Storming and Performing with Tuckman’s theory
Psychologist Bruce Tuckman created a model of team dynamics which is now well established. In his 1965 paper, “Developmental Sequence in Small Groups.”, he argued that all teams go through a set of stages in their development. Although the research is now quite old, the theory has continued to be memorable and useful.
This is probably largely due to Tuckman’s adoption of the easy to remember names for the team development stages. The model is generally referred to as “Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing” or “FSNP” model.
Forming
When a team is brought together, they do not know each other as individuals. They also don’t initially understand the team’s purpose. Individuals’ motivations will be different. Some will be excited, others anxious. In this “forming” stage the team will largely be working as separate individuals. They will however generally want to be accepted into the group and therefore behave positively towards other team members.
The team are likely to be questioning to learn more about the objectives and roles.
Storming
Tuckman argued that there is a second phase where team friction starts to become visible. Conflict occurs between team members. Each has their own interpretation of goals and their own preferred ways of working, and they are still working as individuals. There may be clashes with management also.
The enthusiasm of the previous phase may be replaced by frustration and much more negative language.
Norming
In the third phase, the team is starting to work together effectively as a team. They are resolving differences, and working out how best to work together. The team identity starts to become visible. Trust begins to build among team members allowing more compromises to be made
Performing
In this stage, the team is now working effectively and at its full potential. There is a high degree of psychological safety, and team members understand how their skills complement and fit together to get work done in the most effective way. Often roles may have become less rigid as the team moves more towards a cross-functional team with a shared goal.
About the model
Although this model gives some useful guidance, it is not a set of hard rules. Teams are all different. Tuckman’s research was relatively limited and he warned at the time that his model might not be generally applicable. There were no technical teams included and size and duration of teams was extremely varied.
It is clear from the model that significant time, effort and disruption comes from rebuilding teams. This is a key reason why Agile development focusses on stable teams and bringing the work to the team.
A key area of the model is around the Storming phase. Tuckman’s model emphasises that conflict is normal and expected as part of the team being formed. This is a key lesson for leaders who might otherwise have been taught to suppress conflict and encourage uniformity of thinking.
Subsequent research has suggested that teams which allow conflicting views tend to outperform other teams. A paper trying to reproduce Tuckman’s results with small expert teams in the Department of Defense, found little evidence of a Storming phase, but that where Storming was observed, the teams were more successful. The author also noted that this could be because military leaders tended to suppress conflict.
Conflict, resistance, friction, and hostility are often discouraged when a neutral authority with significant power (the instructor or the boss) is observing the process
“Small, Short Duration Technical Team Dynamics” – P. Knight
Good Practices
The FSNP model gives some good guidance for how a leader can help the team. Following the “Management as a Service” model, the team will need different services from a leader through their maturity.
In the Forming stage the team will be greedy for information and the leader may need to take a teaching or mentoring stance, helping them agree objectives and roles. It is easy for some individuals to be ignored, and the risks are higher with remote working, so building support mechanisms is important.
When Storming, the leader will need to support the team through conflict while acknowledging and not suppressing the conflict. Ensuring respect and building psychological safety, using tools such as the Prime Directive, may help here. Keeping responsibilities clear and coaching individuals may be effective.
During the Norming stage, the team are actively trying to become an effective team. The leader will be able to coach and support, especially around decision making. He or she may also help the team bond socially. As the team builds self-management they may take more ownership of decisions.
Once the team is Performing, they will be very focussed on achieving goals. Many of the characteristics of self-managing teams will be evident. A leader will be able to ensure lowest viable level decision making, and will be able to support the team by setting strategic direction and celebrating successes. Groupthink can become an issue, and the leader can help oppose this.
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