CHAPTER 3WHAT’S HAPPENED TO TEAM SPIRIT?

Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision, the ability to direct individual accomplishment toward organizational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results.

—Andrew Carnegie

We all pretty much know what a team is. We learned about teams early on in school or in the context of a sport. In fact, we talk more about teams in a sports context than in any other. But, according to Patrick Lencioni in The Advantage, “Teamwork is not a virtue. It is a choice—and a strategic one.”1

Now more than ever, work in the knowledge economy is frequently done by teams. The big difference between a work team and a sports team is at work, the team doesn’t come together ...

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