The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Author: Patrick Lencioni
Published: 2002

Key Concept: Team One

From Page...

Midway through Part Three of the book, Lencioni's fictional CEO, Kathryn Peterson, introduces the 'first team' concept (page 133).  She does this by asking her team of senior executives this question: "Who do you consider to be your first team?"

Each member of the senior team answers fairly quickly and honestly that their 'first team' is the team they manage and oversee.  This is the team they spend most of their time with.  This is the team whose work they know and the people they have the most in-depth knowledge of.  These are the people they personally hired in many cases.  One senior executive openly admits that she feels the team she leads is more important than the senior leadership team she sits on, and that she would do almost anything for her team.  In other words, the teams these executives lead are the ones they trust most and are most loyal to.

As this seems to be the shared view of each executive in the room, they are surprised when Kathryn suggests this is a concern for the group as a whole.  She frames her concern around the last dysfunction - Inattention to Results - and states that "As strongly as we feel about our own people and as wonderful as that is for them, it simply cannot come at the expense of the loyalty and commitment we have to the group of people sitting here today (the senior leadership team)."

Throughout the remainder of the book the lead character, Kathryn, continues to reinforce the need for her senior executives to see themselves and the senior team as their 'first team'.  She calls team members out when their behaviours don't support this concept and acknowledges them when they do.

To the average reader, the 'first team' concept will be one of many interesting concepts throughout the book.

To me, it is the most important concept of all!

...To Practice

I'll be using the phrase Team One in place of Lencioni's 'first team'.

Team One is quite possibly the most important concept a leadership team needs to understand and inhabit.

This goes for all leadership teams, but especially those senior or executive leadership teams ultimately responsible for a company's results.

If you are a leader who does NOT know about Team One, you may think the following:

  • That your primary role is to lead the particular division, portfolio or department that you are responsible for according to your company's org chart.
  • That job #1 is to oversee these areas: to direct the work being done, align priorities, ensure the right people are in the right roles, and to "go to bat" for your teams to ensure they have the resources they need.
  • That the team you lead is the team of greatest importance to you.  The team that matters most to you gets the majority of your time and attention.
  • That, while you should have some high level awareness of what is happening in other parts of the organization, ultimately those other areas are not your responsibility.  You stay within your own sandbox…… and expect your other executive team colleagues to do the same.

 

On the contrary, if you are a leader who DOES know about Team One, you know the following:

  • The team you are a part of (e.g. the senior leadership team) is more important to you than the team you lead.
  • The collective results of the company as a whole matter more than the results of your specific area of responsibility.
  • That job #1 is to ensure that the organization has the resources it needs, where it needs them, in order to achieve its goals.  This means that you may choose to willingly re-direct resources from you area to another area for this purpose.  In other words, instead of continually advocating for the teams you lead, you will make sacrifices in your area for other areas if that is what is deemed necessary for the whole to succeed, and you expect the same from other members of Team One.
  • If other members of your team are not asking tough questions about your areas of responsibility and/or holding you accountable (peer-to-peer accountability), then they are not doing their job.
  • Finally, Team One members do not confuse 'groups' with 'teams'.  They realize just how different these are. They understand that groups are but a collection of people who report to the same manager, but with relatively little inter-dependence and mutual accountability; whereas teams share common goals, as well as the rewards and responsibilities for achieving them.  Team members set aside their individual or personal needs for the greater good of the whole.

 

Putting It Into Practice:

Once again, in my many years of working with teams from across the country and from multiple different industries, I have come to believe that the notion of Team One is truly one of the most important concepts organizations need to wrap their heads around - and one that will positively impact businesses outcomes for years to come.

A senior or executive leadership team that does not view themselves as Team One may accomplish a lot, but it will never accomplish all that it can.  It will leave much on the table for its more functional competitors to take.

 

If you would like to discuss any of the above concepts in more detail, or if you are planning a retreat to introduce your team to Team One and looking for a facilitator, please feel free to reach out!

We'd love to hear your feedback on this post. Please send your comments to karen@karenfitzpatrick.ca

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