Not every manager in corporate America understands that teams have a better chance of being successful when they have integrated and understood roles toward a common goal, but you should.

There once was an executive who became so disgruntled from his work that he literally closed his office door throughout the workday. Ultimately, this individual separated from the company—at the company’s request, within a few months of his hire date.

What could have possibly happened to so rapidly spur this individual’s demise?

With the benefit of hindsight, the hiring manager apparently became so enamored with this individual’s background and experience during the recruiting process that the position’s job description was significantly expanded, particularly in terms of influence and authority. In doing so, the hiring manager was successful in wooing the recruit; however, she unfortunately failed to communicate these role modifications to others in the organization.

By consequence (and you can see where this is going), the new hire joined the organization with heightened expectations of his ability to contribute. His role then became the hub of an intense and competitive political wrestling match over turf issues that distracted and upset many of the senior players. This resulted in an inordinate amount of company-wide dysfunction. By the time any damage control efforts could intervene, the organizational and personal wounds were too deep for healing.

Research has shown that collaboration, not competitiveness, improves team performance. This is particularly challenging in today’s business world when many of today’s corporate teams are “virtual”—attempting to function without close proximity, while continually addressing responsibility and resource issues.

Competition results when people are working at cross-purposes. It focuses on a win/lose outcome. Someone will be subordinate to another. It precludes the effective use of resources. People feel threatened and frustrated. They may relish in another’s shortcomings or failure. They see others as an impediment to their selfish goals and interests. They may, intentionally or not, mislead or interfere with each other. There is no self-disclosure, as people fear being exploited. Hostility and low productivity are likely a result.

Collaboration is about superior productivity. People succeed when others succeed. They aid each other, in good faith, toward a common and understood goal. They’re encouraging, and they understand each other’s priorities. They can expect help and assistance from others, as it’s in everyone’s self interests. Intentions, feelings, and ideas are exchanged. Interactions result in cohesiveness and high morale. Team members also experience greater job satisfaction and commitment in this environment.

You also personally benefit from collaboration, in that your team will deem you to be more credible and influential.

How can you instill collaboration? The key is to make sure that the left hand knows what the right hand is doing, and they are working in unison. You do this through shared goals and shared roles.

Shared goals bind a team, and you need to make those goals (your vision and strategy) the underpinning of all activities. Encourage people to work in a cooperative manner. Help them recognize that everyone’s contribution is equally important to the result. Like oarsmen on a ship, make sure that people understand that they have more to gain in working in unison. Align your processes and systems accordingly.

In terms of shared roles, openly discuss and communicate individual and collective accountabilities. One of the best ways to do this is to create and distribute a functional organizational chart that briefly lists each person’s accountabilities in “bullets” under her name. This, or a similar exercise, generates corporate and functional transparency, furthers the understanding of the organization’s critical path, identifies dependencies, allows for the appreciation for each other’s efforts, and reduces individual silos and parochial interests.

With this collective understanding, organizational effectiveness and efficiency will be enhanced.