretch collaboration: how to work with people you don’t agree with or like or trust

The article offers an innovative process for collaborating with people you don’t agree with or like or trust .

Based on his experience as a collaboration facilitator in national and regional conflicts and stalemates, the author explains how to achieve success through what he terms “stretch collaboration.”

Stretch collaborations requires participants to take three unconventional approaches.

Unconventional “stretch collaboration” abandons the assumption of control. It gives up unrealistic fantasies of harmony, certainty, and compliance, and instead embraces messy realities of discord, trial and error and co-creation.”

Managers and leaders increasing must collaborate with stakeholders who have opposing interests. This stretch collaboration process offers a way to make progress even in volatile, hostile, high-risk situations.