The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

A Leadership Fable

By: Patrick Lencioni

Narrated by: Charles Stransky; introduction by Patrick Lencioni

Length: 3 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

In keeping with the parable style, Patrick Lencioni 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.

Building a cohesive team is not complicated, declares Lencioni. Departing from the dry, theoretical writing of many management books, he presents his case in the context of a fictional organization, and in doing so succeeds at communicating his ideas. The scenarios are recognizable and can be applied anywhere teamwork is involved, whether it is a multinational company, a small department within a larger organization, or a sports team. At the end of the story, the main points are summarized, and clearly expressed suggestions and exercises are offered to help bring about change. Concise and easy to follow, this program is recommended for anyone who is a member of a team that needs improvement.

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team is also available in print from Wiley.

©2002 Patrick Lencioni
(P)2002 Random House Inc.

Critic reviews

"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 Amos, president and CEO, Mail Boxes Etc.)

Wonderful book for ALL persons committed to team s

This book was extremely easy to understand and very helpful in organizing my thinking as a leader of a team. I am excited to share these ideas with my team and the other officers of our organization

Some books are better in print

This is a good book with lots of good advice, but the spoken version is missing the exercises, the charts and the graphs.

If the author had provided a website (or if Audible can shoot me to a page that supports the book) where I could have gone to get the additional material so obviously missing from this version it would be worth the price, but it's seriously flawed as presented.

This is a reference book -- something I'd want to return to again and again. There's no way to do that with the Audible version -- no way to bookmark a section. I can at least do that with a e-book or printed version.

Based on this experience with "how to" books in spoken format, I'll have to drop this type of book from my audio listening pleasure.

Great stuff it's short but requires a second go...

The second part is gold so take notes if possible. The story is very relavant to today's issues, this is a must read for leaders, coaches and managers.

Use of a fictional story to teach the methods really works

Patrick Lencioni’s method of using a fictional to teach the 5 dysfunctions of a team is excellent and very effective. The characters were all very realistic and mimic the type of personalities we all come across especially in the typical business setting. Seeing how the main character leads these characters provide a valuable insight and guidance on methods to treat these personalities in real life. This book was already recommended reading on many professional development list and it is definitely worth the read.

Also, Charles Stransky does an excellent job as the narrator and makes listening to the fictional story a joy.

Great Help

loved the book.
really interesting
will be looking at quiet a few changes
thanks you

Teamwork, a rare thing...

Great way to express the path to synergy from a collection of individuals. Awesome and effective.

A must read for all execs

A must read for all execs. I wish only I read it 15 years ago.

good listen and applicable examples

enjoyed listening to the story. some parts drug on unnecessarily. called out good points and provide examples.

An exceptional read!

Went beyond my expectations. Not only teaches you the five dysfunctions, but also teaches the application of repairing the dysfunctions through the use of characters.

surprised!

I was unaware of the book format prior to starting audible but it was great!