Often, constructive dissension among a marketĀ­ing team is muffled by the desire that everyone cooperate. For the last 57 years, since William Whyte introduced the term 'groupthink' to the pages of Fortune, it has referred to the mob conformity that stems from ideas produced by a group of like-minded people. Groupthink thrives on consensus and typically results in minimal progress and an utter lack of innovation.