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In the pursuit of performance, CEOs and top executives often overlook a critical factor in organizational success: the health of their leadership team.
As Harvard Business Review writes, that’s a big problem because a dysfunctional team can drag a strategy’s execution and erode morale.
Leadership teams tend to exhibit one of the three patterns of dysfunction: shark tanks, petting zoos and mediocracy.
With a shark tank, teams are exhibiting infighting and focusing on political maneuvering, while with a petting zoo tends to avoid conflict and overemphasis collaboration. In mediocracy, teams are characterized by complacency, a lack of competence and a focus on past success.
The only way to settle things down in a shark tank is to locate the sharks— often one or two people whose self-serving behaviors are turning collaboration into cutthroat competition. Managers need to confront the individuals and make them aware of the effects of their behavior.
On the other hand, changing behaviors in a petting zoo requires a different approach from what’s required with a shark tank. Managers will need to encourage more conflict among members of the leadership team, in the form of constructively critical debate.
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