From Groups to Teams: The Dynamics of Collaboration

What makes some groups thrive while others crash and burn? According to organizational-behavior scholar Colin Fisher, the real villains are rarely individuals, but dysfunctional teams and organizations. Listen as he and EconTalk's Russ Roberts discuss the reasons for the free-rider problem and the importance of meaningful, well-defined tasks to incentivize synergy. They speak about why most team-building exercises are usually a waste of time, and why the best way to build trust is simply to do the work. Finally, they explore the role of great leaders from Steve Jobs to Bill Belichick in elevating groups into teams, and offer lessons from history's great projects for increasing productivity.