Stages of Team Development
(Tuckman)

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What are the Stages of Team Development?

The Tuckman Stages of Team Development can be used for identifying factors that are critical for building and developing small groups.

Tuckman's Stages of Team Development model seeks to explain how a team develops over time. The five stages of development are: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning. The Adjourning stage was added later in 1977. According to Tuckman, all of the phases are necessary and inevitable - in order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems, to find solutions, to plan work, and to deliver results.
 

Origin of the Stages of Team Development. History

Bruce Wayne Tuckman (1938- ) published in 1965 a short article "Developmental Sequence in Small Groups". In 1977, he added the fifth stage: Adjourning (Stages of Small Group Development Revisited). The model of group became influential in group development theory, partly thanks to its rhyme.

Usage of Tuckman's Stages of Team Development. Applications

• Build and develop teams.
• Analyze the behavior of teams.

the Stages of Team Development. Process

1. Forming. Project team initiation phase.
   • Project Team is initially concerned with orientation, accomplished primarily through testing. Such testing serves to identify the boundaries of both interpersonal and task behaviors. Coincident with testing in the interpersonal realm is the establishment of dependency relationships with leaders, other group members, or pre‑existing standards.
   • Team Members behave quite independently. They may be motivated but are usually relatively uninformed of the issues and objectives of the team. Some team members may display traits of uncertainty and anxiety.
   • Project Manager must bring the team together, ensuring that they trust each other and have the ability to develop a working relationship. Directing or "telling" style. Sharing the concept of "Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing" with the team can be helpful.
2. Storming. Various ideas compete, often fiercely, for consideration.
   • Project Team gains confidence, but there is conflict and polarization around interpersonal issues
   • Team Members are showing their own personalities as they confront each other's ideas and perspectives. Frustration or disagreements about goals, expectations, roles and responsibilities is being expressed openly.
   • Project Manager guides the project team through this turbulent transition phase. Coaching style. Tolerance of each team member and their differences needs to be emphasized.
3. Norming. Rules, values, behavior, methods, tools are being established.
   • Project Team effectiveness increases and the team starts to develop an identity.
   • Team Members adjust their behavior to each other as they develop agreements to make the teamwork more natural and fluid. Conscious effort to resolve problems and to achieve group harmony. Motivation levels are increasing.
   • Project Manager allows the team to become much more autonomous. Participative style.
4. Performing. The interpersonal structure becomes the tool of task activities. Roles become flexible and functional, and group energy is channeled into the task.
   • Project Team is now able to function as a unit. It gets the job done smoothly and effectively without inappropriate conflict or the need for external supervision.
   • Team Members have a clear understanding of what is required of them at a task level. They are now competent, autonomous and able to handle the decision-making process without supervision. A "can do" attitude is visible. Offers to assist one another are made.
   • Project Manager lets the team make most of the necessary decisions. Delegating style.
5. Adjourning. The tasks are being completed and the team is disassembled.
   • Project Team. Some authors describe stage 5 as "Deforming and Mourning", recognizing the sense of loss felt by group members.
   • Team Members' motivation levels can decline as uncertainty about the future begins to set in.
   • Project Manager: Good point to introduce new projects in order to recommence the forming stage of team development. Detaching style.

Strengths of the Stages of Team Development model. Benefits

• Provides a level of guidance for team development.

Limitations of the Stages of Team Development framework. Disadvantages

• Note that the model was designed to describe stages in small groups.
• In reality, group processes may not be as linear as Tuckman describes them, but rather cyclical.
• Characteristics for each stage are not set in stone, and as the model deals with human behavior, it is sometimes unclear when a team has moved from one stage to another. There may be overlap between the stages.
• The model does not take account of the individual roles that team members will have to undertake. Compare: Belbin Team Roles
• There is no guidance on the timeframe for moving from one stage to another. This is a subjective as opposed to an objective model.

