“The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Patrick Lencioni is a leadership fable about DecisionTech and the introduction of their new CEO, Kathryn Petersen who has joined the company to address their fractured leadership team. The book is split into 2 keys parts, firstly the fable itself, illustrating the challenges faced in DecisionTech, the approach to overcoming these and the unification of their leadership team. The second is a more in-depth look at the individual dysfunctions identified throughout the book and practical examples to overcome them.

In the fable, DecisionTech are at breaking point. Struggling with deadlines, growth and a leadership team at odds with each other, they appoint a new CEO (Kathryn) tasked with turning around the company performance with the vision of going public.

Kathyrn is a relative newcomer to the technology industry, but what she does have, is a wealth of experience of growing successful teams and supporting them thrive.

The book focuses on the actions taken by the leadership team and Kathryn to navigate their dysfunctions. Lencioni introduces the 5 dysfunctions with teams and how these can be identified, challenged and overcome and how actions taken by Kathryn and her team look to address the challenges DecisionTech have experienced.

In the second part of the book, Lencioni focuses on each of the 5 Dysfunctions, the impact each has on success as a team/business, ideas for overcoming and the role the leader plays in enabling its success. What is also really quite interesting is the relationship between each of the dysfunctions and quite like Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, to move (in that case) towards self-actualisation, you need to conquer each dysfunction to enable the team to continue addressing dysfunctional team behaviour.

The Five Dysfunctions

1. Absence of Trust – Creating invulnerability among team members

2. Fear of Conflict – Leading to artificial harmony rather than productive debate

3. Lack of Commitment – Resulting in ambiguity and unclear direction

4. Avoidance of Accountability – Allowing low standards to persist

5. Inattention to Results – Prioritising status & ego over collective success

Lencioni’s first words in the book (and my favourite) are:

“Not Finance. Not Strategy. Not Technology. It is Teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare”.

Although a fictional fable, it is a really relatable story & even with an outstanding technological offering, its clear to see the impact poor teamwork can have on the success/failure of a company.

So, why should you read this book?

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is, in my opinion is a must read, I actually read the book in one sitting. Lencioni’s fable is a great example of navigating challenges and although maybe not seeing the benefits straight away, reaping the reward of your teams investment longer term. The second half of the book provides a valuable ‘toolkit’ of techniques for addressing & overcoming each of the dysfunctions and something that can be used and revisited time and again, no matter the industry or team.

Publisher: Jossey-Bass

Author: Patrick Lencioni

Publication Date: 2002

Length: 224 pages

The ABC Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️