ll teams are potentially dysfunctional. This is inevitable because they’re made up of fallible, imperfect human beings. From the factory floor to the basketball court to the executive suite, politics and confusion are more the rule than the exception.

Fortunately, there is hope. Counter to conventional wisdom, the causes of dysfunction are both identifiable and curable. However, they don’t die easily. Making a team functional and cohesive requires levels of courage and discipline that many groups cannot seem to muster.

To begin improving your team and to better understand the level of dysfunction you are facing, ask yourself these simple questions:

• Do team members openly and readily disclose their opinions?
• Are team meetings compelling and productive?
• Does the team come to decisions quickly and avoid getting bogged down by consensus?
• Do team members confront one another about their shortcomings?
• Do team members sacrifice their own interests for the good of the team?

Although no team is perfect and even the best teams sometimes struggle with one or more of these issues, the finest organizations constantly work to ensure that their answers are “yes.” If you answered “no” to many of these questions, your team may need some work.

The first step toward reducing politics and confusion within your team is to understand that there are five dysfunctions to contend with, and address each that applies, one by one.

This occurs when team members are reluctant to be vulnerable with one another and are unwilling to admit their mistakes, weaknesses or needs for help. Without a certain comfort level among team members, a foundation of trust is impossible.

Teams that are lacking on trust are incapable of engaging in unfiltered, passionate debate about issues. Instead, team conflict easily turns into veiled discussions and back channel comments.

Without conflict and putting opinions on the table, it is difficult for team members to commit to decisions, creating an environment where ambiguity prevails.

When teams don’t commit to a clear plan of action, even the most focused and driven individuals hesitate to call their peers on actions and behaviors that seem counterproductive to the overall good of the team.

Team members naturally tend to put their own needs (ego, career development, recognition, etc.) ahead of the collective goals of the team when individuals aren’t held accountable.

Striving to create a functional, cohesive team is one of the few remaining competitive advantages available to any organization looking for a powerful point of differentiation. Functional teams avoid wasting time talking about the wrong issues and revisiting the same topics over and over again because of lack of buy-in.

Functional teams also make higher quality decisions and accomplish more in less time and with less distraction and frustration. Additionally, “A” players rarely leave organizations where they’re part of a cohesive team. Even though creating a functional, cohesive team is not always easy, the rewards are significant.