Team Development – Tuckman’s Model

Many business activities are built around teams and this approach has many advantages.

Large projects or those which require diverse skill sets cannot be carried out by individuals. Team spirit can become an important motivating factor to drive a project or department forwards and shared responsibility achieves more effective work in a multi-skilled environment.

When a team is working at its peak it becomes a Gestalt, greater than the sum of its parts. In order to achieve this peak performance, careful attention must be paid to the structure of the group and to the process of individuals becoming part of that group.

In 1965, Bruce Tuckman published a theory outlining a four stage model of group development and behaviour. Very considerately, the four stages rhyme, making them much easier to remember. Tuckman’s Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing model is deceptively simple, covering developments in relationships, team capabilities and leadership styles over the lifetime of a team. In the 1970s, Tuckman extended his model to include Adjourning, the completion of a project.

Forming

The team is assembled and the task specified.

The main focus will be information gathering and research activities. Some time will also be spent planning. It is important not to prioritise the task over the social aspects of team building at this stage. A team that bonds now will perform better in the later stages. Ensure that time and space is given to icebreaking and the building of relationships.

Team members will be acting mostly as individuals. Unfamiliarity with other team members may lead to reticence. There will be a lot of questioning and testing of the leader’s authority and limits.

Much more direction will be required from the team leader at this stage. To establish authority, the leader may adopt an Authoritarian or Situational style. Effective Forming can be facilitated by clear communication of project objectives from the leader to team members. Ample time should be given for members to ask questions, and those should all be answered as promptly as possible to build confidence in the leader’s competence. Activities should be geared towards team interaction to aid bonding.

Storming

The team approaches the project and starts to generate ideas.

Team members will bring their expertise to bear on aspects of the project. Solutions will be suggested and discussed. Outline plans or specifications may be drawn up.

Relationships (good and bad), are formed and may become fixed. Power struggles emerge as team members weigh up alternative solutions. Cliques can be formed. Both these aspects can be counter-productive if not handled carefully. Alternatively, too much drive for consensus at this stage can also hinder progress.

The leader adopts a more facilitative style, allowing democratic decision making, but being prepared to have the final say if necessary to prevent destructive and time-consuming disagreements.

In some respects, this is when the group structure is at its most fragile. It is important that the team focuses on objectives, rather than personalities, or they may become stuck at the Storming stage. Roles may need to be reinforced or even redefined to ensure smooth transition to the next stage.

Norming

The team is working well and has come to a consensus about shared values and rules.

Larger decisions are made by the whole group, while delegation based on skills and roles lets team members contribute fully.

Recognition of each other’s strengths and contributions leads to greater group cohesion. Relationships are strengthened and teams may start to initiate social activities outside of work.

The leader may step back a little at this stage as team members start to share the leadership responsibility for parts of the project. He should maintain an overall view of the project.

Complacency is a danger, as everything begins to run more smoothly. There should still be a focus on objectives to ensure that the project is driven forward. Timescales and resourcing should be carefully monitored to ensure this focus.

Performing

The team is able to perform to a high level with minimum intervention from management.

The team behaves more strategically and is able to perceive the wider view of what they are trying to achieve. Dissent occurs, but is seen as a positive contribution to the decision making process, as there is a high level of respect between members. There is a focus on personal and professional development at this stage and team members may be looking for official accreditation of skills gained during the project, or further training to widen their role next time.

Team members look out for each other and there is a high degree of autonomy. The team requires only criteria, not instructions, from the leader and is able to work towards those independently. Teams may strive to exceed expectations.

The leader who has successfully brought a team to this stage may now take a more Laissez-faire approach. In a high functioning business, this leader would now be able to adopt a monitoring role for this team and turn his attention to building a new team for a new project.

Many teams never reach this stage and become stuck at an earlier, lower performing stage. Effective leadership is perhaps the most important factor in ensuring that teams do perform. The flexibility to adjust style appropriately to team development stages and the ability to recognise the stage the group is in are the hallmarks of a leader who will get the best from teams working under him.

Adjourning

Tuckman added this stage (which some call Mourning) in the 1970s, to describe the end of the project and the break-up of the team. Team members, particularly if they have become close, may find this stage unsettling and even threatening as they look at the next project with uncertainty. It is often appropriate for an organisation to arrange some kind of celebration to mark the successful completion of a project and to thank members for their valuable contribution towards that success.