The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

“A Leadership Fable” by Patrick LencioniPhil HolmesAugust 15, 2013

Background of this presentation

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is a book by Patrick Lencioni, a prolific business consultant and author; it was published in 2002 and is widely used

This book was the focus of EDLP 700 – Effective Learning Networks, the first course in my EdD in Leadership program at VCU this summer

In the spirit of our team’s ongoing development, and to optimize the investment that the bank is making in my education, I am sharing books, lessons, and exercises from my program as the opportunity to do so arises

We are not leadership development consultants, but we are HR professionals, and we spend a great deal of time with our teams across the company. The lessons from Lencioni’s book may influence our support of those teams

This presentation will draw from and adapt the concepts, graphics, and points that can be found in The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick

Lencioni

Background of this book

Lencioni’s “leadership fable” tells the story of the leadership team at DecisionTech, a hypothetical (and struggling) Silicon Valley technology firm

The story focuses in particular on Kathryn Petersen, the firm’s new CEO An outsider from the automobile industry, Kathryn is brought into the

company by the board of directors to make the leadership team work Soon after taking the reins as CEO, Kathryn schedules a series of Napa

Valley off-site meetings for her leadership team, during which she explains how effective teams should operate, and she begins to turn the team around Through this simple narrative, Lencioni presents his thoughts about what

makes teams work and not work, based on his many years of experience consulting with leadership teams

Since no teams in the Global Learning Organization are dysfunctional , I have amended this presentation’s title to “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team,” and we will expand our focus to include the five components of successful teams, from Lencioni’s point of view

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team – per Lencioni

Absence of Trust

Fear of Conflict

Lack of Commitment

Avoidance of Accountability

Inattention to Results

1

2

3

4

5

Invulnerability

Artificial Harmony

Ambiguity

Low Standards

Status and Ego Evidenced by…

Cum

ulat

ive…

It begins with the absence of trust…

A Single, Agreed-upon Goal is Impossible to Achieve

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team – tweaking Lencioni

Humble Confidence

Embracing Conflict as a Positive Tool

Passionate Ownership of Progress

Expectation of Accountability

Our Ego, not My Ego

1

2

3

4

5

Confidence AND humility

Access to others, prompting change

Clear Measurement

Clear & Defended Standards

Identification with team’s success

Evidenced by…

Cum

ulat

ive…

Output After Step 2 is a Single, Agreed-upon Goal

From Lencioni… the importance of trust

“Trust lies at the heart of a functioning, cohesive team. Without it, teamwork is all but impossible.”

“In the context of building a team, trust is the confidence among team members that their peers’ intentions are good, and that there is no reason to be protective or careful around the group. In essence, teammates must get comfortable being vulnerable with one another.”

“(Trust) requires team members to make themselves vulnerable to one another, and be confident that their respective vulnerabilities will not be used against them. The vulnerabilities I’m referring to include weaknesses, skill deficiencies, interpersonal shortcomings, and requests for help.”

“As ‘soft’ as all of this might sound, it is only when team members are truly comfortable being exposed to one another that they begin to act without concern for protecting themselves. As a result, they can focus their energy and attention completely on the job at hand, rather than on being strategically disingenuous or political with one another.”

Lencioni, pp. 195-196

Suggestions for overcoming the absence of trust

Personal Histories ExerciseTeam members “… answer a short list of questions about themselves, (such as) number of siblings, hometown, unique challenges of childhood, favorite hobbies, first job, and worst job.”

Team Effectiveness Exercise“This exercise is more rigorous and relevant than the previous one, but may involve more risk. It requires team members to identify the single most important contribution that each of their peers makes to the team, as well as the one area that they must either improve upon or eliminate for the good of the team.”

The Role of the LeaderThe most important action that a leader must take to encourage the building of trust… is to demonstrate vulnerability first… (to) risk losing face in front of the team, so that subordinates will take the same risk for themselves. What is more, team leaders must create an environment that does not punish vulnerability.

Lencioni, pp. 198 - 201

References

Lencioni, P. (2002). The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.