Successful Business Is All About Creating Successful Teams
I was recently handed an excellent book entitled, “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Patrick Lencioni. It’s an extremely popular book and having read it, I believe there is much to be learned from this insightful author. I will review his analysis, but I invite you all to pick up a copy and practice what he preaches.
His introduction sets the stage with a few comments that we all know are true. He reminds us that this subject–building effective teams– is extremely important and one we all tend to understand and accept but fail to deliver because it is also a very difficult skill to master. Let me quote a bit of his introduction as it makes the point clearly and distinctly:
“Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.”
He goes on to describe his discussions with top CEOs in hugely successful companies, all of whom agree that “If we could get everyone rowing in the same direction, we could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competitor, at any time.”
Why don’t we all create powerful synchronized teams that work together to produce powerful results? Despite all the study, discussion, experimentation and effort in workplaces, on sports teams, wherever people must work together to reach a common goal, it becomes clear that a well-functioning team remains rare and elusive.
“Teams are inherently dysfunctional because they are made up of imperfect human beings,” Lencioni writes. He unveils the five dysfunctions team-building confronts and challenges us all with, stating that the issues are simple to understand but incredibly difficult to master.
They are:
1. The absence of trust between team members, a willingness to be vulnerable. Teammates must be open with each other about their mistakes and weaknesses and be willing to deal with them within the team context. Doing this creates and supports trust. Not doing this prevents trust from occurring and building.
2. Fear of conflict. Teams that lack trust are unwilling to engage in passionate debate and unwilling to reveal themselves and their deep feelings.
3. Lack of commitment. Without trust and a willingness to engage in conflict, team members are reluctant to buy into any team conclusions or decisions.
4. Avoidance of accountability. Without trust and with lack of commitment, accountability is impossible.
5. Failure to hold one another accountable, leads into inattention to results. Here team members put their own needs above those of the team.
It sounds simple but these skills are extremely difficult to deliver, train and produce in order to build a truly functioning team. However, if mastered, the results will be stunning, spectacular and extremely productive.
There is a lot to be learned from this author. I recommend reading and implementing his strategies, as every small business consists of a team of people presumably working towards the same goals. If only they knew how to achieve them, how to work effectively together as a functioning team, how to win.
I see and talk with many small businesses and few, if any, embrace a team approach. Larger businesses do understand the value yet often they simply fail in delivering the concept effectively. Small business fails to understand the value. It’s an important concept which cannot be overlooked. Support your employees to help them reach your goals by developing an effective team approach.
There can be many teams in your business. Some can be based on their unique duties and responsibilities– management, production or sales, for example. Others can be within a segment such as production and sales where there is then the potential of having multiple small teams. This can stimulate wonderful competition and double the creativity and leadership potential through different opinions and strategies. It’s terrific if you have the manpower to generate such an environment.
Take a hard look at your management style and consider implementing teams and allocating greater responsibility to the team leaders and team members. Remember, they are best acquainted with their jobs and thus know what works and what doesn’t work in any given area and you should be listening to them. From any aspect or angle, teams, if working well, are a huge benefit to all.
