When Teams Work Best
6,000 Team Members and Leaders Tell What it Takes to Succeed
- Frank LaFasto - Sr. VP Cardinal Health, Retired
- Carl Larson - University of Denver, USA
"Highly readable. . .convincing. . .a must for academic collections and required reading for professionals seeking to maximize human performance and team productivity."
--Choice Magazine, Feb. 2002
What makes some teams achieve extraordinary outcomes, while other fall disappointingly short of the mark?
Frank LaFasto and Carl Larson have systematically explored that question for more than 20 years. In 1989, they published the best-selling book TeamWork; What Must Go Right/What Can Go Wrong, which reported the results of an in-depth study of some of the most successful teams in recent history and identified the eight characteristics of high performance teams.
When Teams Work Best advances this groundbreaking research by probing more deeply inside the workings of hundred of teams—some effective and some faltering. For over a decade, the authors collected and analyzed responses from more than 6,000 team members and leaders across a variety of industries, in both public and private sectors, to find out exactly what conditions help or hinder teams in achieving their goals. The voices of these team members—often eloquent, always enlightening—are heard through the quotations that appear throughout the book.
With extensive experience coaching and consulting with teams, LaFasto and Larson bring a valuable real-life perspective to their examination of the rich and often intriguing complexity behind effective teamwork. This book goes far beyond the theoretical to offer proven, practical advice that team members and leaders can easily apply to bring out the very best in their own teams.
When teams work best, the work is rewarding, outcomes inspiring and accomplishments abounds. Order your copy today!
"Frank LaFasto and Carl Larson have done it again! After building a useful framework for team performance in TeamWork they have gone on to collect and analyze exhaustive data that enriches and extends their original work. When Teams Work Best is a gem of a book…. you can’t help but find it useful in today’s organizational world."
"LaFasto and Larson offer a tour de force on what makes teams successful. Building on sound theory and relying on extensive research, they offer specific, practical tools that will deliver team value. Team members, business leaders, and organization consultants should not only read, but use this work."
"When Teams Work Best provides solid practical advice and tools for improving the effectiveness of all teams…. CEO’s take note, this one’s blunt, useful, and refreshing."
"This book makes collaboration a vivid and workable concept."
"Too often, books on teamwork emphasize either applications over theory or theory over application; LaFasto and Larson have effectively combined a fine balance of the two that effectively details both the ‘why’ and the ‘how to’…. An excellent resource for graduate and advanced undergraduate coursework in team development."
"Duke Hospital has benefited from the ideas LaFasto and Larson present in this book and is a better organization because of it."
"highly readable. . .convincing. . .a must for academic collections and required reading for professionals seeking to maximize human performance and team productivity."
When Teams Work Best: 6000 Team Members and Leaders Tell What it Takes to Succeed by Frank LaFasto and Carl Larson is a practical, ‘user friendly’ guide to the harnessing power of cooperation and teamwork for increased productivity and effectiveness. Individual chapters address what makes a good team member, what makes a good leader, problem solving methodologies, and how to best promote confidence and trust. When Teams Work Best is very highly recommended for anyone charged with the corporate responsibility for cultivating business group work skills!
The authors have produced an eminently practical guide to success in collaborative teamwork.
Great empirical overview of teams and the critical functions within a team.