5 Dysfunctions of teamwork

(chapter 32 of THE CONNECTION QUOTIENT)

Personal introduction

I have six core values: personal growth, playfulness, family, trust, honesty and fierce courage. I try every day to live and act as much as possible according to these tenets. Do I succeed in this, 100%, every day? No. But I do continue to reflect on why things don’t go right sometimes, so that I can learn from it. I also continue to challenge myself to step outside my comfort zone and to live and work even more in line with these values.

Living and working based on these personal core values is part of my trademark. My clients and my colleagues experience the added value of this, directly and indirectly. In connection with the other, I voice what there is, remain curious, and challenge and support where necessary. People like this because it triggers a process of learning and change at the individual, team or organization level.

Living and working based on my core values encourages me to implement the five team strengths, as the business management author Patrick Lencioni refers to them. This prevents dysfunctions arising in collaborative efforts, which impacts the mutual connection and the results. And that’s not what I want! This article is about these dysfunctions.

Patrick Lencioni

In his book, The Five Dysfunctions of Teamwork, Lencioni (2002) describes five dysfunctions that act to obstruct real teamwork. These dysfunctions can reinforce each other, and the presence of one dysfunction increases the chance of the other dysfunctions also being present, thereby disrupting teamwork.

In other words, to be able to really work well and in connection as a team, it’s important to learn to recognize these dysfunctions… and then to learn how to avoid them.

Dysfunction 1: Absence of trust

Trust is the basis for powerful teamwork and the building of genuine and honest connections. Conversely, the absence of trust makes optimal teamwork impossible. There is then a good chance that the team will revert to being a group. When it comes to trust, Lencioni suggests, team members have to dare to show their vulnerability in relation to each other, and their vulnerability concerning their own weaknesses, the skills they lack, the mistakes they make, or to openly ask for help.

Can they trust that if they do so, the vulnerability they have shown will not be used against them? If this atmosphere of safety does not exist, the team members will stop showing their vulnerability and will act increasingly in a competitive or political manner to protect their own reputation. This pattern forms the basis for the second dysfunction.

Dysfunction 2: Fear of conflict

No shine without friction. This Dutch expression encapsulates the notion that to achieve lasting connection and collaboration, it is important to have productive conflicts. When I say

‘productive,’ I mean that the team members arrive at solutions for team issues in the short term by engaging in a dialogue about differences in insight. In effective teams, this dialogue can be carried out accompanied by emotions and passion without an adverse effect on the connection between the members.

In the case of teams where the members do not trust each other, an open dialogue isn’t possible. Instead of constructive conflicts, an artificial harmony is created whereby team members keep their standpoints and concerns to themselves. And this lays the foundation for the third dysfunction.

Dysfunction 3: Lack of commitment

Well-functioning teams act based on genuine commitment, with members fully supporting the choice that has been made. During discussions, they will express their opinions wholeheartedly, and as soon as a decision has been taken they will execute it, even though they may find it difficult to support it personally.

This feeling of communal responsibility is of particular importance for members of management teams. They talk consistently with one voice because they are aware that their employees act in accordance with what they say and how they get their message across.

Minor differences of opinion between managers high in the organization will have increased enormously by the time they reach the employees at the bottom end of the organization. If fear of conflicts leads to opinions not being expressed, or consensus being sought, actions are likely to be taken that are not fully supported. Team members will cover their own backs and delay taking important decisions. A certain vagueness is created, and collaboration is merely paid lip service, which lays the foundation for the fourth dysfunction.

Dysfunction 4: Avoidance of accountability

Members of effective teams hold colleagues accountable for failure to honour agreements that have been made, or for actions taken against the common interest. Despite the fact that this can be awkward or tricky, and can lead to uncomfortable situations, they nonetheless feel a responsibility to do so. They take this risk not only because it results in the individual members growing in their role as human beings, but also because it achieves the results for the team.

In the end, this mindset leads to better mutual connection and mutual respect. In teams whose members do not feel committed to the agreements that have been made, or where a clear picture of the agreements is lacking, members will hardly be held accountable, if at all. It’s extremely difficult to hold someone accountable for something that was never explicitly agreed on or made clear in the first place. And that’s the perfect breeding ground for the final dysfunction.

Dysfunction 5: Inattention to results

Teams exist to achieve results. If a result is no longer required or relevant, the team loses its right to exist. It’s as simple as that. Members of powerful teams are aware of this and are focused on achieving the results together. They fully realize what results they are working towards and they don’t allow themselves to be distracted by less important issues. If the result is achieved, they enjoythe successes and celebrate them.

At the other extreme, there are teams that do not work towards a common goal and where the members do not hold each other accountable. This allows room to focus on personal interests and matters such as ego, recognition or career planning. Or, the focus is placed on the importance of their own department, which occurs at the cost of collaboration on an organization-wide scale. The collaboration within the (management) team and the collaboration between the employees of the various departments then suffers. This is why this dysfunction has a deep impact on the whole organization.

If your interest has been aroused, and you want to know more about these themes and how to work on them in practise, I recommend reading Lencioni’s book. Do you have the courage to acknowledge the dysfunctions that exist, to make them explicit and then to tackle them?

ASSIGNMENT: ‘Inteamacy’

Lencioni asserts that mutual trust forms the basis for powerful connections and teamwork. If this is what you want, then making a start is easy — get to know the people you work with. And not just in the sense of their job title, but as individuals. This exercise will help you get started.

Spend an afternoon with your colleagues, take a photograph with you of when you were a child, play your favorite music and talk to each other about who you are. To give you some ideas about what you could talk about, I have listed a few questions you can share with each other. Feel free to add your own.

Which questions you choose, how vulnerable you dare to be and how much time you spend on this process is entirely up to you. The important thing is to enjoy the process. Each step in the direction of openness is welcome and contributes to your connection and mutual trust.

Questions could include:

• What is your family background? What values were you taught within that family? How important are they for you?

• What did you learn at school that you still make use of in your life today?

• What event in your life has had a major impact on you? What did you learn from it? And, how does this event influence your view on life?

• What work (or piece of work) do you look back on with the most pleasure? What work did you find the least satisfying? Why you chose those specific experiences? What does this say about you?

• What are your hobbies? What do you find so attractive about them? How much time do you spend on them?

• What is your family situation? What challenges do you face? What are you most proud of regarding your family?

Don’t focus on the dysfunction but look for the underlying problem.

Marco Buschman MCC, CTPC, CPCC
Leadership Expert, Team & Executive Coach, International Facilitator, Inspirational Speaker, Bestseller Author

Would you like to know how to invest in teamdevelopment and connectivity as a manager ?

Then you should read my latest book The Connection Quotient which is launched by LID Publishing (more info, how to order and how to book me as a motivational speaker (also online!) you will find on my personal website: https://www.marcobuschman.com/ ).

“Our Connection Quotient brings us together and forms a bridge between people, company profits and organisation. In my experience, people are the key to positive change and growth. Be an ‘encourager’, a connector. And, above all, stay human: curious, open-minded and imperfect. Happy Labor Day!”