The majority of experts in the field of team creation agree that teams traverse through five distinct stages. The speed at which a team progresses through each stage depends on the members of the team who are involved, their personal skills as well as the work they’re expected to complete as well as the kind of management provided on the team.
Bruce Tuckman deemed the four principal stages of team growth in the order of Forming, Storming, and Norming. Then, he would add Performing. Later, as self-managed teams became common in business, he added a fifth stage of Adjourning/Transforming. Thomas Quick called the five stages for teams: Searching, Defining, Identifying, Processing, and Assimilating/Reforming. Whatever the term used to describe the five stages, teams will undergo all five stages in their development and working processes.
1. Stage One
The very first stage is where the team is created, and the members get together. They are taught what the team’s potential and challenges will be. Members may be confused about their roles or fully comprehend the importance of the group. They will all agree on the objectives and allocate actions to tasks, usually working on their own. The ground rules or guidelines for the team are set. In the beginning, the leader of the team could be one of the members of the group as a supervisor, consultant, or manager who can assist in the team-building process. The leader will assist the team in defining the processes they will follow. At this point, the leader must be clear and comprehend the need for team training in order to progress through each phase.
Stage 2
In the second stage, personal speech is allowed, and there is conflict among members. The team members tend to concentrate on specifics rather than issues at hand and fight to influence. A lack of trust among the team members is a clear sign of this. The team must decide their preferred style of leadership and their preferred method of making decisions. The team leader can aid by encouraging the importance of tolerance and patience among members. The leader must guide the team towards clearly defined goals, clear role roles, acceptable conduct, and a shared feedback system for team communication.
Stage 3.
In the third stage, the group develops practices that align with group norms and principles. They utilize standard tools and techniques and exhibit positive behavior; confidence, motivation, open communication improve positive teamwork and focus become apparent. The team’s relationships are strengthened, and individual strengths are acknowledged and effectively utilized. The team leader is always encouraging participation and professionalism among team members.
4. Stage
exhibits the highest levels of loyalty, motivation, participation, and group decision-making. Cross-training, knowledge sharing, and the degree of interdependence grow. The team is self-directing in developing plans and strategies to achieve their goals and complete their work. Individual growth and sharing are promoted throughout the team. The leader is a facilitator supporting the team through communicating and assisting if they need to return to a previous stage.
Stage 5
For teams of the project and temporary committees or task force members coming to the end of their term, There is a closing phase in which they. Celebrate and acknowledge group accomplishments. After that, they will mourn the end of the group relationship and begin to plan for the changes in individual tasks. At this point, the leader must emphasize gratitude to the organization as well as individual and team acknowledgment. In continuous work teams, it is possible to achieve more performance levels as they grow and change as individuals before transforming into new teams. It is vital to keep in mind that continuous work teams could be able to revert back to earlier stages when new members are brought into the team.
It takes time and effort for the various phases of team development. Each team will experience each stage. The timing of each stage could differ for every team, based on the team members’ personalities, their level of expertise and the tasks the team must complete, and the team’s direction at each stage.
