Synopses & Reviews
A groundbreaking book that sheds new light on the vital importance of teams as the fundamental unit of organization and competition in the global economy.
Teams—we depend on them for both our professional success and our personal happiness. But isn't it odd how little scrutiny we give them? The teams that make up our lives are created mostly by luck, happenstance, or circumstance—but rarely by design. In trivial matters—say, a bowling team, the leadership of a neighborhood group, or a holiday party committee—success by serendipity is already risky enough. But when it comes to actions by fast-moving start-ups, major corporations, nonprofit institutions, and governments, leaving things to chance can be downright dangerous.
Offering vivid reports of the latest scientific research, compelling case studies, and great storytelling, Team Genius shows managers and executives that the planning, design, and management of great teams no longer have to be a black art. It explores solutions to essential questions that could spell the difference between success and obsolescence. Do you know how to reorganize your subpar teams to turn them into top performers? Can you identify which of the top-performing teams in your company are reaching the end of their life span? Do you have the courage to shut them down? Do you know how to create a replacement team that will be just as effective—without losing time or damaging morale? And, most important, are your teams the right size for the job?
Throughout, Rich Karlgaard and Michael S. Malone share insights and real-life examples gleaned from their careers as journalists, analysts, investors, and globetrotting entrepreneurs, meeting successful teams and team leaders to reveal some "new truths":
- The right team size is usually one fewer person than what managers think they need.
- The greatest question facing good teams is not how to succeed, but how to die.
- Good "chemistry" often makes for the least effective teams.
- Cognitive diversity yields the highest performance gains—but only if you understand what it is.
- How to find the "bliss point" in team intimacy—and become three times more productive.
- How to identify destructive team members before they do harm.
- Why small teams are 40 percent more likely to create a successful breakthrough than a solo genius is.
- Why groups of 7 (± 2), 150, and 1,500 are magic sizes for teams.
Eye-opening, grounded, and essential, Team Genius is the next big idea to revolutionize business.
Review
“With 300,000 team members around the world, thousands of trucks, and hundreds of aircraft, FedEx delivers more than 2 billion packages a year. We can only do this with exceptional teams of people. Team Genius advances our thinking on what makes highly effective and maneuverable teams.” FREDERICK W. SMITH, founder, and chief executive officer, FedEx Corporation
Review
“Team Genius explores a question key for any organization: What causes teams to succeed or fail? Karlgaard and Malone look at how leaders can create conditions for success by embracing differences within teams, bringing out the best in people, and understanding that we are hardwired to collaborate.” ARIANNA HUFFINGTON, founder of Huffington Post Media and author of Thrive
Review
“In Team Genius, [Karlgaard and Malone] explore the numbers game and explain the surprising correlations between success and team size.” Success magazine
Review
“Persuasive and crucial…Team Genius, a splendid example of team achievement, lays out what you need to know about a subject thats becoming more important than ever to an organizations success.” Steve Forbes, < i=""> Forbes <>
Review
“What topic is this dream team of writers bringing us? The very nature and architecture of dream teams-how to think about them, staff and support them, and when to dismantle them and build anew.” 800-CEO-Read
About the Author
Rich Karlgaard is the publisher of Forbes Media, where he writes a featured column, Innovation Rules, covering business and leadership issues. An accomplished entrepreneur as well as journalist and speaker, he is a co-founder of
Upside magazine, Garage Technology Partners and Silicon Valleys premier public business forum, the 7,500-member Churchill Club. Karlgaards 2004 book,
Life 2.0, was a
Wall Street Journal business bestseller. His 2014 book,
The Soft Edge: Where Great Companies Find Lasting Success, made Time.coms list of Top Ten Business Books of 2014. Born in Bismarck, North Dakota, Karlgaard grew up in an athletic family. His father was the athletic director for the Bismarck public school system. Karlgaard ran on the track and cross country teams, which won state championships. Karlgaard graduated from Stanford University with a degree in political science. He is an instrument rated pilot who has flown solo across the U.S. He and his family live in the Silicon Valley area of California.
Michael S. Malone is one of the worlds best-known technology writers. He has covered Silicon Valley and high-tech for more than 25 years, and was twice nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting. He is the author or co-author of more than a dozen award-winning books, notably the best-selling The Virtual Corporation, Bill and Dave, and most recently, The Intel Trinity.