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Complex research questions often require an interdisciplinary approach to be investigated thoroughly. In our group, our professor understands the needs and challenges of such questions and has consistently aimed to establish multidisciplinary teams that can effectively tackle these problems. Nonetheless, as teams grow, there is an increased risk of disagreements arising from different perspectives, such as the best way to pursue a study or accomplish a given task. Indeed, when left unaccounted, these micro-cracks can escalate and threaten the productivity of the team towards their goals. Therefore, in this post, I would like to reflect on some ideas that can hopefully maintain team members grounded, help retain focus on team-goals while still enabling individual successes.

1. Shared accountability and responsibility

2. Building an environment of mutual learning and support

3. Pursuing excellence through original contributions

4. Upholding high standards of integrity

Shared accountability and responsibility

First, it is paramount to understand that effective collaboration is built on shared accountability and responsibility among all team members. While each member has specialized roles, we must recognize that our individual efforts combine to advance goals that no single person could achieve alone. Still, we must also respect and take ownership of the tasks and deadlines we commit to, while also supporting teammates through challenging periods. Failure to meet this standard when certain tasks have dependencies on each other can be extremely stressful, especially when these arise from a mismatch in expectations or priorities of colleagues. For this reason, it is essential to promote open communication for maintaining accountability. By regularly checking in with one another, whether through formal meetings, or short asynchronous discussions, we can detect issues more easily before they escalate. Furthermore, this approach allows members to recalibrate their workloads to ensure the designated goals remain balanced and achievable or adjust them as priorities or circumstances of the project shift.

When issues arise, there should be an emphasis on searching for practical, actionable solutions rather than assigning blame. While accountability is key, especially when someone falls behind on commitments, the team must strategize how to rearrange work and continue advancing, while minimising critique from the side-lines. At the same time, and perhaps more challenging, there should be an effort to maintain a constructive environment where members feel comfortable bringing up concerns. This way, mutual trust can develop organically, leading colleagues to rely on each other during challenging periods, knowing that everyone is producing their best work towards a common goal.

Building an environment of mutual learning and support

Next, it is vital to promote an environment of continuous (self-)development. During our doctoral studies, we are exposed to a wide range of problems and, ideally, we find a solution to many of them. Over the years, this experience compounds and, therefore, it is only reasonable to help newer colleagues to navigate the challenges of their journey with this acquired knowledge. By approaching each other with curiosity and respect, we can enable peer-to-peer mentorship, where more experienced members can share their expertise.

Furthermore, through this mutual support, we can identify opportunities for collaborating leading to newer projects that will benefit both students. Importantly, to prevent authorship conflicts and ensure that everyone agrees to their tasks, it is vital to clarify expectations from the start.

While post-doctoral staff can fulfil some of this mentorship role, we have observed that sharing experiences and advice among doctoral students seems more effective. As we are going through similar situations, it is much more intuitive to empathise with each other’s struggles and suggest solutions that worked in our specific context. It seems that the culture in each lab can be quite different such that, even when a new post-doc joins, it may be hard to fully grasp the established dynamics and provide useful feedback despite their best intentions.

Pursuing excellence through original contributions

While previous sections focused on collective productivity and responsibility, we also need to reiterate the value of individual accountability. Each member must be intrinsically motivated to learn, contribute and produce quality work. It is only through consistent high-quality work that we can solve challenging problems through innovative, impactful solutions. Importantly, we should feel empowered to autonomously explore side topics sparked by our curiosities, even if indirectly related to current projects. These explorations may end up inspiring new directions with significant value. A climate encouraging calculated risk-taking nurtures adventurous thinking, which is unlikely to emerge from conservative approaches.

Upholding high standards of integrity

At last, to build lasting trust in a team, foundational for meaningful collaborations, we must operate and work according to the highest standards of integrity. This means producing research worthy of our capabilities, with an emphasis on quality over convenience or quantity. As presented before, differences in these beliefs should be discussed at the start to prevent frustration or resentment during the project execution.

Besides, proper attribution and citation are not optional - they represent the very foundation of ethics in research. We must also give due recognition to our colleagues’ valuable ideas and contributions, whether directly to the formal work or through informal discussions. While maintaining compassion for differing paces of progress, we still hold each other accountable. Our focus should also lie on candidly resolving issues, while avoiding personal attacks. Upholding integrity means we prioritize cultivating a spirit of honesty, responsibility, and mutual respect over all other factors. Through fair and empathetic treatment of one another, we set the strong example that integrity will always far outweigh any momentary gains made at its expense.

By safeguarding an environment where members feel secure contributing their best selves without compromise, we enable creativity and excellence to thrive freely in the future.

Conclusion

Managing large, interdisciplinary projects can be extremely challenging, especially as individual members must adjust their priorities accordingly. While individual successes are an important part for personal growth, it is essential to maintain focus on team goals, nurturing open communication and maintaining reliable connections of mutual support. It is also essential to strive for an environment built on respect, honesty, and responsibility to facilitate the flow of ideas and productive discussions.

Please feel free to share your experience on working with large teams!

Have a great day!

Acknowledgments

As an experiment, parts of this text were edited with the support of Chat-GPT based on notes provided.