The Five Dysfunctions — and What to Do Instead: A systemic rethink of team underperformance

You know the feeling.

You’ve put smart, talented people in a room - but something’s still off. Meetings drift. Frustrations simmer. Commitments are made but quietly avoided. And slowly, the team begins to lose heart.

Patrick Lencioni called it over 20 years ago: most teams fall into five predictable dysfunctions - absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results.

If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone.

But what if the problem isn’t just dysfunction? What if the problem is the system?

Systemic Insight: Dysfunction is a symptom, not the disease

The 5 x 5 Model® offers a different lens. It sees team dysfunction not as individual failure, but as the inevitable result of missing systemic functions. When a team lacks psychological safety, misalignment thrives. When structure is vague, goals become pointless. Culture defaults to survival.

The five essential team functions - Intentional Culture, Psychological Safety, Team Alignment, Defined Structure, and Collaborative Goal Setting - work together to build teams that can think, feel and act together.

No one function is a silver bullet. But together, they address the root of dysfunction - not just the symptoms.

Practical Shifts to Break the Pattern

1. Replace 'trust-building' with Secure Base relationships→ Start 1:1 conversations that explicitly invite challenge, reflection, and mutual support.

2. Stop assuming 'alignment' exists→ Facilitate a “Knowing Me / Knowing Us” session to map team purpose and shared identity.

3. Diagnose your team systemically→ Use the 5 x 5 domains to assess: Where are you strong? Where is the dysfunction creeping in?

Reflection Prompt:

“Which of the five dysfunctions is showing up in your team - and which of the five essential functions might be missing?”

Closing Note:

The 5 x 5 Model® reminds us: teams are relational systems, not machines. Repairing dysfunction starts with restoring the relational processes that make collaboration possible.