HBR When Senior Managers Won’t Collaborate Heidi K. Gardner Executive Summary For professional services firms, the only way to address clients’ most complex issues is for specialists to work together across the boundaries of their expertise. When they do, their firms earn higher margins, inspire greater client loyalty, and gain a competitive edge. The author’s research shows that the more practice groups are involved in a client engagement, the greater the average annual revenue the client will generate. And the more cross-specialty work professionals engage in, the more work they will subsequently get and the more they’ll be able to charge for it. But although the financial benefits to the firm of multi- disciplinary collaboration are clear, the benefits to individuals accrue slowly—and the downsides are immediate. The organizational structures, compensation systems, and cultures in many firms favour “rock stars,” not the “whole band.” Moreover, learning to collaborate effectively is difficult. Both individuals and firms can encourage the kind of collaboration that lands high-value client work. Professionals, for instance, can reap the benefits sooner by establishing themselves with an influential colleague who can help them build connections to specialists across the firm. And leaders can take steps to lower the cultural and structural barriers to cross-disciplinary work.