The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

I have a friend who's an executive at another company, and he recommended this book to me (The Five Dysfunctions of a Team). He's asking his management team to go through the material, too.
 

Now your first question might be: What? Do you really think we have dysfunctional teams? My friend encountered the same thing at his shop. And, well, of course we're dysfunctional. In some way. In fact, I think non-dysfunctional teams are the exception in this world. Just think of all the fodder Scott Adams has to write about with his Dilbert comic strip! And to be honest, I'm probably a contributor to the dysfunction in my own team. So, if your on my team, you should probably know that I'm thinking of you when I think of dysfunctional teams, but I hope you won't be offended because I think of myself, too!
 
The author, Patrick Lencioni, makes the case that there are five basic ways our teams break down ... but he also describes how to address solving these dysfunctions. He also points out that each dysfunction builds upon the other, but you can disassemble your problems one at a time so you start straightening things out. So far, I've only watched the 90-minute video, but the book's coming up soon for me. Patrick reminds me of Dirk Benedict (think "Starbuck" on Battlestar Galactica and "Face" on A-Team - remember?). He only lacks the cigar. The video is a talking pitch, but the book reads like a set of fables about people that seem all-too-familiar.
 
Here are the five dysfunctions he describes and their solutions. I dunno: Is it too strong to say these are "solutions"? Maybe, but it's direction nonetheless.

1. Absence of Trust: The fear of being vulnerable with team members. And I completely agree! How many teams have you been on where people couldn't let down their guard? Do you recall how that's inhibited the team and kept them from their full potential? To address this, the leader(s) need to demonstrate vulnerability on their own. That sets the tone for the rest of the group, and it creates the environment where the next dysfunction can be addressed.
   
2. Fear of Conflict: Trust enables us to overcome this fear. We don't just hold it in anymore because we know we're in a healthy trusting environment. Good ideas start to come out and bad ones get challenged and improved. To promote this healthy conflict, leaders need to demand debate. Patrick used the phrase "mining for conflict" in which a leader actively looks for these opportunities.
3. Lack of Commitment: Teams that can't engage in productive conflict aren't able to have their ideas heard ... and so they can't completely buy in and commit. Leaders must force clarity and closure.
   
4. Avoidance of Accountability: When people don't commit to a decision, teammates aren't going to have the courage to enter the danger and stick together. On the other hand, when they do have this courage, they get to where they'll hold each other accountable and the leader doesn't have to be the only one doing that. The leader has to confront difficult issues. There's much more to this covered in the video, but a big idea that struck me is that we need to be able to hold people accountable for behaviors and not just results. Behaviors always lead to results, and if a leader is careless with behaviors, then he's not building in success for the results he wants.
   
5. Inattention to Results: When people aren't held accountable, then they're given tacit permission to focus on other things (other agendas, pet projects, etc.). The leader has to focus on collective outcomes.
   

 
More on this once I read the book. For now, what does this say to you?

Citation: Lencioni, Patrick. Leadership and Teams. TLC, a SkillSoft Company. © 2004. Online Video Clip, Books24x7. http://common.books24x7.com/book/id_18960/book.asp. (That link is for the 90-minute video, but you can also find the actual book on books24x7, too.)

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