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Best Practices The best, top-rated topics about Stages of Team Development. Here you will find the most valuable ideas and practical suggestions. 🥇 How to Create Team Spirit? Besides Tuckman's 5 Stages of Team Development, who can give further input on how you can create team spirit? Thanks.... 31   19 comments 🥈 How to Deal with a Team that is Stuck? I am interested in understanding how to move a team forward from what I call being "stuck" - not sure about the way forward to becoming "unstuck" - getting clarity on the way ahead. Any suggestions as... 15   12 comments 🥉 7 Reasons Why Teams don't Work Despite the widespread belief that working in teams makes people more creative and productive, research consistently shows that teams underperform or do not work well more often than not. Hereunder ar... 12   8 comments Diverse Team Building DIVERSE (cross-functional, multidisciplinary, multicultural) TEAMS can be very creative and perform extraordinary well. At the same time, achieving a fit or “interpersonal congruence” among team membe... 10   8 comments

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Information Sources Various sources of information regarding Stages of Team Development. Here you will find powerpoints, videos, news, etc. to use in your own lectures and workshops. Team Building Motivating a Team Positive, energetic presentation with breakout sessions on team building by N. Shrivastava. Topics: What is a Team? Adv... Team Building Introduction Groups or Team? Generic presentation on Team Building with some good graphics. Topics: Group vs Team, How to create synergy? Benefits of... Drivers of Team Performance Literature Overview The investigation of drivers of team performance has become the main issue of numerous publications in the last decades.... Team Building Tips Team Development Short document with some good tips to remember when you're building or working with teams.... Introduction to Tuckman’s Stages of Team Development Team Development Stages, Group Formation, Tuckman This presentation provides a brief and coherent outline of Tuckman’s Stages of Development. It includes the following se... The Basics of Team Development, Team Building and Teamwork Team Building, Team Development This presentation elaborates on the concept of team work. The presentation includes the following sections: 1. What is ... Employee Empowerment, Teamwork and Communication Performance Management, Employee Empowerment Colorful presentation with speaking notes about 3 tools to improve organizational performance: Teamwork, Communication a... Lencioni explains the 5 Dysfunctions of Teams Analyzing Effectiveness of (management) teams, Lencioni, 5 Dysfunctions, Team Building Patrick Lencioni explains his pyramid of the 5 dysfunctions of a team: 1. Absence of Trust - When team members are not ... Introduction and Summary of Tuckman Stages of Team Development Initial Understanding of Tuckman Stages, Trainings, Workshops Short introduction video explaining Tuckman's 5 stages of team development: 1. FORMING - Group is meeting and getting t... Patrick Lencioni about Creating Trust by being Vulnerable as a Leader Patrick Lencioni Revealing the Basic of Real Leadership: Vulnerability Based Trust Patrick Lencioni explains how vulnerability-based trust is crucial for a leader to create a team. People will follow lea... Leadership Styles and Team Cohesiveness Across Cultures Leadership, National Culture, Team Cohesiveness The goal of this study by Hein Wendt, Martin Euwema and Olena Zhytnyk is to clarify relationships between directive and ... Group Decision Making: Using Team Conflict to Drive Performance Group Decison Making, Group Dynamics, Conflict Management, Team Conflicts Mark de Rond of Judge Business School explains why and how we should get more comfortable with team conflicts. Many peo... Extensive summary of Stages of Group (Team) Development Developing and Managing Teams Bruce Tuckman first described the four stages in 1965. He developed the model by synthesizing the literature in therapy ... How to Build a Healthy Organization (Patrick Lencioni) Understanding How a Leadership Team Can Build a Healthy Organization According to Patrick Lencioni there are four disciplines of Healthy Organizations: 1. Build and maintain a behavioral c... Introduction to Working in Teams, Team Work and Related Concepts Team Management, Team Work, Groupthink Presentation about teamwork, including the following sections: 1. Importance of Teams 1.1. Introduction 1.2. Definiti... Group Conflicts, Group Cohesion and Groupthink in Decision Making Group Decision Making, Conflicts in Groups, Cohesion of Groups, Groupthink Presentation about conflicts and cohesion in groups, and how it influences decision making. The presentation includes th... Increasing Group Participation: The 3 I's of Participation Increase Participation in Groups (Workshops, Trainings, Project Teams) Steve Davis explains his model to increase Group Participation. There are three types of participation: 1. Physical ... Introduction to Organizing and Managing Projects and Teams Project Planning, Project Management, Team Formation, Project Organization Types This presentation is about project planning and organization of project teams. The presentation includes the following s... Stages of Team Development Diagram Team Development Download and edit this 12manage PowerPoint graphic for limited personal, educational and business use. Republishing in ...

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Compare with the Tuckman Stages of Team Development: Team Management Profile  |  Belbin Team Roles  |  PMBOK  |  IPMA Competence Baseline (ICB)  |  PAEI  |  Action Learning  |  Appreciative Inquiry  |  Leadership Continuum  |  Situational Leadership  |  Johari Window

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