Dig deeper: How to build and maintain client trust in your agency
Dysfunction 4: Avoidance of accountability
When this happens, peers don’t hold each other accountable. Because doing so can be uncomfortable or awkward.
While agency life may not come to mind when thinking of this dysfunction, sports teams might – just imagine how the world’s best athletes must hold each other accountable.
Questions to consider
Do team members end discussions with clear next steps and commitments?
Is your team clear on relevant details and aligned on completion dates when they make and accept requests?
Do they worry about the prospect of letting down their peers?
Agency or team impact
No one enjoys holding their peers’ feet to the fire, but in some of the highest-performing teams, that’s exactly what happens.
When working on accounts involving multiple team members, everyone must do their part – and sometimes, that requires calling people out when something drops.
If not, it can lead to resentment and frustration, as high performers don’t want to carry the load of their underperforming peers.
It also can lead to a lack of trust, which takes you back to step 1 or the lowest rung of the pyramid.
How to begin addressing it
Reward the team for achieving goals and clarify exactly what is expected from each team member and by when. Use clear requests to get desired results.
For example, instead of saying:
“We could really use some fresh ideas…”
Make a clearer request, such as:
“I want everyone to bring two new ideas to Thursday’s 3 o’clock meeting and be prepared to discuss them. Raise your hand if you will do that.”
Dysfunction 5: Inattention to results
When this dysfunction is present, people are more focused on their individual goals than the goals of the larger organization or team.
There is less focus on succeeding as a group, which may mean that most work is short-term focused and less attention is given to items that will take longer but perhaps make more of a long-term impact.
Questions to consider
Do team members stay focused on proactive activities or are they spending most of their time on reactive ones?
Does the team adequately balance short- and long-term goals to meet objectives?
If there’s a goal set, does everyone take it seriously? Are people a little let down if goals are missed?
Agency or team impact
Juggling work for many clients can be taxing and require incredible time management skills.
Rather than paying attention to overarching team (or client) goals, teams focus on their part of the project or the task at hand without looking at the macro impact.
Essentially, it’s a form of looking at the trees but not considering the forest. This can lead to making a lot of changes to programs that are immaterial and don’t move the needle.
Similarly, for departments or leadership teams, it can lead to maintaining the status quo – not bad per se, but not as optimal as it could be.
How to address it
Have leaders set the tone about which results matter and commit publicly to the team’s goals.
Provide transparent goals, KPIs and data throughout teams. Having the same information makes it easier for everyone to align with common goals.
Eliminate dysfunction in agencies
As you look around you and consider the different teams within your organization or immediate peers, you may notice that each is operating in a slightly different stage of Lencioni’s 5 Dysfunctions.
Consider exploring this model with your most trusted peers to identify where to focus first to elevate your group’s and, ultimately, your client’s performance.
Dig deeper: How to build a values-based agency that drives results
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