Jul 28, 2021
Summary:
Today we analyze Patrick Lencioni’s “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team '' and discuss how to apply these principles in everyday agency life. We use a pyramid to model these 5 concepts because each level builds on the next. The foundation of the pyramid is trust. Everyone knows the saying “There is no relationship without trust”, and this also applies to business. The next level is healthy conflict. Healthy conflict is important because it allows your employees to freely share their differing opinions which can promote fresh ideas and more unity. The third segment is commitment. Without commitment to the company, an employee views their job as simply a paycheck. This can stunt initiative and growth. The fourth layer is accountability. Accountability is key to help your team get on the same page. Last but not least, the top of the pyramid is attention to results. In order to promote attention to results, all four components, as well as some inspiration and a team mindset, must be part of your agency. These 5 principles are essential to create a more cohesive team.
Top 5 Curtain Pulls in this episode:
For more tips, discussion, and behind the scenes:
About The Guys:
Bob Hutchins: Founder of BuzzPlant, a digital agency that he ran from 2000-2017. He is also the author of 3 books. More on Bob:
Brad Ayres: Founder of Anthem Republic, an award-winning ad agency. Brad’s knowledge has led some of the biggest brands in the world. Originally from Detroit, Brad is an OG in the ad agency world and has the wisdom and scars to prove it. Currently, that knowledge is being applied to his boutique agency. More on Brad:
Ken Ott: Co-Founder and Chief Growth Rebel of Metacake, an Ecommerce Growth Team for some of the world’s most influential brands with a mission to Grow Brands That Matter. Ken is also an author, speaker, and was nominated for an Emmy for his acting on the Metacake Youtube Channel (not really). More on Ken:
Show Notes:
[0:51] Bob opens today’s episode by talking about the book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.
[1:29] Bob breaks down The Five Dysfunctions of a Team and uses a pyramid to analyze the five main principles. “At the very bottom, the foundation is trust. The next one up is conflict, then commitment, accountability, and results.”“So the Five Dysfunctions of an organization of a business of a team, would be an absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results.”
[3:50] Ken asks how to create trust inside of your team.
[4:00] Brad says that vulnerability is important to promote trust.
[4:30] Bob talks about the importance of honesty and humility when trying to build trust.
“If people see me mess up or, or just kind of cut a corner, but I never fess up to it. They're not gonna trust me with that.”
[5:56] Brad says that “another way to build trust is to have some wins with your team so that they can trust your your leadership”
[7:50] Bob talks about the next dysfunction, which is the fear of conflict.
[8:43] Brad mentions the role personality plays in the fear of conflict. “I hate conflict, and I think Ken loves it.”
[10:13] Brad says that the conflict level on the pyramid isn’t about angry conflict or competition. Rather, “it's about the freedom for your employees to feel like they can bring up something without feeling like they're inferior”
[11:07] Bob talks about promoting an environment where people feel safe and the best ideas win out.
[12:54] Bob applies the fear of conflict in business to the relational side of life as an analogy to show the importance of healthy conflict. “Say with your partner or significant other, you don't trust each other enough to argue, to fight, and to have passionate disagreements in your relationship. I would argue you have a very dysfunctional unhealthy relationship.”
[13:34] Ken discusses the importance of knowing the personalities of the people on your team.
[17:30] Bob moves on to the next level of the pyramid, commitment. Lack of commitment is when, “they don't feel personally connected in any way. In other words, I don't trust people that are here, I don't feel safe enough to really say when i disagree with situations”
[19:50] Bob continues up the pyramid to the next stage, which is accountability.
[20:29] Brad talks about the required balance and challenges when having accountability in an agency.
[21:27] Ken discusses his experience with accountability in his business and offers a few tips.
“one of the things that we've done that helps accountability is this daily stand up that we do in the morning. And it's where everyone comes, having thought through what their day is going to look like and what they're going to accomplish.”“it has been it is a game changer. One of the benefits is it creates a starting line.”
[25:27] Bob talks about the final dysfunction of a team, inattention to results. “If a team has lost sight of the need for achievement, the business ultimately suffer.”
[27:11] Bob illustrates that when a business puts the other 4 foundational principles into practice to improve their team, it can “foster an environment where people will care about the results.”
[35:20] Bob wraps up today’s episode by talking about the benefits of having a cohesive team.