“The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable” by Patrick Lencioni.

Lencioni’s book outlines the five typical dysfunctions that teams commonly face and how to understand and overcome them. The core issues that the book reveals are the potential consequences of organizational bureaucracy and teams’ lack of success. Unlike traditional business books, Lencioni conveys his message throughout a simple story regarding a high-powered executive whose future in the company depends on her ability to unite a complex team. During the story, the five dysfunctions of teams are revealed: absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of responsibility, and inattention to results. In addition, Lencioni points to a series of steps to be followed in order to avoid these widespread dysfunctions and be able to function effectively as a team.

The successful functioning of teams and how to achieve this is of great significance in today’s business world. Employers are increasingly searching for employees with the ability to adapt to changing situations as well as to work well with different people from various religions, ethnicities, languages, cultures and political and economic standings. This book has implications for a vast quantity of people ranging from professors in universities, to managers, to global organizations. It is highly likely that at one point or another of any given person’s life, the need to work fruitfully in a team will arise and Lencioni’s book offers a clear guide of the shortcomings that should be avoided.

Going into more depth regarding what Patrick Lencioni considers to be the five dysfunctions teams usually engage in, lack of trust he describes as the first one. This dysfunction alludes to the fact that team members are usually uncomfortable in exposing their vulnerabilities and weaknesses as well as asking for help. Next he refers to the fear of conflict as reluctance to engage in passionate debates with each other regarding important issues. The inability to commit is the third dysfunction and it describes how individuals in team typically doubt themselves which makes decision-making a difficult task. The fourth he explains as the unwillingness to hold one another accountable, and finally the inattention to results which refers to team members putting their individual needs ahead of the collective goals.

In all probability, we have all seen these characteristics transmit themselves when engaging in teamwork and though they might sound trivial at first glance, if they are kept in mind throughout the project then Lencioni argues they can easily be avoided. In addition to the fable that incorporates the dysfunctions, Lencioni provides readers with a questionnaire in order to evaluate their own teams and includes some specifics that will assist team members to both be aware of and overcome these common shortcomings.