In an ideally world a team is fully formed and work synchronously without any issues, everything is ok and goals meet in time, but we are not in an ideally world, in real world effective teams’ growth and formed through 5 stages as was identified by Tuckman and Jensen.
Bruce Tuckman described the typical sequence of stages that a group goes through from forming to achieving a common goal. This journey defined by him have 4 stages: “Forming“, “Storming“, “Norming” and “Performing“, then in 1977 Tuckman and his doctoral student Mary Ann Jensen added a fifth stage called “Adjourning”.
Forming
This is the first stage, the team meets and starts to work together for the first time, the group is characterized by:
- confusion
- uncertainty
- assessing situation
- testing ground rules
- feeling out others
- defining goals
- getting to know each other
- establishing rules
In this stage the team is “immature”, this is just the beginning of the journey, the team is dependent on a leader to provide the “ground rules” and an list of actions. Team members tend to be polite and are focused on getting to know each other and on understanding their tasks and their role in the team.
The team needs a clear direction from their leader, and this is the basic inputs as a leader you should do:
- outlined of the tasks the team must do
- clarify each team’s member role
- explain the reasons for each team member’s selection
- openly discuss the way you work as a manager
- discuss your expectations of the team and its member
- get the team involved in agreeing codes of conduct/team rules
- discuss how conflict will be managed and how the team will give feedback on each other’s behavior and performance
- discuss how the team will make its decisions
By doing this as a team leader you will open the opportunity for the team’s members to share their concerns, express their opinions and ask questions.
Team members will feel that they have been listened to, encouraged to participate, know each other better and are committed to agreed team standards of performance and behavior.
Storming
In the second stage the team feels a “fragmentation” often arising because goals, roles and rules have become confused or unclear. This can result in:
- disagreements on priorities
- leadership struggles
- tension and hostility among team members
- start the division of the team by cliques
This phase team’s members wants to establish their position within the team, it can be difficult and may lead to conflict.
Team members differing agendas can create conflict as they become known. Some team members may perceive control of others, and this is another source of potential hostility. the “Fellowship of the ring” that started in the “Forming” stage may now come under pressure.
The team needs a great deal of direction at this stage, particularly to help with the management of conflict and to get them to focus on how to organize themselves to achieve their goals. As team leader you should revisit the agreements made in the Forming stage and make sure that everyone is clear on what is required.
Norming
During the third stage things are becoming more focused and positive, the team’s members understand the goals and their roles to meet them. The team has identified its strengths and weaknesses, the disagreements and complaints in the past that may have led to conflict, now they are consciously listened to (conflict is beginning to be managed). Rules and standards of behavior have been agreed so that team members relate openly with each other and are able to agree on what is expected and how manage expectations.
The main characteristics of this phase are:
- consensus
- accepted leadership
- trust
- standards agreed
- roles set
- co-operation
Members now feel more part of a team and better able to deal with conflicts. There is a feeling of “team spirit” the communication is more effective because they become more open about their goals.
As team leader you could develop a coaching/supporting leadership style because the team is ready to respond more participatively.
Performing
The fourth stage is the “mature” and effective team.
Not every team will reach this stage, but they may get stuck in the Norming stage where although there is a feeling of agreement, there is not yet the drive towards effective problem solving that characterizes an effective team. Some teams also experience a “flashback” into the earlier stages when a new member joins the team. It’s crucial to make new members aware of the team goals, roles and rules before they join, also it is important to know how the team gives and receives feedback. Failure to do so can cause the team to fall back into the Storming stage.
Performing is characterized by:
• successful performance
• flexible team members, clear task roles
• openness
• helpfulness
• interdependence
• collaboration
The team has an effective structure and is getting on with the job and achieving its objectives. It is a mature team where members display interdependency. Members can work individually, in smaller sub-groups or within the larger team.
The team is highly committed to clearly defined tasks and is engaged in effective problem solving.
At this stage leadership style should be more supportive/delegating, as the team can work with minimal supervision.
In 1977, Tuckman, jointly with Mary Ann Jensen, added a fifth stage to the four stages:
Adjourning
The final stage is that of “disbanding” and comes about either because the task is complete or because some members have left the team. It is often a time of reflection about what has passed but also a time for re-evaluation and it can then lead to re-starting the process (i.e. Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing) as new member(s) join.
Conclusion:
Understanding these stages can help you as team leader and to the organizations how to manage group dynamics more effectively, thus enhancing team performance over the course of a project or task.
Using a very directive style with a mature, highly committed team could lead to frustration and disaffection.
The opposite is also true – using a delegating style with a newly formed team would lead to confusion and unmanaged conflict.
References:
- Wikipedia: Tuckman’s stages of group development https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuckman%27s_stages_of_group_development
- Management PocketBooks : Bruce Tuckman: group development https://www.pocketbook.co.uk/blog/tag/mary-ann-jensen/
- Institute Project Management: The 5 Stages of Team Development https://www.projectmanagement.ie/blog/the-5-stages-of-team-development/
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