A Conversation on Organizational Dysfunction

In June 2025, we held a casual coffee chat about why this topic matters, how to solve dysfunction, and how to share the essential tools with your network.

Michael Gregor and Liberation Labs co-founder Viva Asmelash sat down to talk about the motivation behind this course, why dysfunction is so prevalent in organizations today, and what leaders can do about it.

The recording is above, and here are a few takeaways from our chat:

• Universal Dysfunction: Organizational dysfunction is a widespread human challenge, affecting all types and sizes of groups, from small activist collectives to large global corporations.

• Similar Problems, Regardless of Scale: The core issues experienced in large organizations are remarkably similar to those in smaller groups, highlighting universal elements of human collaboration and organization.

• Missing "Glue" Skills: A primary cause of dysfunction is the lack of investment in essential skills that hold organizations together—related to interpersonal dynamics, communication, decision-making, conflict, and intentional culture-building.

• Empowerment to Act: Many people overlook dysfunction as normal; the course aims to help individuals recognize it as abnormal and understand their agency to influence and improve their work environments.

Check out the course here at LinkedIn Learning: How to Spot Organizational Dysfunction and Fix It.