# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
SINGAPORE - The different ways Singaporeans have given back to society during the pandemic was the topic at a panel discussion at the Temasek Trust Conversation on Tuesday (Nov 3).

These include distributing thousands of care packs and the setting up of a new radio station tailored to the needs of senior citizens - keeping them engaged and entertained, and helping them to bridge the digital divide.

The discussion was hosted by philanthropic group The Majurity Trust executive director Martin Tan.

The panellists were Asia-Pacific lead of the Internet giant Google's charitable arm Marija Ralic, Mediacorp chief executive officer Tham Loke Kheng, Ninja Van Singapore co-founder and chief executive officer Lai Chang Wen and Vintage Radio SG co-founder and Radioactive managing director and co-founder Aloysius Tan.

Temasek Trust is the philanthropic arm of Singapore investment firm Temasek.

Mr Martin Tan noted that one of the trends in philanthropy is the idea of the power of the collective - collaborative philanthropy where different partners come together.

Doing so will not just help to reallocate resources more efficiently, but also help to enlarge the pie for beneficiaries.

The various speakers shared about the ways their organisations have played to their strengths in helping the vulnerable and those in need amid the Covid-19 pandemic here.

For example, Mediacorp as a national media platform was able to put out public education in the various languages, as well as helped to raise funds for those with disabilities through the Mediacorp Enable Fund administered by SG Enable, said Ms Tham.

Ninja Van as a logistics company tapped its nationwide network of doorstep delivery fleets to physically take care packs to those in need.

It also collaborated with other partners who were more well-placed to raise awareness of the initiative, such as creating social media campaigns - demonstrating the spirit of collaborative philanthropy, said Mr Lai.

The topic of collaborative philanthropy was also discussed in a conversation with Temasek International executive director and chief executive officer Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara, hosted by The Straits Times editor and editor-in-chief of the English/Malay/Tamil Media Group at Singapore Press Holdings Warren Fernandez.

Mr Fernandez said that it is through bringing partners together to tackle a complex issue and devise solutions that these solutions can be implemented on a larger scale and at a quicker speed.

Mr Pillay said one issue during this Covid-19 pandemic that Temasek tackled was the issue of transporting Covid-19 patients.

The team at Temasek, with partners such as SMRT, SBS Transit and other transportation companies and engineering company Hope Technik, managed to retrofit more than 50 vehicles that could safely transport the patients.

Mr Fernandez said that in partnerships, trust and empathy is important, to have a shared sense of purpose.

Mr Pillay added that relationships are a multi-year investment, and that as an individual organisation, "we don't have all the skills and capabilities required".

"We have to augment what we have with others. But what gets us together has to be reliability and trust," he said. A common sense of purpose is also important, he added.

Mr Pillay also elaborated on Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration Desmond Lee's call for a culture of regular giving to be cultivated, which would be a way of ensuring adequate funding for programmes at social service agencies.

"Generous giving is not about the amount but what you can afford to give... I think for us in Singapore, many of us have been a beneficiary of the system we've had in place, this is a good time for us to give back," he said.

Technology is also an enabler for regular giving, making it easier to do so, he added.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Collaborating with others to do good enables partners to reach out to more, says panel

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
SINGAPORE - The different ways Singaporeans have given back to society during the pandemic was the topic at a panel discussion at the Temasek Trust Conversation on Tuesday (Nov 3). These include distributing thousands of care packs and the setting up of a new radio station tailored to the needs of senior citizens - keeping them engaged and entertained, and helping them to bridge the digital divide.

# data[].attributes.headline
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.subject
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.body
Is to work as a team.
To improve the productivity, task focused and completed the objective smoothly.

# data[].attributes.headline
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.subject
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.body
Collaboration is important because Singapore's resources are limited. By working together with like-minded people, Singaporeans can contribute their thoughts and ideas to better develop solutions to solve problems.

# data[].attributes.headline
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.subject
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.body
To effectively use existing technology and tools to share ideas, and produce better technologies

-Aiman

# data[].attributes.headline
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.subject
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.body
It is important because without effective collaboration, it will be very difficult to achieve objectives efficiently.

- Chay Pioh (Kenny)

# data[].attributes.headline
Company of Good SG - Collaboration Opportunities

# data[].attributes.subject
Company of Good SG - Collaboration Opportunities

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Are you a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) or Non-SME? * SME is defined as an enterprise with an annual sales turnover of not more than S$100 million, or employs not more than 200 workers.

