The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is a business book by consultant and speaker Patrick Lencioni first published in 2002. It describes the many pitfalls that teams face as they seek to "grow together".
According to the book, the five dysfunctions are:
- Absence of trust — unwilling to be vulnerable within the group
- Fear of conflict — seeking artificial harmony over constructive passionate debate
- Lack of commitment — faking buy-in for group decisions creates ambiguity throughout the organization
- Avoidance of accountability — ducking the responsibility to call peers, superiors on counterproductive behavior which sets low standards
- Inattention to results — focusing on personal success, status and ego before team success
How to fix?
- Building trust.
- Mastering conflict.
- Achieving commitment.
- Embracing accountability.
- Focusing on results.