协同

• Pinyin: xié tóng
• Hanzi breakdown: 协 = 十 + 劦 (ten + triple force — joint strength, to coordinate); 同 = 冂 + 口 (enclosure + mouth — together, unanimous)

Meaning

To collaborate; to coordinate; synergy. Working together in a coordinated manner to achieve a shared goal, especially across departments, organisations, or systems.

Widely used in business management, military strategy, and technology (协同办公 = collaborative office software). 协同 implies more structured, intentional coordination than 合作 (cooperation), often with an emphasis on complementary roles. Common in corporate strategy and governmental coordination.

Examples

1. 各部门之间必须加强协同，打破信息孤岛，才能提升整体工作效率和决策质量。 Departments must strengthen coordination and break down information silos to improve overall efficiency and decision-making quality.
2. 这次联合演习旨在检验海陆空三军协同作战的实际能力，为未来实战做好充分准备。 This joint exercise aims to test the practical ability of the navy, army, and air force to conduct coordinated operations, and to prepare thoroughly for future real-world combat.
3. 企业引入协同管理平台后，跨团队的沟通效率显著提升，项目推进速度也大幅加快。 After the company introduced a collaborative management platform, communication across teams improved significantly and project progress sped up dramatically.

Usage Guide

Context: business, management, military, technology, policy

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 要实现城市治理现代化，需要政府各职能部门之间建立高效的协同机制，避免政出多门、资源浪费。(Achieving modernised urban governance requires the establishment of an efficient coordination mechanism among government departments to prevent overlapping mandates and resource wastage.)
• 该研究项目集合了多所高校和科研院所的力量，通过跨机构协同攻关，最终在关键技术上取得了重大突破。(The research project brought together the resources of multiple universities and research institutes — through cross-institutional coordinated effort, it ultimately achieved a major breakthrough in a key technology.)

Don't Say

• 我们协同了一下 — 协同 implies structured, ongoing coordination rather than a brief exchange; for a quick discussion, use 沟通了一下 or 商量了一下 instead

Origin & History

协 (to coordinate/jointly) + 同 (together/same) — to coordinate jointly towards the same goal

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal