Psychologist Bruce Tuckman first came up with the memorable words “forming, storming, norming and performing” back in 1965 to describe the path to high-performance that most teams follow. Later, he added a fifth stage that he called “adjourning” (and others often call “mourning” – it rhymes better!)
Teams initially go through a "Forming" stage in which members are positive and polite. Some members are anxious, as they haven’t yet worked out exactly what work the team will involve. Others are simply excited about the task ahead. As leader, you play a dominant role at this stage: other members’ roles and responsibilities are less clear.
This stage is usually fairly short, and may only last for a single meeting at which people are introduced to one-another. At this stage there may be discussions about how the team will work, which can be frustrating for some members who simply want to get on with the team task.
Soon, reality sets in and your team moves into a "Storming" phase. Your authority may be challenged as others jockey for position as their roles are clarified. The ways of working start to be defined, and as leader you must be aware that some members may feel overwhelmed by how much there is to do, or uncomfortable with the approach being used. Some react by questioning how worthwhile the goal of the team is and resist taking on tasks. This is the stage when many teams fail, and even those who stick with it feel that they are on an emotional roller coaster as they try to focus on the job in hand without the support of established processes or relationships with their colleagues.
Gradually, the team moves into a "Norming" stage, as a hierarchy is established. Team members come to respect your authority as leader, and others show leadership ...