The Dynamics of Leadership-Team Behavior

Interesting article in BusinessWeek from Jim Collins on the Dynamics of Team-Leadership Behavior. It's actually an excerpt from his latest book "How the Mighty Fall: and Why Some Companies Never Give In."

Anyway ... the Dynamics of Team-Leadership Behavior is divided into leadership behaviors of teams on the way up vs. on the way down:

Teams on the Way Down	Teams on the Way Up
People shield those in power from unpleasant facts, fearful of penalties and criticism for shining light on the rough realities	People bring forth grim facts—"Come here and look, man, this is ugly"—to be discussed; leaders never criticize those who bring forth harsh realities
People assert strong opinions without providing data, evidence, or a solid argument	People bring data, evidence, logic, and solid arguments to the discussion
The team leader has a very low questions-to-statements ratio, avoiding critical input and/or allowing sloppy reasoning and unsupported opinions	The team leader employs a Socratic style, using a high questions-to-statements ratio, challenging people, and pushing for penetrating insights
Team members acquiesce to a decision but don't unify to make the decision successful—or worse, undermine it after the fact	Team members unify behind a decision once made, then work to make the decision succeed, even if they vigorously disagreed with it
Team members seek as much credit as possible for themselves, yet do not enjoy the confidence and admiration of their peers	Each team member credits other people for success, yet enjoys the confidence and admiration of his or her peers
Team members argue to look smart or to further their own interests rather than argue to find the best answers to support the overall cause	Team members argue and debate, not to improve their personal position but to find the best answers to support the overall cause
The team conducts "autopsies with blame," seeking culprits rather than wisdom	The team conducts "autopsies without blame," mining wisdom from painful experiences
Team members often fail to deliver exceptional results and blame other people or outside factors for setbacks, mistakes, and failures	Each team member delivers exceptional results, yet in the event of a setback each accepts full responsibility and learns from mistakes