The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
When I was in Chicago I listened to a presentation by Patrick Lencioni on the topic "The Five Dysfunction of a Team", base on his book of the same name. This system of thinking provided me with a very good framework to explain why some teams don't work. I have used it to analyze two organizations related to me and this system is accurate in both cases. I highly recommend this book to anyone working in a team setting (who don't?), especially team leaders.
Here is part of an interview of Lencioni in which he explains the essence of this system:
Here is part of an interview of Lencioni in which he explains the essence of this system:
MCNews: How can leaders spot the symptoms of a dysfunctional team?
Lencioni: What I call the five dysfunctions of a team are absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results. And all five have symptoms that team leaders can learn to identify.
One good indicator of team dysfunction, for example, is a boring team meeting. When people don’t challenge one another in discussions about the business, and when people go to meetings unmotivated, you can be pretty confident that they’re not collectively engaged.
Another good indicator of team problems is back-channel conflict. Do people reserve their complaints for hallway conversations instead of voicing them during meetings? If so, that’s a sign of both a lack of trust and healthy conflict.
Labels: Reflection
