The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: Why Even Great Talents Can Fail
- kristian8120
- Sep 12
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 15
Every leader wants a high-performing team, but what if the biggest threat isn't the competition but the team itself?
For too long, we've treated teamwork like a soft skill, something that just happens with enough potlucks and trust falls.
The hard truth is, most teams are naturally dysfunctional; it's the inevitable state for a group of imperfect human beings.
True team cohesion is a deliberate act of building, and the real win isn't avoiding dysfunction but having the courage and discipline to overcome it.
Derived from Patrick Lencioni's model, we've identified the five foundational dysfunctions that can kill a team's potential. The problems are connected, and they must be solved in a specific order.
Dysfunction 1: Absence of Trust
Let's start at the bottom. The basic issue isn't a lack of skills or resources but a lack of vulnerability. Teams fail when people are unwilling to admit mistakes, show weaknesses, or ask for help without fear of being judged.
Think about it. If you’re constantly guarded and managing your image, how can you ever have a real conversation? This unspoken fear creates an environment where everyone is playing it safe, wasting energy on self-preservation instead of team collaboration. Trust is the non-negotiable foundation. Without it, you’re just a collection of individuals sharing a common space.
Dysfunction 2: Fear of Conflict
Once trust is established, a new challenge emerges: the fear of conflict. We’ve been taught to believe that harmony is the goal. We tell ourselves that to be a "good" team member, we must build a kind and pleasant relationship with the team members. This is a myth.
In reality, the absence of passionate, unfiltered debate about important ideas is a red flag. It’s a sign that people are holding back their best thoughts and opinions to maintain a shallow peace. We're not talking about personal attacks; we're talking about perspective conflict, the kind of argument that forges stronger ideas and better decisions. If your meetings are polite but boring, your team is avoiding the very thing that would make them great.
Dysfunction 3: Lack of Commitment
Once a team has built trust and debated ideas freely, the next step is gaining full commitment. This isn't about perfect consensus; it’s about ensuring every team member feels their voice was heard and valued, leading to clarity and buy-in on the final decision. A lack of this commitment leads to ambiguity and undermines the plan. You can’t be “half-in” on a winning team.
Dysfunction 4: Avoidance of Accountability
This is where commitment gets tested. Accountability is the willingness to confront a peer about their performance or behavior when they're letting the team down. Avoiding this short-term discomfort allows low standards to take root and resentment to fester, ultimately harming the team's shared goals.
The truth is, when you hold a teammate accountable with a shared commitment to the team’s success, you’re showing them that you respect them enough to have the hard responsibility. You're treating them as a peer, not a child.
Dysfunction 5: Inattention to Results
The final, and most common, pitfall is the inattention to results. This is when a team has done the hard work of building trust and alignment, but individuals start putting their own ego, status, or career advancement ahead of the team's collective goals. When the scoreboard is unclear, it’s easy for people to redefine success in personal terms.
A cohesive team measures its success by one thing: winning. When individuals tie their personal success to the team's results, it creates a powerful, unified effort. The path there isn't smooth; it requires the courage to be vulnerable and the discipline to lean into discomfort. But the reward is a team that is not just productive and successful but one that provides pride and fulfillment for every member.
Is your company ready to move from a group of individuals to a truly cohesive team?
Our workshops at ALVIGOR are designed to help you tackle these dysfunctions, building a culture of trust, communication, and accountability. We can also provide you with the Five Dysfunctions Team Assessment to better understand your current team conditions.
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