Collaboration, in the dictionary you see words such as concert, participation, partnership, joint effort alliance, working together and association. These are positive attributes. I always felt it was interesting that clients will put a value on design tension as a positive for the project.
I have worked with a group of people that prides itself on collaboration. It was our belief that if we are truly collaborating then you have one or more design groups that are focused on your project rather than their design positions. The teams are motivated to do what’s right and best for the project Rather than putting their own agenda first.using the strengths of the design idea to guide and inform the project.
When you have design tension then you have design teams that are working separately and trying to move their design agendas forward at the potential compromise of the other designs. In this scenario where there is design tension you really have separate points of you view thinking about your project not necessarily a collaborative collegial effort that says “yes and… I can” add to that design.
When I was a newly minted Senior Leader (Partner) I had a project opportunity in Tahiti on an 800 acres site. I have always believed that positive collaboration built on would produce a better design solution rather than the old belief that design tension bred better design. So I used the project to invite a good friend and his landscape firm to collaborate on the project. Off we went for a site visit and design workshop to French Polynesia. Meeting with the client and his French architects and engineers they were quite shocked after a few days of seeing as how truly collaborative two groups could be as matter fact they mentioned to us that that was abnormal to them to actually experience that I seen the day we had a really good design but we had a very poor client so I hope that I’m still friends with my my good buddy because I know that we both got hung out a little bit on some fees but that’s a story foranother blog entry.
As a side note our two firms designed some of our landmark projects for both of our groups. My regret is that we didn’t do more projects together.
Collaboration produces better design.
Destination Architect 