In 2014, while flying cross-country, I read “The Advantage” by Patrick Lencioni. After finishing the book and reflecting on its message, I thought it was one of the most valuable business books I had ever read. I felt so strongly about it that we ultimately engaged ‘The Table Group,’ Lencioni’s consultancy, to provide a full facilitation. They did not disappoint – the company benefitted immensely. While the program is rich in content and with many layers, it is rooted in the notion that ‘organizational health’ is more important than ‘organizational intelligence.’ A team’s ability to work well together is more important than the individual talent or the intelligence of the individuals comprising the team. From this premise, it is no surprise that Lencioni and the Table Group are active in the world of sports, as well as business.
As I read “The Advantage,” I couldn’t help but think about a prominent figure in the sports world- former NFL coach and current NASCAR team owner, Joe Gibbs. Because I grew up in Washington, DC, and started my business career at the same time that Gibbs came to coach in Washington, I had always thought of him as a primary influence on my leadership perspective. After reading “The Advantage,” and with the conclusion of our Table Group facilitation, I came to view Gibbs and his football team as a highly visible affirmation or validation for the principles embraced by Lencioni for the value of organizational health over individual talent.
Joe Gibbs took his team to four super bowls in his eleven years in Washington- four super bowls in a nine-year window. He is the only head coach in NFL history to win three super bowls with three different quarterbacks. From 1981 through 1992, Joe Gibbs amassed a regular-season record of 122-62, 66.3 percent ‘wins’ in total games. In the subsequent era, through the 2019 season, the team was 178-252, 41.4 percent ‘wins’ in regular-season games
Joe Gibbs developed a reputation in the NFL for his work ethic and his intellect. He was an innovator. But most importantly, coach Gibbs recognized the importance of teammates working together. He understood that teammates’ ability to work together was more important for the team’s success than any level of talent for any individual player. Joe Gibbs would often say that he wanted “character guys” on his team. This description was his euphemism for players who would work and play well together- and look out for each other. There was no room for egos or selfishness- it was a clinic in organizational health.
At no time was Joe Gibbs commitment to organizational health placed in the spotlight more so than on October 19, 1987. The NFL had been on strike for four weeks, and the somber mood was made worse on this Monday night when the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell just short of 23 percent at its close, earlier the same day. Washington was playing its long-time bitter rival Dallas Cowboys in the Cowboys home stadium. All across the NFL, players had started crossing picket lines- causing much consternation for players and coaches. Several of the Cowboys players had crossed, and the Cowboys would be fielding a somewhat intact veteran team for this game- the more starters and the fewer replacement players, the better.
Washington took the opposite approach. Regarding the picket line, Joe Gibbs famously instructed his team, “either everybody comes in or nobody comes in.” And although several Washington players wanted to cross and return to the field, nobody did. Washington fielded an entire team of replacement players against a Cowboys team that featured more than a dozen veteran players, including their stars at quarterback, running back, and middle linebacker. Washington, against all the odds, won the game on the opponent’s field, 13-7. The team that was united and purposeful beat the team with vastly more talent, but was disunited.
The strike ended the following week, and Washington went 7-3 over the balance of the season. On January 31, they beat the Denver Broncos by a score of 42-17 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego to win the super bowl.
In August of 2000, a movie called “The Replacements,” starring Keanu Reeves and Gene Hackman, was released. It was inspired by and loosely based on the Monday night game against the Dallas Cowboys- a game from thirteen years earlier.
This game, now called “the replacement game,” was, in my view Joe Gibbs finest moment as the Head Coach of Washington’s pro football team. It provided the clearest and most measurable validation for his principles of organizational health- the same principles taught to businesses today by Patrick Lencioni. It was a pure display in the purest of venues. Washington’s replacement players didn’t care much for the starting veterans, but they loved each other and played for each other with an elevated purpose. Washington’s veteran players didn’t care very much for the replacement players, but they were also united and elevated in purpose. Joe Gibbs understood that this was more important than putting the best individual talent on the field. Although the venue is less clear, the field of business is no different.
Author’s note- The author is a long-term advocate for changing the name of Washington’s professional football team. This view is primarily because of the association with the derogatory meaning and offensive nature of this name. Further, as this article is about organizational health, it would be hypocritical to think that the coalescing around – and alignment of positive values could be achieved in a climate of controversy and under a name that belies the fundamental compassion that is essential to organizational health.
