Q&A Guide: How to Build Trust and Eliminate Team Dysfunction in Fleet Organizations

This article is based on a recent episode of The Fleet Success Show podcast.
Watch the full episode here: 

What Every Fleet Manager Needs to Know About Leadership, Accountability, and Team Health

What is team dysfunction in a fleet organization?

Team dysfunction in fleet operations refers to the breakdown of trust, communication, and accountability among leadership and department heads. It often shows up as:

• Passive or avoidant communication
• Lack of buy-in for decisions
• Unresolved interpersonal conflict
• Blame-shifting or lack of ownership
• Siloed departments with conflicting agendas

If your shop, garage, or admin team lacks cohesion, it may not be a systems problem—it’s a people problem rooted in dysfunction.

Why does organizational health matter in fleet management?

A fleet team that lacks trust and psychological safety will struggle to:

• Enforce policies and compliance
• Implement new systems like fleet maintenance software
• Make consistent decisions
• Solve recurring issues (fleet creep, poor PM compliance, etc.)

“Organizational health is about building healthy teams, creating clarity, overcommunicating that clarity, and reinforcing it.” - Josh Turley

Without that foundation, even the best fleet management software won’t deliver lasting impact.

What is the “Five Dysfunctions of a Team” framework?

Developed by Patrick Lencioni, this model outlines five common dysfunctions that cripple teams:

1. Absence of Trust – No vulnerability or openness
2. Fear of Conflict – Surface-level discussions only
3. Lack of Commitment – Weak buy-in to decisions
4. Avoidance of Accountability – No peer-to-peer pressure
5. Inattention to Results – Individual goals over team success

Josh Turley, RTA CEO, uses this model to structure fleet leadership offsite planning and internal alignment sessions.

What’s the difference between trusting someone’s work and trusting their motives?

Trusting someone’s work = "I know you’re good at your job."
Trusting someone’s motive = "I believe you’re acting in the team’s best interest."

In fleet organizations, misaligned motives lead to resentment, politics, and passive resistance.

“Trust isn’t just about performance—it’s about alignment. I trust why you're doing what you're doing.”

How do I assess the health of my leadership team?

Start with a Team Health Assessment:

• It’s a 30–40-question anonymous survey
• Measures team trust, clarity, and alignment
• Highlights response gaps (e.g., one manager thinks you “always communicate clearly,” another says “never”)

Look for disparities—they’re a sign of misalignment.

What exercises build trust in a fleet leadership team?

RTA uses three repeatable team-building exercises:

1. Personal Histories Exercise

Each person shares:

• Where they grew up
• How many siblings they had
• A defining childhood moment

Why it works: It creates vulnerability, the foundation of trust.

“We connect when we see the human behind the coworker.”

2. Helps / Hurts Feedback Loop

Each team member answers:

• What’s one thing I do that helps the team?
• What’s one thing I do that hurts the team?
  
  

Then the team gives open, honest feedback—leader goes first.

Rules:

• No defending
• No reacting
• Just receive the feedback

“You’ll feel exposed. That’s when growth happens.”

3. Theme Identification and Commitment

After feedback, each leader identifies one improvement goal to focus on over 3–4 months.

This turns insights into accountability and action—the core of a high-functioning leadership team.

What is emotional regulation, and why does it matter for fleet leaders?

Emotional regulation is the ability to control your reactions in the moment—especially in high-stress, high-impact situations.

As a fleet leader, your emotional tone impacts psychological safety. If you explode in meetings or react defensively, your team will retreat and stop speaking up.

“As a CEO, I have to be more robotic—more measured in my response—so I don't crush safety.”

What’s the goal of these exercises? A perfect team?

Nope. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s trust and speed of repair.

Every team will have conflict. The difference is:

• Dysfunctional teams avoid it
• High-performing teams address and repair it quickly

“The strength of any relationship is the speed of repair.”

This is as true in the shop as it is in your marriage or your executive meetings.

What’s the benefit of emotionally bonded teams in fleet operations?

Emotionally bonded leadership teams:

• Solve issues faster
• Make stronger, more confident decisions
• Maintain psychological safety across the org
• Collaborate between departments without turf wars
• Sustain operational excellence, even in crises

“By the end of the day, we were bonded—like we’d just been in a foxhole together.”

How can fleet organizations implement this?

You don’t need to hire a corporate consultant to get started. Do this instead:

1. Read The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
2. Download the free Fleet Success Playbook
3. Run a Team Health Assessment at your next offsite
4. Choose ONE exercise to start (Personal Histories or Helps/Hurts)
5. Repeat quarterly or semi-annually

📘 Bonus: Check out The Advantage by Lencioni for the full system.

Where can I get tools or help to do this?

At RTA: The Fleet Success Company, we help fleet organizations with:

• Fleet maintenance software
• Organizational health workshops
• Offsite leadership facilitation
• Succession planning
• Team development and accountability tracking

📬 Contact us: podcast@rtafleet.com
🌐 Visit: www.rtafleet.com
📗 Get the playbook

🏁 Final Takeaway for Fleet Managers

Your fleet maintenance system tracks vehicles.
Your inventory system tracks assets.
But your results are driven by people.

If your leadership team is dysfunctional—no system will save you. Start with trust. Get uncomfortable. Be vulnerable. Lean into the work.

Because once your team aligns on purpose and builds trust, no fleet challenge is too big to solve.