Select any value.

Are you responsible for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)? *

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
COMPANY OF GOOD : Towards A City of Good

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Are you a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) or Non-SME? * SME is defined as an enterprise with an annual sales turnover of not more than S$100 million, or employs not more than 200 workers. Select any value. Are you responsible for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)? *

# data[].attributes.headline
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.subject
Why is it important for Singaporeans to learn how to collaborate well?

# data[].attributes.body
- Singapore is a small country. So, it' unavoidable we need to work with people from different countries. Collaborate well, especially in this WFH trend, becomes more critical.

New form of gaming: while playing Rodblox game, players collaborate with players from global via discord and whatsapp call

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As people's skill sets get increasingly specialized, collaboration as a practice becomes more important than ever. But what does that mean exactly? What is collaboration?

Although "collaboration" has become a bit of a corporate buzzword, that doesn't mean that it's an empty cliche. On the contrary, collaboration in the workplace is what makes teamwork successful. It's really that simple.

However your organization collaborates, it does so all the time, constantly (even now). In fact, collaboration is so ingrained in the way people work nowadays that we rarely even notice when we're doing it.

That said, it's worth taking a step back to evaluate how you and your people collaborate. Why? Because organizations that collaborate well are likely to be more financially successful, more culturally aligned, and have higher engagement rates.

What is collaboration?

Collaboration is when a group of people come together and contribute their expertise for the benefit of a shared objective, project, or mission. It's a photographer working with a designer to create a cover image, or a technology department regularly convening with the marketing team to plug away at quarterly goals. In other words, collaboration is the process of group work.

But collaboration isn't just a means to work together towards a common goal. It's also an excellent way to encourage innovation and creativity. When individuals with a diverse range of skills and backgrounds come together, it leads to the exchange of unique perspectives and ideas. This can result in more innovative solutions and creative problem-solving that may not have been possible with just one person working on the task.

By leveraging the collective knowledge, experience, and expertise of team members, new and exciting ideas can be generated that an individual could not have thought of alone. Emphasizing collaboration can lead to a culture of innovation where everyone is encouraged to think outside the box and share their ideas and perspectives.

Innovation and creativity are crucial for organizations that want to remain competitive and stay ahead of the curve. By prioritizing collaboration, companies can foster an environment that encourages innovation and creativity, which can ultimately lead to greater success in the long run.

Why collaboration is important

1. It helps us problem-solve

What do you do when you're stumped? Say you've made a lot of progress on your project, but you've encountered a roadblock which seems to withstand everything you throw at it. You're out of ideas, progress has screeched to a grinding halt, and your deadline is rapidly approaching. Do you give up?

No, of course not; you ask for help or find another perspective. You might schedule a brain-storm/whiteboarding session with your team or ask a colleague for their take. In short, you collaborate with your team to solve the problem at hand. When a group of people pool their knowledge, skills, and expertise, then talk problems out and debate potential solutions, projects that were stalled will begin to move forward once again.

But collaboration doesn't have to be a last resort. Collaboration ought to inform the way your team works-it should be baked in. The more eyes on a given project from the get-go, the easier it becomes to spot problems (and solve them).

2. Collaboration brings people (and organizations) closer together

If you're finding that certain teams in your organization rarely interact with each other, that teams and departments are operating in isolated silos, you might want to try putting together a mixed-skills team. These are generally ad hoc teams that tackle projects which require people with diverse skill sets and areas of expertise.

For instance, a mixed-skills team might include a product designer, a user experience designer, a developer, and a content writer. It's essentially a new team set up to collaborate for a period on a shared project. In doing so, you've brought together members from three (or four) different teams, created a common purpose between them, and set up connections which will serve all of you in the future.

In short, you've used collaboration to break down some walls in your organization, and tighten up connections between departments.

3. Collaboration helps people learn from each other

One of the best things about working collaboratively with people who bring different skill sets and backgrounds to the table is learning from their experience. Collaborating with team members or even different teams should be thought of as a learning experience, and you should try to make the most of it.

This means asking for feedback and opinions, sharing knowledge, finding out how your collaborators approach their side of the project, and gaining a better sense of how they work. Learning from colleagues is not just a benefit of collaboration, it's the first step towards building a workplace culture centered around learning and development.

