The New Why Teams Don't Work: What Goes Wrong and How to Make It Right (Paperback)

by Harvey Robbins (Author), Michael Finley (Author) "A generation ago people didn't talk about teams..." (more)
Key Phrases: team tyranny, teaming atmosphere, continuous clarity, The Myth, New York, Same Place (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The move to teams has largely failed, say Harvey Robbins and Michael Finley, mainly because teams themselves are failing to think through the human implications of teaming. The NEW Why Teams Dont Work is a handbook for team members and team leaders to maintain the highest possible level of team intelligencethe skills, attitudes, and emotional flexibility to get the most out of a teams inherent differences.

Describing what teams are really like, not how they ought to be, the book teaches people how to work together to make decisions, stay in budget, and achieve team goals. Robbins and Finley show, for instance, how to get hidden agendas on the table, clarify individual roles, learn what team members expect and want from each other, choose the right decision-making process, and much more.

Updated throughout, the book includes completely new material on team intelligence, team technology, collaboration vs. teamwork, team balance, teams at the top, the team of one, plus all new and updated examples.

From the Publisher
"Why Teams Dont Work is that rarest of beasts: a book of truths."Jim Kane, Amazon.com

"Finley and Robbins set us on a compelling journey to teams success by helping us see and embrace the secrets we often hide from ourselves and our teammates." Richard J. Leider, author of The Power of Purpose and coauthor of Repacking Your Bags

"This is an immensely helpful book. Finley and Robbins show that the secret of great teams isnt found in buzzwords or gimmicks, but in bringing out the best in every individual. Their suggestions are compassionate, yet tough-minded and practical."Robert K. Cooper, Ph.D., author of The Performance Edge and Executive EQ

"Robbins and Finley are provocative writers the read is fast, funny, and highly stimulating."Business Book Review

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Product Details

• Paperback: 271 pages
• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers; 2nd edition (January 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576751104
• ISBN-13: 978-1576751107
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #415,263 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Making Teams Work Right, January 27, 2001

By	Steve Long, Ph.D. (Rutland, MA USA) - See all my reviews

I was first introduced to Robbins & Finley, when I purchased a copy of the audiotape version of the original Why Teams Don't Work a couple of years ago (the book itself was out of print at the time). Like many others, I found the title compelling. Among the endless list of books touting teams as the pancea for all organizational problems, here was a book that provided a fresh, honest look at teams and their all-too-human members.

For those who have never been exposed to the original book, you are in for a real treat! In this new version, Robbins & Finley present the real-life lessons of teamwork that most of us have learned the hard way with all the wit and social satire of a Mark Twain novel. For those that have experienced the original book, you will find all of the wit and wisdom of the original plus some delightful new insights into human behavior in teams. The section on team myths alone is worth purchasing the new book.

I highly recommend the book to team members everywhere who struggle in the trenches to get their teams on track while juggling the performance demands of today's fast moving organizations. As Robbins and Finley point out, teams are a natural vehicle for human accomplishment but effective teams don't happen by accident. Or, as Forrest Gump might say, "Bubba told me a lot about teamwork, but you know what I learned, teamwork is hard."

The book may not turn your current team around, but it will certainly give you the insight to understand what went wrong and how to make it right next time.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's not just for business, October 20, 2000

By	Ann Shaftel (North Hills, Ca USA) - See all my reviews

The insights that Robbins and Finley present are applicable in any area where people must work together toward a common goal. As an educator, I plan to share them with my fellow faculty members.

12 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The Same Fluff You May Already Know, April 11, 2001

By	"bcs5e4" (Columbia, MO United States) - See all my reviews

I started off with a great deal of hope for this book, and nearly finished with it I am very disappointed. If I would have sat down before I read this book and listed some common sense principles related to teams, I would have put down about 90% of the concepts in this book. That doesn't necessairly bother me about this book, because business isn't always rocket science. The problem is the book is long on fluffy discussions, and short on the nuts and bolts aspect. What studies support their assertions, what does the research say about teams? Even beyond that, give me some ideas for how to accomplish what you say about teams. Give some kind of practical use, or practical application of your theories. I think what was the final straw for me, was when they began rehashing some basic motivational theories withouth mentioning them by name, or even fully discussing them. This book tries to be a lot more than its title proclaims it to be, or it is capable of being. Robbins is a psychologist, who I thought would really be able to add some understanding to what goes on in teams. Unfortunately, that is all but absent from this book. Finley, appears to be one of the dime-a-dozen business writers who reword common concepts and try to resell them. Most of the book winds up blaming management for the cause of team failure instead of helping people become more effective teammates. I usually stick to reading books about specific companies, because those contain real world examples and are usually written by much more credible sources. I strayed in this case, and got burned. Hopefully you won't. If you have an MBA, skip this book, you have already heard it.