Stages of team development

What is a team?

Katzenbach and Smith define team as “a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to
a common purpose , performance goals and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable.”

An effective Team have a set of characteristics :

Team performance is sharpened by rapidly testing and evolving methods that work for each team member, despite
personality differences, skill sets, and critical thinking skills.

 Participative leadership - creating an interdependence by empowering, freeing up and serving others.

 Shared responsibility - establishing an environment in which all team members feel responsibility as the
manager for team performance.
 Alignment of purpose - having a sense of common purpose about why the team exists and the function it
serves.
 High communication - creating a climate of trust and open, honest communication.
 Future focused - seeing change as an opportunity for growth.
 Focused on task - keeping meetings and interactions focused on results.
 Skill Utilization - applying individual talents and creativity.
 Rapid response - identifying and acting on opportunities.

New ways of using teams

Modern technology and new ways of doing business are changing the ways we use teams, but the underlying
principles and benefits remain.

Distance is less of a barrier. Many people find themselves in teams where individual team members are based
all over the country, or in some cases, all over the globe.

In some companies, team members based in different time zones can progress a project 24 hours per day, six
days per week. I know a growing Australian consulting firm that uses overseas based PowerPoint developers
and editors for major reports and presentations. Consultants complete the drafts by late afternoon, and
return to work the next morning to have the completed product waiting for them. This effectively saves one
working day.

Virtual teams are increasingly common. Members of a team may never meet face to face. They collaborate
from different parts of the word through telephone calls, email, file sharing technology and other online
meeting methods.

Why the increased use of teams?

Organisations have embraced teams and teamwork as an effective way of doing business. The last 20 years
has seen the replacement of 'supervisors' by 'team leaders'.

Companies have embraced these concepts because they work. Employee motivation and morale improves
dramatically when people feel valued and when their contributions make a difference.

It is good to be part of something that is worthwhile.

Managing teamwork is challenging
Some organisations fail to gain the benefits that teamwork can provide.

Team composition is critical for success. The definition outlined above highlight three important teamwork
fundamentals:

 A team is a group of people made up of individuals who each contribute their individual knowledge and
skills. Synergy, where the collective whole is greater than the sum of the individual parts, often occurs
where teamwork is working well. Teams benefit because individuals often do not have all the knowledge
and skills necessary.

 Working together is essential. Harmony and a positive attitude are critical. If the team is not working
together, then the expected gains will not materialise.

 An understanding of the common goal/task is also critical. People have to be clear as to why the team
exists and what the purpose is.

In the absence of any of the above three features teams will fail. Not everyone has a positive experience.

Teamwork has to be well managed. A balanced team composition is essential. Team members have to be
carefully selected. The full range of knowledge and skills required must be present. Team members need to be
committed to the task.

If you have the right team composition and approach, team synergy can take over. But it has to be set up
correctly. The team members have to be willing and ready to participate.

Types of team:

 Advisory team: board, review panel, employee involvement groups.

 Production team: data processing teams, manufacturing crews.
 Projects team: research group , planning team.
 Action team: sports team, surgery team.

Other teams are

Problem solving team.

Self managed team.

Cross functional team.

Stages of team development:

The Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing model of group development was first proposed by Bruce

Tuckman in 1965, who maintained that these phases are all 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. This model has
become the basis for subsequent models.
Stage 1 :Forming

In the first stages of team building, the forming of the team takes place. The individual's
behavior is driven by a desire to be accepted by the others, and avoid controversy or conflict. Serious issues and
feelings are avoided, and people focus on being busy with routines, such as team organization, who does what,
when to meet, etc. But individuals are also gathering information and impressions - about each other, and about
the scope of the task and how to approach it. This is a comfortable stage to be in, but the avoidance of conflict and
threat means that not much actually gets done.

The team meets and learns about the opportunities and challenges, and then agrees on goals and begins to tackle
the tasks. Team members tend to behave quite independently. They may be motivated but are usually relatively
uninformed of the issues and objectives of the team. Team members are usually on their best behavior but very
focused on themselves. Mature team members begin to model appropriate behavior even at this early phase.
Sharing the knowledge of the concept of "Teams - Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing" is extremely helpful
to the team.

Supervisors of the team tend to need to be directive during this phase.

The forming stage of any team is important because, in this stage, the members of the team get to know one
another, exchange some personal information, and make new friends. This is also a good opportunity to see how
each member of the team works as an individual and how they respond to pressure.

Stage 2 :Storming

Every group will next enter the storming stage in which different ideas compete for consideration. The team
addresses issues such as what problems they are really supposed to solve, how they will function independently
and together and what leadership model they will accept. Team members open up to each other and confront
each other's ideas and perspectives. In some cases storming can be resolved quickly. In others, the team never
leaves this stage. The maturity of some team members usually determines whether the team will ever move out of
this stage. Some team members will focus on minutiae to evade real issues.
The storming stage is necessary to the growth of the team. It can be contentious, unpleasant and even painful to
members of the team who are averse to conflict. Tolerance of each team member and their differences should be
emphasized. Without tolerance and patience the team will fail. This phase can become destructive to the team and
will lower motivation if allowed to get out of control. Some teams will never develop past this stage.

Supervisors of the team during this phase may be more accessible, but tend to remain directive in their guidance of
decision-making and professional behavior. The team members will therefore resolve their differences and
members will be able to participate with one another more comfortably. The ideal is that they will not feel that
they are being judged, and will therefore share their opinions and views.

Stage 3 :Norming

The team manages to have one goal and come to a mutual plan for the team at this stage. Some may have to give
up their own ideas and agree with others in order to make the team function. In this stage, all team members take
the responsibility and have the ambition to work for the success of the team's goals.

Stage 4 :Performing

It is possible for some teams to reach the performing stage. These high-performing teams are able to function as a
unit as they find ways to get the job done smoothly and effectively without inappropriate conflict or the need for
external supervision. Team members have become interdependent. By this time, they are motivated and
knowledgeable. The team members are now competent, autonomous and able to handle the decision-making
process without supervision. Dissent is expected and allowed as long as it is channeled through means acceptable
to the team.

Supervisors of the team during this phase are almost always participative. The team will make most of the
necessary decisions. Even the most high-performing teams will revert to earlier stages in certain circumstances.
Many long-standing teams go through these cycles many times as they react to changing circumstances. For
example, a change in leadership may cause the team to revert to storming as the new people challenge the
existing norms and dynamics of the team.

Further developments:
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Stage 5 :Adjourning and transforming

In 1977, Tuckman, jointly with Mary Ann Jensen, added a fifth stage to the 4 stages: adjourning, that involves
completing the task and breaking up the team. Others call it the phase for mourning.

A team that lasts may transcend to a transforming phase of achievement. Transformational management can

produce major changes in performance through synergy and is considered to be more far-reaching
than transactional management.

Conclusion
How teams manage themselves

Done by

Hamsa

Monu

Shejal