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Have you ever worked with a team at school, work or otherwise?

If you want to turn your next team experience...

from this...

frustrated person shaking their fist

to this...

dream team

...how can Tuckman's Team Performance Model help?

Tuckman's Team Performance Model

Working well in a team is all about building relationships. This takes time.

Tuckman describes the 5 stages teams go through to go from strangers to teammates.

When teams understand these, they can start working effectively faster.5 Stages in Tuckman's Team Performance Model: Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning

Did you know?

American Psychological Researcher Bruce Wayne Tuckman first published his theory of group dynamics in his 1965 paper, "Developmental Sequence in Small Groups" with the first 4 stages. In 1977, he added a fifth stage, Adjourning.

Stage 1: Forming

What happens at the Forming stage?

  • Team has its first meeting to get to know each other and start to build trust.

  • Members may be anxious, cautious, or excited to get started.

  • Everyone tries to get along.

How to move to the Storming stage?

  • Select a team leader and establish roles.

  • Set a team mission and agree on goals.

Person saying 'sign me up'

Stage 2: Storming

What happens at the Storming stage?

  • Members start to push boundaries.

  • Different opinions may lead to conflict.

  • Frustrations rise as the work increases and progress slows.

How to move to the Norming stage?

  • Create a positive and supportive environment.

  • Request and share feedback.

  • Recognize successes.

Person saying 'is this thing on?'

Stage 3: Norming

What happens at the Norming stage?

  • Members learn to resolve conflict and recognize each other's strengths.

  • Members are committed to achieving the team's goals.

How to move to the Performing stage?

  • Team communicates openly and often.

  • Team shares responsibilities, risks, and successes.

  • Team continues to set newer and more challenging goals.

Person climbing steps that say 'we can do it'

Stage 4: Performing

What happens at the Performing stage?

  • Team works collaboratively towards shared goals.

  • Members trust and empathize with each other.

How to move to the Adjourning stage?

  • Accomplish established goals.

  • Meet all deadlines and publish results.

Cheerleader spelling 'teamwork'

Stage 5: Adjourning

What happens at the Adjourning stage?

  • Project comes to an end.

  • Membership in group ends.

  • New teams are formed.

How to move on from this stage?

  • Share team results.

  • Debrief team performance and share lessons learned.

  • Celebrate team success!

Proud person with the words 'mission accomplished'

Did you know?

This stage is sometimes referred to as "Mourning" because when teams work well together and develop bonds, it can be difficult when the team's work ends.

Identify The Team Stage

Which of these teams is in the Norming Stage?

Business Plan Team

Classmates came together to create a business plan. The team divided up the work evenly based on their strengths, each presenting a separate section of the plan. They trust each and ask for help if needed.

Volunteer Officer Team

A new group of officers were elected to lead a non-profit volunteer group. Half have never been an officer and are nervous of how much work it will be. The president starts the first meeting with an ice breaker exercise.

Work Team

A new coworker joins your work team and questions everything. They have a lot of experience from their previous job and think their ideas can help improve the team's work.

Cross-Functional Project Team

Members from the engineering, marketing and training teams are working together to launch a new feature. After disagreements about who was in charge of what, they agreed on a project plan with tasks assigned to each.

Quiz

Which of these teams is in the Norming Stage?

Take Action

The next time you lead a team:

Go Team!

License:

This Byte has been authored by

KA

Kitzzy Avilés

Instructional Designer, Leader and Facilitator

Master's Degree

English

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