The Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Patrick Lencioni

There are a lot of books claiming to have the magic pill for corporate heath. Most of the books you will read in this genre focus on the leader. What attributes a leader exhibits to inspire their team to follow and put forth that extra effort.

The leaders role is to create and preserve an environment in which the team members can interact successfully. The environment in which the team functions is paramount to their success or failure. Patrick argues that the individuals must be able to act according to their conscience. They must be able to engage in conflict with one another and have no fear of repercussions as a result.

This is one of the most striking and compelling contentions made. Conflict is a necessary part of the team dynamic. Without conflict there can be no constructive progress. Conflict accelerates development. Development of the individuals and of the team as a whole. Of course the conflict must be managed. It needs to be focused on ideas and not individuals.

Patrick begins by telling the story of a team. Most of the book is about a project the team is tackling. Patrick calls this the "Leadership Fable." It is an integral part of his communication method. After the fable, he introduces the dysfunctions and how they can be challenged. When you then think back on the story, it is easy to envision how to apply his lesson in your own team environment.

There are very few books on leadership that are worth reading. This, fortunately, is one of them. Give it a read and see if there are any lessons you can take away.