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Senior Leadership Teams Wageman

Great senior leadership teams are not born but built, by CEOs who deliberately establish three essential and three enabling conditions that increase the odds—though never guarantee—that a group of high-powered executives will collaborate to lead their enterprise superbly.

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What it’s about

Drawing on a systematic study of more than 120 top teams from around the world, Senior Leadership Teams dismantles the myth of the heroic CEO and shows that leading a complex enterprise increasingly outstrips the capacity of any single person. Yet most CEOs stumble when creating a leadership team, wrongly assuming that talented 'thoroughbreds' will automatically work well together. The authors argue that a chief executive cannot make a team great but can put in place six conditions that dramatically increase the chances of greatness: three essentials (a real team, a compelling purpose, the right people) and three enablers (a solid structure, a supportive context, competent coaching). With vivid case examples—from Unilever Foodsolutions to AeroMexico to Applebee's to IBM—the book provides concrete, research-grounded guidance for deciding whether you even need a team, articulating a clear purpose, composing membership, structuring interaction, resourcing the team, and coaching it at the right times. Nearly half the variation in senior team performance is explained by these conditions, making the book an indispensable, practical alternative lens for anyone who leads at the top.

The through-line

Who it’s for: A chief executive (or senior executive, or adviser to executive teams) who wants to lead their enterprise successfully amid accelerating change and complexity that outstrips any one person's capacity.
The problem: A collection of high-powered senior executives who focus on their individual roles, pull in different directions, and fail to coalesce into a real leadership team that can move the organization forward. The leader feels frustrated, angry, and increasingly resigned, convinced that dysfunction at the top is inevitable when you bring together a group of thoroughbreds.
The plan: First, decide whether you genuinely need—and want—a real leadership team, and what type (informational, consultative, coordinating, or decision-making).
Create a compelling purpose that is consequential, challenging, and above all clear.
Get the right people on the team and the wrong ones off, seeking empathy, integrity, conceptual thinking, and an executive-leader self-image.
Give the team a solid structure: keep it small, assign meaningful tasks, and establish few, clear, enforced norms.
Provide supportive context: rewards, information, education, and material resources tailored to the team's challenges.
The payoff: A real team whose members are invested in each other's success and learn from one another as they define and realize organizational objectives. · Faster, better collective decisions, aligned execution, and a team that grows increasingly capable over time. · Individual members who develop as leaders and are delighted to be part of the team.

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Related profiles we’ve built

Additional reading

Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) · Kenneth W. Thomas and Ralph H. Kilmann
The book mentions this as a useful tool for helping team members understand their natural inclinations around conflict, which is directly relevant to overcoming the 'Fear of Conflict' dysfunction.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) · Isabel Myers and Katharine Briggs
The book recommends this as one of the most effective tools for building trust by helping team members understand and empathize with each other's personality styles and behavioral preferences.
The Chrysanthemum and the Sword · Ruth Benedict
Quoted in the epigraph to highlight the long-standing problem of cultures misunderstanding one another due to a lack of knowledge about their core characteristics.
The Moral Animal · Robert Wright
Quoted in the epigraph to support the idea that humans are 'puppets' of deeper forces and that understanding the 'puppeteer' (i.e., the Culture Code) is a form of liberation.
Incredibly American · Marilyn R. Zuckerman and Lewis J. Hatala
Mentioned as a book developed from the author's work with AT&T and the American Quality Foundation on the American code for quality.
Group Process and Productivity · Ivan Steiner
The book's concepts of 'process losses' (like social loafing) and the non-linear relationship between group size and productivity are foundational to Hackman's arguments about designing an enabling team structure.
The Social Psychology of Organizations · Daniel Katz and Robert Kahn
Cited for the concept of 'equifinality,' which underpins Hackman's assertion that there is no one single 'right' leadership style, but rather many paths to creating effective conditions.
Paradoxes of Group Life · Kenwyn Smith and David Berg
This work is cited to support the idea that groups are complex, non-obvious systems where leaders must manage inherent tensions (e.g., individual vs. group, authority vs. democracy), a core theme in Hackman's analysis of leadership.
Leadership without Easy Answers · Ronald Heifetz
Cited to support the view that leadership is an emotionally demanding and risky activity that requires courage and the ability to manage anxiety, rather than just applying technical solutions.
Experiences in Groups · W. R. Bion
Cited as foundational work on the unconscious dynamics of groups, especially their reactions to authority, which informs Hackman's perspective on the challenges of exercising leadership.