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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

A Leadership Fable

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The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

Written by: Patrick Lencioni
Narrated by: Charles Stransky; introduction by Patrick Lencioni
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About this listen

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.
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What the critics say

"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.)

What listeners say about The Five Dysfunctions of a Team

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simplicity of learning concepts

being in a story from, it is very easy to understand the concepts and how they can effect a team and how to overcome them. so much easier to absorb than typical team leadership books

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Amazingly relatable

Short but a wonderful job done trying to communicate a point using a fictional story. Albeit fictional, the story is extremely relatable and the tensions in the story is fully palpable and completely believable. Highly recommend, definitely will learn something from this story despite the conciseness of the book.

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Great listen

Enjoyed the situational approach. Made it very easy to follow along while driving and compare to real life scenarios.

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very well explained

The story was really well made for us to understand the 5 dysfunctions of a team. all the example used in this are relatable to personal experience. I will recommend this book to many co-workers. I like that even at CEO/VPs level, they realized that spending time on creating a good team is better than let everyone do their own piece of business on their own

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Good book, worth a read.

The first half of the book is a story about a fictional company with certain characters in it. The second half of the book explores the actual five disfunctions of a team and as a leader, how you can deal with them.

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Must read for managers!

Great audiobook for managers, short and very practical. Very insightful and tells you key things to focus on to improve your team performance and culture.

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Actionable advice to get the most from your team.

Many books are full of fluff and advice that you can’t actually implement. What I like about this book was that the advice was practical. It gave me tools that I can utilize to identify where my team needs to improve where I need to improve as a leader, and how to help my team become the best that I can be.

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100% worth your time

Eloquently told and great info. I highly recommend this book and the narrator deserves a raise :)

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Would read again. great book

this is a great book with a great story, easy read with good examples. highly recommend. great for all types of managers

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Short & Powerdul

I love the way lessons were weaved in as a story. The author might as well have been talking about my team.

Great listen.. going into my regular rotation.

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