Why do so many teams fail to live up to their promise? Because of the obstinate belief that human beings are rational entities. And because team designers fail to take into account the subtle, unconscious dynamics that influence human behavior.

Coaches, consultants, and executives working with groups and teams are often alerted to the elephants in the room—but what about the hedgehogs? The great German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer drew an analogy between humans’ and hedgehogs’ discomfort with social proximity. In cold weather, hedgehogs cluster together for warmth but soon find that their spines hurt each other. Yet when they withdraw, they very quickly get cold again. Eventually, after a lot of shuffling, they find the optimum distance for warmth and comfort. For human hedgehogs, this conundrum — our simultaneous need for closeness and distance — is a fundamental reason why people often find it so difficult to work successfully in groups and teams.

However, the ability to work well in teams is essential in modern organizations and the price tag of dysfunctional teams can be staggering.

This is what Pat Lencioni has in mind when identifying five of the most common dysfunctions of a team:

o Absence of Trust
o Fear of Conflict
o Lack of Commitment
o Avoidance of Accountability
o Inattention to Results

So, what’s the secret sauce?

According to Schopenhauer: Establish and then sustain the right “distance” between and among members of the given team, thus accommodating their need for community (i.e. working together) and space (i.e. individuality). According to Lencioni: Obviously, avoid the five dysfunctions. Establish and then nourish a foundation for collaboration based on mutual trust, principled dissent, personal/group commitment, personal/group accountability, and rigorous focus on what is done and how it is done to achieve the given objectives.

It’s as easy…and yes, as difficult…as that.

Additional sources? I highly recommend Michael O’Malley’s The Wisdom of Bees: What the Hive Can Teach Business About Leadership, Efficiency, and Growth. Also, Organizing Genius: The Secrets of Creative Collaboration, co-authored by Warren Bennis and Patricia Ward Biederman.