If Collaboration Is So Great, Why Is It So Difficult?

Collaboration is effective. Human survival depends on it, and great human achievements stand in testament. But anyone who has sat on a committee, organized a community, or led an open source software community knows it can be very difficult.

Collaboration is fraught with friction, perhaps because it is such a human activity. As the saying goes, "I love humanity, it's other people I can't stand."...