Part of the Bright sparks series, written by Matt Franklin, CRO
We talk a lot about collaboration, but much of what passes for teamwork today is really noise. Endless threads, half-attended meetings, and long days spent replying digitally instead of deciding. Call me a rebel but perhaps it’s time to regain some space to think, to act, and to work together with intent.
Most organisations describe themselves as collaborative, connected, and committed to partnership. But working with people and working well together are not the same thing. We confuse activity with alignment. Teams run fast, but often in parallel lines — busy, visible, and disconnected. In children we call it parallel play; in business, we call it BAU.
Nothing can start until everyone is clear about what we’re actually trying to achieve. Not a list of deliverables, but an outcome that matters. “Reducing customer wait times by half” is clearer than “improve service experience.” Once the goal is visible, communication sharpens. Meetings shrink, conversations have purpose, and people start to actively want to take ownership. Everyone can see how their work fits into the whole.
Telling people what you want them to do is easy, getting them to understand the wider purpose is harder. Like Basil Faulty leaders seem to think that saying it again, saying it louder will work. But creating more channels for chatter doesn’t make teams closer — it often spreads them thinner. The focus is on the screen and not on the task. The best partnerships start by defining shared intent: what success will look like and how it will be measured, and doing that together. Getting into short, in person sprints to align at key moments is essential. Without that anchor, teamwork becomes theatre — lively, but directionless.
I’m not talking about forcing people back into the office to sit on Teams calls, in a cubicle to tick some “presenteeism” box. But there are moments for emails, and moments for rooms with flip charts, and ideas, and excitement. They set the tone and they establish the intent.
When intent is clear, people waste less energy on signalling progress and more on making it. Disagreements still happen, but they’re about the work, not the politics. Teams start to recognise which conversations matter and which can wait.
That’s where the idea of “turning off email” comes in. It’s shorthand for a host of things we lose sight of too often in the way we now work. We are focused on busy, we are burnt out, we try and build ideas over email, we leap to conclusions or offence. When we “turn off the email” either literally or figuratively we go back to getting into rooms, assigning roles, setting goals, learning from each other. That terse email becomes an affectionate eye roll. Collaboration improves when the volume drops.
Good teams don’t need constant supervision; they need structure and trust. Clarity of roles, open communication, and respect for expertise to build a rhythm that makes work feel steady, not chaotic. Leaders can’t choreograph every step, but they can set the tempo. They create the conditions — clear priorities, realistic scope, and space to think — so that rhythm can emerge.
This is where the middle of an organisation becomes vital. Delivery leads and managers translate intent into action. To use a military metaphor, troops don’t follow their General, they follow their Captain – the person in front of them, the person with them, sharing the experience and the results. They hold the pulse of the work, notice when things drift, and keep people connected without overloading them. When they are trusted and equipped, teams stay aligned even when leadership steps back.
Of course if we are asking our middle tier to set the tone, we have to be willing to step in when they don’t. Nothing is more damaging to employee confidence than seeing poor behaviours go unchecked – or worse rewarded. We have to be willing to manage, and be seen to manage, strong performers who behave badly. If we don’t, we establish a culture where the only measure is commercial – and ironically where the only measure is commercial, the commercials eventually fail too.
As companies grow, the instinct is to add more oversight: more dashboards, check-ins, and committees. But maturity looks different. It’s knowing when to stop adding layers and start simplifying. A simple example was when a growing tech company abolished “proof points” for most reporting tasks – expenses, leave taken, hours worked. Fraud went down by over 80%. But even more interesting – sales went up significantly too. People were more engaged. By treating your time as the highly competent adults you hired, you empower them with the building blocks of your business. Trust doesn’t remove structure; it gives it purpose. It lets decisions happen closer to the work and allows teams to learn from outcomes, not approvals.
Trust grows when leaders do what they say they will, share context honestly, and model restraint. It’s easier to trust someone who listens than someone who performs endlessly. When that culture takes hold, people stop asking for permission to do their jobs and start sharing responsibility for results.
Progress rarely comes in straight lines. It arrives in waves — bursts of activity followed by space to absorb and adjust. Teams that understand this rhythm avoid burnout and maintain focus. They know that reflection is part of the work, not a break from it.
When rhythm replaces rush, work starts to flow. You can see it in calm meetings, in short emails that matter, and in the quiet confidence of people who know what they’re doing and why.
It’s not about being constantly connected but about being consistently clear. When we stop mistaking noise for progress, we rediscover how much we can achieve — together, and better. Which is why – sometimes – we should turn off the email.
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Founder and Chief Revenue Officer
Matt is one of Roc's founders and brings extensive experience across the tech sector, especially within the higher education industry. Dedicated to supporting strategic customers, Matt pairs deep industry expertise with a collaborative, long-term approach that helps organisations innovate and succeed.
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