I recently read “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable”, by Patrick Lencioni. Lencioni runs The Table Group, a consulting group dedicated to helping organizations, and the people who work within them, become healthier and more successful. The book tells the story of DecisionTech, a high-tech startup with great products, people, investors, and customers yet is lagging behind its competitors. The company chairman recommends hiring a new CEO named Kathryn Petersen. She uncovers and addresses the five dysfunctions which are holding the team back, revealing that getting results as a team depends ultimately on a relational capacity built on trust. I found Lencioni’s description of dysfunctional team dynamics related well to some of the team dynamics I’ve encountered as a team member and as a consultant…

1. Absence of Trust – unwillingness of team members to be vulnerable with one another
2. Fear of conflict – no capacity to engage in unfiltered and passionate debate of ideas
3. Lack of commitment – little buy in and commitment to decisions, despite feigned agreement during meetings
4. Avoidance of accountability – without clear plan of action, hesitation to call peers on counterproduction actions and behaviours.
5. Inattention to results – members put individual needs or needs of their divisions above collective goals of team.

The positive approach of a cohesive team, on the other hand, are:

1. Team members trust one another.
2. They engage in unfiltered conflict around ideas.
3. They commit to decisions and plans of action.
4. They hold one another accountable for delivering against those plans.
5. They focus on the achievement of collective results

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The book finishes with a summary of the model, a team assessment tool (questionaire), and tips for understanding and overcoming the five dysfunctions, both for team leaders and team members.