The Power of “Team” in Business – The First Dysfunction

As I begin to position my coaching practice more into the business world, I am considering what message I really want to get across to the teams that I work with.

How many companies really embrace the notion of teamwork over individual performance? I believe that a team of individuals who work well together can outperform the effort of the collective group of individuals - that is, the synergy of teamwork creates even better results than the collection of individuals possibly could.

I’m currently reading The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni, which outlines a model of teamwork for organizations.  Business teams would be well served to take a look at how they function (as a team) in the following areas:

• Do the team members trust each other?
• How does the team handle conflict or disagreement among the members?
• Has the team created goals for the team as a whole, and how committed is each member to common team goals?
• How accountable is each team member to achieving the common team goals?
• How much attention does the team pay to the overall results of the team as a whole?

I thought I’d look at each ‘dysfunction’ in a separate post; the first is Absence of Trust.  The book provides a simple team assessment - on a scale of 1 to 3 (1=Rarely, 2=Sometimes, 3=Usually), how would you score your team on the following statements?

1. Team members quickly and genuinely apologize to one another when they say or do something inappropriate or possibly damaging to the team.

2. Team members openly admit their weaknesses and mistakes.

3. Team members know about one another’s personal lives and are comfortable discussing them.

What’s your total score?

I’ll come back to discuss each of the dysfunctions further, and let you know what the scoring system says about your scores.  Gives you something to think about in the meantime!

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If you are curious about what Organization and Relationship Systems Coaching can do for you and your business partnership or team, feel free to send me an email at trilogy@pathcom.com to request a complimentary sample session.

Warmly,
Jennifer