Do team members sacrifice their own interests for the good of the team?.Do team members confront one another about their shortcomings?.Does the team come to decisions quickly and avoid getting bogged down by consensus?.Are team meetings compelling and productive?.Do team members openly and readily disclose their opinions?.Interestingly, it is contradictory to the normal assumption that the team should avoid conflicts, instead encourage and embrace conflicts.Īsk these simple questions to understand the level of dysfunction you are facing: It is important to understand that reaching consensus is not the goal, instead make sure that everyone is being heard. This means the leadership being the first one to be vulnerable, encouraging debate and conflict, making responsibilities and deadlines clear, setting the team’s standards, and last but not least being clear on the team’s outcome. The leadership in the company needs to lead by example and set the tone for the whole team to overcome these dysfunctions. Addressing DysfunctionsĪs the first step for addressing these dysfunctions, every team needs to understand that these dysfunctions exist. This results in team loosing sight and the company suffers. If the team members don’t feel accountable, they put their own needs ahead of the team goals. If one has not bought into the decision, they won’t make their peers too accountable. Lack of commitment results in team members not making each other accountable. As team members have not bought into the decisions, they don’t feel committed to the same which resulting in an environment where ambiguity prevails. #3 Lack of Commitmentįear of conflict results in lack of commitment. The team completely avoids conflicts which results in inferior results. Lack of trust results in fear of conflict which in turn results in team members incapable of engaging in debates or openly voicing their opinions. Team members will be afraid of admitting their mistakes and will be unwilling to ask for help. #1 Absence of Trustīottom of the pyramid is the absence of trust, when team members are unable to show their weakness, resulting in being reluctant to be vulnerable and being open with one another.

The above pyramid, the model described in the book, explains how one dysfunction leads to another and in the end, results in a negative morale of the team.

The five dysfunctions of a team book