You may often be asked to work as part of a team to produce a group project such as a print report, an oral presentation, or a Web document or site. Since group projects are collaborative from the outset, they require additional planning and coordination.

Planning a collaborative project

Planning goes a long way toward making any group collaboration work well. Although you will probably do much of your group work online, keep in mind that face-to-face meetings can accomplish some things that virtual meetings cannot.

Many college instructors now routinely integrate online work into their classes. If your course has a Web site, it probably offers space for extending the collaborative work of the classroom. Your writing class may already have an email discussion list, chat space, blog, or wiki; if not, you may want to set up such a space for yourself and your collaborators. You may also want to use a space such as Google Drive to create a collaborative project; if so, make sure that every member of your group knows where to find the project and has the appropriate level of access—the ability to edit, for example—to any document posted there.

Considering models for collaboration

Experienced collaborative writers often use one of three models for setting up the project: an expertise model, a division-of-labor model, or a process model.

Expertise model. This model plays to the strengths of each team member. The person who knows the most about graphics and design, for example, takes on all jobs that require those skills, while the person who knows most about the topic takes the lead in drafting.

Division-of-labor model. In this model, each group member becomes an expert on one aspect of the project. For example, one person might agree to do Internet research, while another searches library resources, and still another conducts interviews. This model is particularly helpful if a project is large and time is short.

Process model. You can also divide up the project in terms of its chronology: one person gets the project going, presenting an outline for the group to consider and carrying out any initial research; then a second person takes over and begins a draft for the group to review; a third person designs and illustrates the project; and another person takes the job of revising and editing. This model can work well if members are unable to participate equally throughout the entire project. Once the project is completely drafted, however, the whole group needs to work together to create a final version.

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