Teams that collaborate not only have an opportunity to learn from each other-their mistakes, successes, failures, workflow, etc.-they'll also gain an understanding of the other team's perspective. You get a chance to hear their side of things: their pain points, priorities, even the way they think. Which can be extremely valuable as you work together going forward.

4. It opens up new channels for communication

Working with new people from different areas of your business also opens up channels that would otherwise remain closed. Finding new ways to communicate and share information is hugely important to the success of any business, which is why collaboration should be utilized whenever possible to form bonds between departments.

Creating a more cohesive, open workplace benefits everyone because, according to David Hassel, "maintaining regular, direct communication with team members, helps you gain valuable insights into the operations of each department and be able to resolve issues quickly." On top of that, it brings everyone a little closer to each other and hones the overall mission of your organization.

A lot of collaboration tools, like an intranet for example, do just that. They're designed to essentially open up your business so that all areas of the organization can communicate with each other and keep tabs on what other teams are working on through news updates, announcements, events, discussions channels, you name it.

5. Collaboration boosts morale across your organization

As connections are made between teams and departments, people will naturally trust each other more, which can gradually boost the morale of your entire organization. After all, organizations aren't going to be successful if there's a lack of trust and low morale. Regularly working together with people outside of your own team or department is one of the most effective ways to build trust.

This also works in reverse: the higher your company's morale, the higher the likelihood that your people will feel comfortable working alongside team members from other departments. This is also attractive to top performing candidates who are increasingly looking for more open, engaged workplaces.

6. It leads to higher retention rates

Because collaboration lays the foundation for a more open, connected, and engaged workplace, it's appealing to future and current employees-perhaps more-so than organizations that're siloed and disconnected. An atmosphere where collaboration is front and center is important to your people, and it'll go a long way toward preventing them from looking for work elsewhere.

Connection matters to people, especially in the workplace. We want to work with people we trust, who understand and respect our points of view, and who work well with others, especially those who come from different backgrounds and areas of expertise. Simply put, working collaboratively makes this possible.

7. Collaboration makes us more efficient workers

Working independently has its advantages. We can focus entirely on one project without having to factor in how much time we'll lose if we get distracted, or how to wrangle a team together in time to meet a short deadline. If the task at hand requires independence, then by all means, go for it.

But for many types of projects, collaboration is just more efficient. When the project is complex and demanding, we have to be able to admit to ourselves that we'll need help. It'll have to be a group effort. And that's where collaboration comes in. It helps us divide up a heavy workload, find creative solutions to tough problems, and wrap our heads around the big picture.

An organization that makes collaboration a big part of its culture is bound to normalize this style of working, thereby creating a more efficient (and more appealing) workplace.

How to promote collaboration at work

Here are some ways to promote collaboration at work:

Use collaboration tools and software, such as instant messaging, video conferencing, and cloud-based document sharing systems. These can help to facilitate communication and information sharing between team members, regardless of their location or time zone.

Create cross-functional teams by bringing together employees from different departments or areas of expertise to work on a common project or goal. This can encourage knowledge sharing, creative problem-solving, and a more holistic approach to decision-making.

Set clear goals and expectations for collaboration by defining the scope of the project, the roles and responsibilities of each team member, and the timeline for completion. This can help to ensure that everyone is working towards the same end goal, and prevent misunderstandings or conflicts from arising.

Celebrate and recognize collaboration efforts and successes by acknowledging the contributions of individual team members, highlighting the impact of their work on the organization, and providing opportunities for team members to share their experiences and insights with others.

By promoting collaboration at work, you can create a more connected, engaged, and efficient workplace, where employees feel valued and supported. It can lead to better problem-solving, increased innovation, and higher morale and retention rates, contributing to the overall success of your organization. So don't hesitate to prioritize collaboration in your organization, and reap the benefits of a more collaborative and productive workplace!

Conclusion

If this doesn't describe your organization, don't fret! Creating a collaborative workplace takes time and effort, but the payoff is well worth it. To kick-off the process at your workplace, start with new hires. Find ways to get them out of their team, their comfort zone, and give them a chance to connect with others. Give them projects that demand collaborative solutions. Gradually, your organization will begin to see firsthand why collaboration is important.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why the best companies have mastered collaboration

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ever wonder why collaboration is important? This article looks at 7 reasons why collaboration is the key to creating an extraordinary workplace.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
When COVID-19 struck, molecular virologist Associate Professor Tan Yee Joo reached out to project collaborators across departments and the world to fight the virus.

