HBR published this article – Obama’s Five Collaboration Mistakes.

It seems the mistakes he’s made are

• He may talk about collaboration & use all the right language but his team doesn’t (thus sending mixed messages)
• He delegated to others, not collaborated with others
• Not all parties felt like they had been heard
• There need to be compromises (you can’t win them all)
• Lack of a compelling overall goal

I don’t know know if I agree with those in regards to what Obama is doing or has done but they are good things to keep in mind when you’re trying to bring people together.