When you’re leading a team, it’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day: deadlines, meetings, and putting out fires. But how often do you pause to ask: How is my team actually doing?
Great leaders don’t leave team health to guesswork. They use assessment tools to measure what’s really going on—where their teams are strong, where they’re struggling, and where burnout might be lurking beneath the surface. The right assessment doesn’t just collect data; it creates a shared language for growth and gives you a roadmap for improvement.
Here are some of the most trusted tools team leaders can use to check in on their teams, grouped by focus area.
| Category | Tool / Survey | What It Measures / Focus | Highlights / Caveats | Use Cases for Team Leaders |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Dynamics & Cohesion | The Five Dysfunctions of a Team (Team Assessment) | Measures where a team sits in Lencioni’s 5 dysfunctions (trust, conflict, commitment, accountability, results) via a 42-question (or shorter) instrument. (Table Group) | Very accessible and popular; gives a common language. But it’s more of a “flag-raising” tool than a deeply validated, scientific measure. (Also, Lencioni’s model is more prescriptive and heuristic than strictly evidence-based.) (Wikipedia) | Good starting point for a team workshop, to surface blind spots. Use it early to open conversation about where the team is blocked. |
| Team Design & Effectiveness | Team Diagnostic Survey (TDS) | Based on Hackman / Wageman’s “6 Conditions” model. Measures structural and process conditions that undergird effective teams (e.g. compelling direction, enabling structure, supportive context, team coaching, etc.). (6 Team Conditions) | More academically rigorous. It aims to pinpoint design levers rather than just symptoms. The “Pulse Check” version lets you track over time. (6 Team Conditions) | Use after you’ve surfaced issues (e.g. via a dysfunctions tool) to dig into root causes. Also helpful for leaders who want to redesign the team structure rather than just “fix” relationships. |
| Team Behavior / Cohesion with Personality Lens | The Five Behaviors® (based on DiSC + Lencioni) | This is a commercial offering combining the Lencioni 5 dysfunctions framework with DiSC personality profiling to show how individual styles impact team dysfunctions. (Discprofile.com) | Offers both team-level insight and individual style overlays. Requires purchasing/licensing. | Use when you want to layer behavior preferences and communication styles onto your dysfunctions analysis. |
| Individual Strengths | CliftonStrengths / StrengthsFinder | Identifies a person’s top talent themes (out of 34) and helps translate them into strengths usage. (Gallup.com) | Widely used and well known. Good for building a strengths-based culture. One caution: people sometimes take it as fixed label rather than growth lens. | Use as a companion tool: first, do team-level scans; then have individuals take CliftonStrengths so leaders can see how to align roles/assignments around natural strength domains. |
| Burnout / Well-Being / Stress | Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) | One of the most established burnout scales. Measures three dimensions: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization (or cynicism), and reduced personal accomplishment. (Wikipedia) | It’s commercial and sometimes criticized (e.g. for theoretical basis). (Wikipedia) | Use (confidentially) at individual level to sense burnout risk in your team. Pair with qualitative follow-up (interviews, one-on-ones) rather than rely purely on scores. |
| Change / Stress / Resilience | CernySmith Assessment (CSA) | An online assessment that captures how change, stress, and resilience are impacting individuals, and (in aggregate) teams. (Wikipedia) | Useful especially when teams are going through transitions, reorganizations, scaling, or change fatigue. | Use during transitions (e.g. restructure, rapid growth) to detect stress build-up early and guide interventions or coaching. |
| Work Design / Job Motivation | Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS) | Inspired by Hackman & Oldham’s Job Characteristics Theory. Measures things like skill variety, task identity, autonomy, feedback, etc. (Wikipedia) | Helps diagnose whether problems are structural in job roles / design rather than people problems. | Useful when team complaints revolve around “this job is meaningless,” “I don’t see impact,” or “I feel micromanaged” — helps point to redesign rather than behavioral coaching. |
| Employee Engagement | Gallup Q12 (Employee Engagement Survey) | A validated 12-question survey that correlates with performance outcomes (productivity, turnover, profitability) (Gallup.com) | Very well known and used. It’s short and actionable. But because it is broad and individual-focused, it may not pinpoint team-level dynamics deeply. | Deploy across teams to get a pulse of engagement; segment responses by team so leaders can see relative strengths. Then pair with team diagnostics to get the full picture. |
1. Tools to Assess Team Dynamics and Cohesion
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team Assessment
Based on Patrick Lencioni’s bestselling book, this tool helps teams see where they stand in five critical areas: trust, conflict, commitment, accountability, and results. The assessment highlights whether your team is stuck avoiding conflict, struggling with accountability, or unclear on shared goals.
Best for: Opening up conversation and giving your team a simple framework to name its challenges.