Amid the unprecedented events of 2020, many Singaporeans have risen to the challenge, displaying resilience, optimism and grit in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the run up to the new year, we profile 21 individuals who share more about their respective journeys, as well as their hopes and aspirations for 2021.

Share this content

Having been a virologist since 1997, Associate Professor Tan Yee Joo was part of research efforts during the SARS epidemic in 2003. As such, the 49-year-old was confident about Singapore's ability to mount an effective response when COVID-19 reached our shores.
What was the first step you took when news of COVID-19 broke?
"Years of research work in different institutions in Singapore have yielded numerous new tools that could be quickly employed to study COVID-19. These laid the groundwork for the rapid development of vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics against COVID-19," she said.

Assoc Prof Tan is part of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the National University of Singapore's Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and is the joint senior principal investigator at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research's Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology. She also sits on the National Centre for Infectious Diseases' COVID-19 Research Workgroup.
What was it like working at the height of the pandemic? What kept you going?
Assoc Prof Tan shares more about her research in virus-human cell interactions and how this has aided Singapore's fight against COVID-19.

My team and I looked through the tools and techniques in our laboratory to identify those that are useful in studying COVID-19. We then engaged collaborators whom we could share ideas and start projects with.

Some of our projects were aimed at understanding the immune responses that help patients recover from COVID-19 while other initiatives focused on testing new methods to diagnose COVID-19.

I worked about 12 hours a day during that period. I was driven by the desire to understand the new virus and use that knowledge to contribute to ongoing projects.

It helped that many of my fellow researchers, both in Singapore and abroad, were working on COVID-19. This gave me the opportunity to share ideas with them.
Can you share some of the results of your research on COVID-19?
I found it very exciting to explore new ideas and to work with different groups of people from various disciplines. I even managed to have discussions with some colleagues in the engineering field on how their technologies could be adapted for developing diagnostic procedures for COVID-19 as well as other infectious diseases.

It was also very motivating to see colleagues from fields such as pathology, cancer and immunology use their expertise to study COVID-19 in different ways. Combining their knowledge with innovative technologies helped us gain new knowledge of the virus quickly.

By learning as much as we can about COVID-19, we will be even better prepared to fight the next pandemic.

In order to find tools to study COVID-19, we quickly checked some of our monoclonal antibodies generated against SARS-CoV (SARS) in 2004 and found that they can also bind to SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). We shared the results with the scientific community by putting a manuscript online on March 7. This information was used by several international research groups in their studies of biopsy samples from COVID-19 patients, helping us understand how the virus spreads to different organs and causes complications in some patients.
How did your family react to the long hours you worked? Were they worried about your being on the frontline of the COVID-19 effort?
In another collaboration, we detected strong virus-specific T cell immunity in people who have recovered from COVID-19 and SARS. Interestingly, those who had SARS 17 years ago still harboured T cells from their earlier infection, and those same T cells could also recognise COVID-19. This finding may be useful for the design and testing of COVID-19 vaccines.
What do you hope to achieve in 2021?
With our collaborators in Europe, we performed research on a drug called baricitinib, which is normally used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. The drug is now undergoing clinical trials and if successful, can give us more options for treating COVID-19.
What are your hopes for Singapore in 2021?
We also assisted some local companies in developing diagnostic kits that can be used at point-of-care settings, and more importantly, help to identify asymptomatic COVID-19 carriers.
What message would you like to share with your fellow Singaporeans as we enter the new year?
My family members are used to it; they know we observe safety rules while working, so they were not worried about me contracting the virus. I think it is safe to say that they feel a sense of pride in my involvement in the fight against COVID-19.

I hope to find new ways to better understand different viruses. I would also like to work with other scientists to develop new technologies to control virus infections and other diseases.

Singapore and Singaporeans are able to quickly adapt to changing situations, and often find innovative ways to achieve our goals and help one another. I hope everyone in Singapore will continue to maintain a good standard of living and have opportunities to strive towards their goals.

