The French Resistance played a vital part in aiding the Allies to success in Western Europe – especially leading up to D-Day in June 1944. The French Resistance supplied the Allies with vital intelligence reports as well as doing a huge amount of work to disrupt the German supply and communication lines within France.
Who within the French society (not in the resistance) was
the true enemy of the State? The passive collaborator who went along to get along with the Huns and even to gain an advantage or position in the Hun's new world order. They would infiltrate the Resistance and turn in their fellow Frenchmen/woman. The passive collaborator was well liked by the Huns because they were useful.
And this is true in the workplace today. Why? Well, the passive collaborator in the workplace conducts accidental or fortuitous meetings in the break room; thereby, catching co-workers off guard to gossip with ... get them to spill the beans about so and so or just to steal ideas and call them as theirs in front of the top brass as co-workers look on in silent disbelief.
Another strategy that works for the passive collaborator is simply overhearing a conversation from the next cubicle over, or spotting someone across the room who appears to be free or not busy as in ripe for a quick gut check are also examples of passive collaboration.
Now, I am sure you have read that the passive collaborator or passive collaboration in the office has become very useful (just as it was for the Huns) and even preferred as an asset among workers these days. Why? Because, the top likes knowing what people really think as it is the best way to cull the herd; so, the narc, or brown-noser is useful until they are no longer useful.
The office mongers applaud passive collaboration because they (those at the top of the ladder) like having control. They use positive feedback to encourage such behavior 'passive collaboration'. They call it office learning, sharing and just being a creative part of the team.
Have you ever stopped by because you overheard a snippet of a conversation and wanted to learn more or share your perspective? Or maybe something on a whiteboard caught your eye and caused you to start a conversation with another colleague, leading to a breakthrough. These are all moments of passive collaboration, which whiteboards so excellently enable (in addition to being a tool for real-time, active collaboration). They’re low-friction ways to invite new ideas and perspectives to the conversation that otherwise wouldn’t have been considered [see online source].
The future of work is one
in which teams are more distributed than ever before, meaning we need new tools
for passive collaboration not just for this year, but for the future, too. Our
own internal survey results tell us that while some employees prefer the option
to be fully remote once the pandemic is behind us, the majority want a more
flexible solution in the future [see online source].
Crucially, the answer is
not to create more meetings or email threads, but instead to reimagine virtual
spaces that can function like the classic whiteboard and other serendipitous (‘accidental’
alibi) modes of collaboration [see online source].
Sure, cooperation is necessary in the workplace. However, passive collaboration is quite different. It is more seductive, sly, ambitious and even sinister though favorably measured as a means to reimagine the workplace. Yet, that attitude is the same as it was during the war... to get comfortable with the enemy or the top so to win favor. So, the passive collaborator either withdraws knowledge from their colleague network, or deposits it. More often than not… it’s a withdrawal . This is how the post-modern office deems it… “We have a name for this transactional mode of collaboration: passive.”
What is happening today in your workplace and also think about what is happening in your town, your schools, your community? Do you see passive collaborators... those who go along to get along with the top and or occupying forces? If you do, be concerned about who they work for. They will tell you that they work for the greater good… but whose greater good is that?
If the French Resistance never formed… the war might have gone on a lot longer and more people would have lost their lives. The Resistance made a way for French allies to gain footing and take an advantage over Hitler… and, as for those who so easily went along to get along and or happily collaborated ... they had their heads shaved when the Hun was pushed out.
What about the passive aggressive? Wouldn't that be the resistance fighter? The one that smiles at the Hun and then takes them down? You decide... When it comes to what you stand for, you will have to take sides... to be one or the other and both have their consequences.
Online Sources:
https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/10/passive-collaboration-is-essential-to-remote-works-long-term-success/
https://www.cmswire.com/digital-workplace/the-different-modes-of-collaboration-and-why-they-matter-to-your-business/