Team Diagnostic Survey (TDS)
Created by Richard Hackman and Ruth Wageman, this survey digs deeper into what drives team effectiveness. Instead of just identifying surface issues, it measures the conditions that set a team up for success: compelling purpose, the right people, clear norms, supportive resources, and quality coaching.
Best for: Leaders who want to go beyond symptoms and identify root causes of team struggles.
The Five Behaviors® (DiSC + Lencioni)
A hybrid of personality insights and team dynamics, this tool combines the DiSC personality framework with Lencioni’s five dysfunctions. It helps teams see how individual communication styles impact group dynamics.
Best for: Teams who need both relationship insights and a practical roadmap to improve trust and collaboration.
2. Individual Strengths Assessments for Team Leaders
CliftonStrengths (formerly StrengthsFinder)
This popular Gallup tool helps people identify their top talent themes from a list of 34. Instead of focusing on weaknesses, it encourages leaders to align roles and responsibilities with what people naturally do best.
Best for: Building a strengths-based culture where each team member feels valued for their unique contributions.
Top Diagnostic Surveys to Measure Team Engagement & Motivation
Gallup Q12 Employee Engagement Survey
A quick, validated 12-question survey that measures employee engagement. It doesn’t just ask if people are “happy”—it asks if they know what’s expected of them, whether they have the resources to succeed, and if they feel their opinions count. Engagement scores can predict retention, productivity, and profitability.
Best for: Leaders who want a simple but powerful pulse check across teams or departments.
Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS)
This classic tool evaluates job design—things like autonomy, variety, and meaningfulness. Sometimes “team problems” are really about how jobs are structured. The JDS helps leaders see whether low motivation comes from the role itself rather than interpersonal conflict.
Best for: Teams that feel stuck, unmotivated, or unclear about the purpose of their work.
4. Burnout and Well-Being
Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)
The most widely used burnout assessment, the MBI measures emotional exhaustion, depersonalization (cynicism), and reduced sense of accomplishment. It’s often used in healthcare and high-stress industries but applies to any team.
Best for: Detecting burnout risk early, especially in demanding or fast-changing environments.
CernySmith Assessment (CSA)
Focused on stress, resilience, and change, this tool measures how individuals and teams are coping during times of transition. It’s particularly helpful when organizations are scaling, restructuring, or managing constant uncertainty.
Best for: Teams in transition who need support navigating stress and change.
5. Experience-Based Assessments: A Team Day at Horse + Bow
While surveys and diagnostics provide valuable data, sometimes the best assessment is lived experience. At Horse + Bow, teams step into a unique environment where horses and archery act as mirrors for how people show up and work together.
Through ground-based exercises with horses, team members quickly discover new things about themselves—how they lead, how they follow, and how they communicate under pressure. Horses respond instantly to nonverbal cues, revealing strengths and blind spots in trust, clarity, and presence. In archery, teams practice focus, patience, and alignment—skills that translate directly back to the workplace.
Unlike a written survey, a team building day here provides a real-time assessment in action. Leaders see how their people function as individuals and as a unit, and teams leave not only with greater self-awareness but also with practical strategies for strengthening connection and collaboration.
6. How to Use Team Assessments Well
Choosing the right tool is only half the equation. The real value comes from how you use it.
- Protect trust. For sensitive topics like burnout, make sure responses are confidential.
- Pair data with dialogue. Numbers tell you what is happening, but conversations reveal why.
- Share results openly. When leaders hide assessment data, teams lose trust. Share what you learn and co-create next steps.
- Don’t overload. Too many surveys lead to fatigue. Choose 1–2 tools at a time, depending on your goals.
- Measure over time. Use shorter pulse checks or repeat surveys quarterly to track progress.
A Simple Leadership Roadmap for Assessing Your Team’s Health
If you’re not sure where to start, here’s a sample sequence you could try over a year:
- Quarter 1: Team diagnostic (Five Dysfunctions or TDS)
- Quarter 2: Individual strengths (CliftonStrengths)
- Quarter 3: Engagement (Gallup Q12)
- Quarter 4: Burnout or stress scan (MBI or CSA)
This approach gives you a well-rounded view of both the team as a whole and the individual experience of your people.
The Bottom Line about Team Assessment Tools
Assessments don’t replace leadership. They shine a light on where you and your team should focus. The real work comes afterward—in conversations, experiments, and commitments that build trust, resilience, and alignment.
At Horse + Bow, we believe one of the most powerful assessments happens outside the office, where your team can step away from daily pressures, discover new insights in real time, and reconnect to each other.
👉 Ready to give your team both reflection and experience? Book your team building day at Horse + Bow and uncover the strengths, challenges, and opportunities that will carry your team forward.