Let's overcome COVID-19 together and make Singapore stronger.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The spirit of collaboration is key in fighting a pandemic

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
When COVID-19 struck, molecular virologist Associate Professor Tan Yee Joo reached out to project collaborators across departments and the world to fight the virus. Amid the unprecedented events of 2020, many Singaporeans have risen to the challenge, displaying resilience, optimism and grit in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

# data[].attributes.headline
Four Components Of Effective Collaboration

# data[].attributes.subject
Four Components Of Effective Collaboration

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Reflecting on the days when I was performing as an improvisational actor and leading a ragtag troupe in San Diego, I was reminded of the similarities between improv and effective business collaboration. Although it seems that there has been much debate about the merits of collaboration and how to best foster it within a business setting, inviting input from others and cooperating toward a common goal is precisely what our improv group endeavored to achieve during each skit.

Countless articles and studies have been published that endorse the concept of collaboration-friendly environments to move business goals forward. But it seems that a gap remains in effective execution. According to research shared by Queens University of Charlotte, "39% of surveyed employees worldwide say people in their organization don't collaborate enough."

Within our own organization, we've worked to promote collaboration and communication. Recognizing that we employ a cross section of people of different generations and experience levels, we encourage multiple points of view to be expressed without judgment and stress the importance of teamwork - both of which we feel are essential to effectively cultivating a collaborative environment. Our mission statement is inclusive as well: "To serve as a trusted resource partner to our customers, our community and our coworkers." For us, it's all about 24/7 collaboration.

The following are four key components of purpose-driven collaboration.
1. Diversity
In my experience, filling a room with like-minded individuals seldom inspires new thinking. High-impact outcomes are more often the result of a variety of viewpoints, experiences, professional roles and personal interests.

Think about a situation when you were engaging in a healthy debate about a topic or striving to overcome a multifaceted roadblock. If each of the individuals engaged in the discussion viewed the variables the same way and had precisely the same purview, it's likely that very little originality came from the dialogue. In fact, the time wasted on immediate agreement could have been easily avoided by having a single individual determine the course of action.

The very essence of debate and discussion require healthy discord. It is through such friendly conflict and differing opinions that a more comprehensive - and often decidedly better - solution can emerge.

Here are a couple of quick tips that I've found incredibly effective:

* Encourage diversity by welcoming all comments and suggestions.

* Strive to accept all suggestions openly and actually like them. In other words, listen without judgment, and constructively contribute to shaping the idea.
2. Equality
Inhibiting equality is something to avoid when assembling a group to collaborate. I've noticed that in organizations where one individual controls the entire outcome and therefore is the lynchpin in all decisions, true collaboration is seldom successful. The group may have a healthy exchange, but if the result is an autocratic rather than democratic decision, unity and self-empowerment will likely be stifled.

I've found that for successful collaboration, each idea presented (and every individual attending the collaborative exercise) must be given equal weight. Make sure to create a judgment-free zone without fear or repercussions. Bringing a team together only to implement a class system is counterproductive, demoralizing and ineffective.
3. Energy
Although there is no single formula for running a successful collaborative session, don't overlook the importance of keeping it focused and highly motivating. To maintain energy, collaborations often require physical activities (whiteboard or sticky note exercises, small group discussions or standing for a bit or stretching). Depending on the goals of the session, maintaining a high level of energy and engagement throughout can produce far better results.

If interaction is not included as part of the group's collaboration, then the question is, "Why couldn't the same result be generated through an email exchange?" I believe the difference is emotional involvement - in the case of email exchanges, I characterize them as highly transactional in nature. In a group meeting, emotional engagement invariably occurs, which typically produces a highly motivated and driven team.
4. Mobilization
The final key component of collaboration is mobilization - in other words, taking the outcome of the collaboration and putting it into action. Answer a series of simple, logical questions at the conclusion of any collaboration: Who among the group will be held accountable for which identified activities? What is the time frame for the completion of activities? When will the group reconvene or be informed of progress? How will the newly developed plans make a difference within the organization or externally as they affect customers or partners?

Collaboration without an action plan is merely a conversation. Driving results demands action, and answering the crucial questions above is of paramount importance.

The combination of these four components can result in healthy collaboration that will be worthwhile for any size organization, in any setting. Collaboration is largely an art rather than a science, and it's an art that deserves concerted effort and pursuit by groups striving to move beyond roadblocks, achieve new results and establish new goals.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Council Post: Four Components Of Effective Collaboration

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reflecting on the days when I was performing as an improvisational actor and leading a ragtag troupe in San Diego, I was reminded of the similarities between improv and effective business collaboration.