Topic > Overview of Tuckman's Team Development Stages

You can't expect a new team to perform well when it first comes together. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Forming a team takes time, and members often go through recognizable phases as they go from being a collection of strangers to a united group with common goals. Bruce Tuckman's Forming, Storming, Norming, and Performing model describes these phases. When you understand this, you can help your new team become effective more quickly. Psychologist Bruce Tuckman first invented the memorable phrase “shape, storm, norm, and execute” in his 1965 article, “Small Group Development Sequence.” he used it to describe the path most teams follow on their path to high performance. Later, he added a final fifth stage, "updating" (which is sometimes known as "mourning"). Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay A Team Building session was led by Kathy Kirwan on September 21, 2018 at the Connolly Building. Kathy began with a presentation of the Tuckman stages of group development: Forming, Storming, Norming, Executing, and Adjoining. Training: Initial phase where team members know each other and are polite and cautious. Some may be excited, others nervous, while most are uncertain about their role and responsibilities. Storming – The most difficult phase of team building. This is where members begin to object to some of the established norms. There may be a conflict of working styles, dissatisfaction with the assigned role, lack of clear responsibilities or simply inability to cope with the assigned task. This is where the team is most likely to fall apart and reassurance from team members is essential as experiencing stress at this stage is commonplace. Norming: After the assault, the team resolves differences and is able to work more cohesively. Team members feel committed to a common goal and progress towards achieving it is rapidly accelerated. Occasionally there may be an overlap between the storming and norming phases when there is a change in a team member or designated role, leading to a return to the storming phase. Execution: In this phase, the team's effort finally leads to the achievement of the desired objectives. . This is considered the simplest stage as the team's performance remains relatively constant, regardless of old members leaving or new ones joining. Adjournment – ​​The final phase in which the team disbands, particularly if it was created to achieve a goal or for a specific period. It may also be possible to dissolve permanent teams through corporate restructuring.