Review
“Lencioni is fast defining the next generation of leadership thinkers.”—Ken Blanchard, coauthor, The One Minute Manager ä and Full Steam Ahead


Book Description
In the years following the publication of Patrick Lencioni’s best-seller The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, fans have been clamoring for more information on how to implement the ideas outlined in the book. In Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Lencioni offers more specific, practical guidance for overcoming the Five Dysfunctions—using tools, exercises, assessments, and real-world examples. He examines questions that all teams must ask themselves: Are we really a team? How are we currently performing? Are we prepared to invest the time and energy required to be a great team? Written concisely and to the point, this guide gives leaders, line managers, and consultants alike the tools they need to get their teams up and running quickly and effectively.


From the Back Cover
Based on the New York Times best-selling book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

"Lencioni is fast defining the next generation of leadership thinkers." —Ken Blanchard, coauthor, The One Minute Manager™ and Full Steam Ahead

In the years following the publication of Patrick Lencioni's best-seller The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, fans have been clamoring for more information on how to implement the ideas outlined in the book.

In Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Lencioni offers more specific, practical guidance for overcoming the Five Dysfunctions—using tools, exercises, assessments, and real-world examples. He examines questions that all teams must ask themselves: Are we really a team? How are we currently performing? Are we prepared to invest the time and energy required to be a great team?

Written concisely and to the point, this guide gives leaders, line managers, and consultants alike the tools they need to get their teams up and running quickly and effectively.


About the Author
Patrick Lencioni is president of The Table Group, a San Francisco Bay Area management consulting firm, and he is the author of several best-selling books. Learn more about Pat and his firm at www.tablegroup.com.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
This informative book focuses on the problems and conflicts that often prevent teams from working together to achieve their stated goals. As he has done in works such as The Five Temptations of a CEO and The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive, Lencioni couches his insights in narrative form: This time, he focuses on a fictional high-tech Silicon Valley start-up that has much potential but is burden by executives whose egos seem to be constantly clashing. The board brings in a talented CEO, Kathryn Peterson, whose experience lies mainly in manufacturing. How she wins over her executive team, who are wary of her nontechnological background, is the crux of the book -- and we become flies on the wall in three very dramatic but realistic off-site meetings that Peterson conducts with her direct reports in order to deal with the company's chronic problems.

After this fable, Lencioni provides a practical discussion of the methods Peterson used. The five dysfunctions of the title -- lack of trust, fear of conflict, unwillingness to commit, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results -- are ones that many leaders will recognize, but few will know exactly how to fix. Although Peterson￯﾿ﾽs Yoda-like wisdom may seem unrealistic to some, the universality of the issues she confronts will ultimately win you over.

This work is easily devoured in one sitting, and you may find yourself doing just that. Clearly, Lencioni￯﾿ﾽs fable and the ensuing discussion are drawn from his experience as the president of a Bay Area management consulting firm, but even not knowing that, you￯﾿ﾽll appreciate the wisdom of his teachings. If you￯﾿ﾽre a member of a leadership team, this will prove to be an invaluable book. (Holly McGuire)

Holly McGuire is a book editor and consultant based in Chicago, Illinois.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

After her first two weeks observing the problems at Decision Tech, Kathryn Petersen, its new CEO, had more than a few moments when she wondered if she should have taken the job. But Kathryn knew there was little chance she would have turned it down. After all, retirement had made her antsy, and nothing excited her more than a challenge. What she could not have known when she accepted the job, however, was just how dysfunctional her team was, and how team members would challenge her in ways that no one ever had before. Kathryn Petersen, Decision Tech's CEO, faces the ultimate leadership crisis: uniting a team that is in such disarray that it threatens to bring down the entire company. Will she succeed? Will she be fired? Will the company fail? Lencioni's riveting tale serves as a timeless reminder that leadership requires as much courage as it does insight. Throughout the story, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions that go to the very heart of why teams -- even the best ones -- often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team. Just as with his other books, Lencioni has written a compelling fable with a deceptively simple yet powerful message for all those who strive to be exceptional team leaders.

SYNOPSIS

Praise for Patrick Lencioni

"A gripping analysis of what makes teams work effectively. This fine work is a must-read for any leader that has come to grips with the fact that no one makes progress—much less succeeds—alone." —James H. Amos Jr., president and CEO, Mail Boxes Etc.

"Every manager and executive will recognize themselves somewhere in this book. Lencioni distills the problems that keep even the most talented teams from realizing their full potential. Even more important, he shows—in prose that is crisp, clear, and fun to read—how to solve them." —Geoffrey A. Moore, chairman, The Chasm Group; author, Crossing the Chasm, Inside the Tornado, and Living on the Fault Line

"This book is as thought-provoking, insightful, and rich with ideas as The Five Temptations of a CEO. I’ve used it with my team and it works!" —Phillip J. Hildebrand, executive vice president and chief distribution officer, New York Life Insurance Company

"Compelling and incisive, this will become the definitive guide on how to build and manage successful teams." —Jean Kovacs, president and CEO, Comergent Technologies

"As practical, readable and compelling as his other books. I’m sure this will be another business classic." —Richard Carr, president and CEO, TEC International

After her first two weeks observing the problems at DecisionTech, Kathryn Petersen, its new CEO, had more than a few moments when she wondered if she should have taken the job. But Kathryn knew there was little chance she would have turned it down. After all, retirement had made her antsy, and nothing excited her more than a challenge. What she could not have known when she accepted the job, however, was just how dysfunctional her team was, and how team members would challenge her in ways that no one ever had before.

In The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, Patrick Lencioni once again offers a leadership fable that is as enthralling and instructive as his first two best-selling books, The Five Temptations of a CEO and The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive. This time, he turns his keen intellect and storytelling power to the fascinating, complex world of teams.

Kathryn Petersen, DecisionTech’s CEO, faces the ultimate leadership crisis: uniting a team that is in such disarray that it threatens to bring down the entire company. Will she succeed? Will she be fired? Will the company fail? Lencioni’s riveting tale serves as a timeless reminder that leadership requires as much courage as it does insight.

Throughout the story, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions that go to the very heart of why teams—even the best ones—often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team.

Just as with his other books, Lencioni has written a compelling fable with a deceptively simple yet powerful message for all those who strive to be exceptional team leaders.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

In keeping with the parable style, Lencioni (The Five Temptations of a CEO) begins by telling the fable of a woman who, as CEO of a struggling Silicon Valley firm, took control of a dysfunctional executive committee and helped its members succeed as a team. Story time over, Lencioni offers explicit instructions for overcoming the human behavioral tendencies that he says corrupt teams (absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability and inattention to results). Succinct yet sympathetic, this guide will be a boon for those struggling with the inherent difficulties of leading a group. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

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