Team performance and alignment is critical to organisation success. The roles, goals and functions are not always sufficient to perform and excel. Factors like trust, emotional intelligence, communication and distributed leadership are all critical for teams to consistently deliver results. Every team is different that is why during phase 1 of our consultancy we will refine your bespoke programme with our findings before moving onto phase 2.
Every team goes through the five stages of team development. First, some background on team development. The first four stages of team growth were first developed by Bruce Wayne Tuckman and published in 1965. His theory, called “Tuckman’s Stages” was based on research he conducted on team dynamics. He believed (as is a common belief today) that these stages are inevitable in order for a team to grow to the point where they are functioning effectively together and delivering high quality results.
In 1977, Tuckman, jointly with Mary Ann Jensen, added a fifth stage to the 4 stages: “Adjourning.” The adjourning stage is when the team is completing the current project. They will be joining other teams and moving on to other work in the near future. For a high performing team, the end of a project brings on feelings of sadness as the team members have effectively become as one and now are going their separate ways.
We have different solutions for each stage that turn your group into a team and then your team into a high performing team. Here are some examples of the sort of areas of expertise we can help you at each stage:
Stage 1: Forming
The “forming” stage takes place when the team first meets each other. They learn about the project/job they will be working on, discuss the objectives/goals and start to think about what role they will play on the team. They are, effectively, “feeling each other out” and finding their way around how they might work together.
During this initial stage of team growth, it is important for the team leader to be very clear about team goals. The team leader should ensure that all of the members are involved in determining team roles and responsibilities and should work with the team to help them establish how they will work together (”team norms”.)
Expertise you may require might be:
- Understanding Team Dynamics
- Defining Team Profiles
- Practice Team Building
Stage 2: Storming
As the team begins to work together, they move into the “storming” stage. This stage is not avoidable; every team – most especially a new team who has never worked together before – goes through this part of developing as a team. In this stage, the team members compete with each other for status and for acceptance of their ideas. They have different opinions on what should be done and how it should be done – which causes conflict within the team.
Expertise you may require might be:
- Leadership and Team Alignment
- Conflict Management
- Productivity and Time management
- Emotional Intelligence
- Team Coaching
Stage 3: Norming
When the team moves into the “norming” stage, they are beginning to work more effectively as a team. They are no longer focused on their individual goals, but rather are focused on developing a way of working together (processes and procedures). They respect each other’s opinions and value their differences.
In this stage, the team leader may not be as involved in decision making and problem solving since the team members are working better together and can take on more responsibility in these areas.
Expertise you may require might be:
- Critical Thinking and Decision Making
- Powerful Pitching and Presenting
- Team Coaching
- Active Learning Sessions
- Team development of any weaknesses
Stage 4: Performing
in the “performing” stage, teams are functioning at a very high level. The focus is on reaching the goal as a group. The team members have gotten to know each other, trust each other and rely on each other.
Not every team makes it to this level of team growth; some teams stop at Stage 3: Norming. The highly performing team functions without oversight and the members have become interdependent. The team is highly motivated to get the job done. They can make decisions and problem solve quickly and effectively. When they disagree, the team members can work through it and come to consensus without interrupting the project’s progress. If there needs to be a change in team processes – the team will come to agreement on changing processes on their own without reliance on the team leader.
Expertise you may require might be:
- Continuous Improvement systems
- Well being programmes
Stage 5: Adjourning
In the “adjourning” stage the project is coming to an end and the team members are moving off into different directions. This stage looks at the team from the perspective of the well-being of the team rather than from the perspective of managing a team through the original four stages of team growth.
The team leader should ensure that there is time for the team to celebrate the success of the project and capture best practices for future use.
sending...