The Forming, Storming, Norming & Performing Model

Forming, Storming, Norming & Performing – Stage Definitions

Let’s look at each in turn, find out what the purpose of each stage is, and what can we learn to inform our expectations of team dynamics.

Forming Stage

When teams first meet, everyone is on their best behaviour, as they suss out one another’s personalities. At this stage, nobody is observing a team goal, and everyone’s priorities lie with their own representation within the group.

While this may not sound like a very positive stage in group formation, it’s where the key roles will start to be determined, as natural leaders, pragmatists, ideas people, negotiators and supporters become defined. In other words, people look for a niche.

Common features of this stage include:

• Formation of and/or deference towards directions of a leader.
• Little agreement on what team objectives should be, aside from leader’s direction.
• Lack of clarity on individual roles and responsibilities.
• Members test tolerance of any agreed processes and their leader.
• Leader must answer many questions with authority (earned or assumed).
• Leader will direct individuals towards tasks.

You can see that in this stage, there’s more of a dictatorship than a team dynamic going on. This will change as we enter phase 2:

Storming Stage

Clarity has not yet developed in this stage as group dynamics are forged for the first time. Factions may develop, with varying degrees of deference to the leader, who may struggle to remain in command. Eventually the leader will have to adopt more of a coaching role, than a dictatorial one.

Members are positioning themselves within the team to be maximally effective. In the competitive world of sales, they may be a surplus of would-be leaders, and the nominal leader may face challenges. In some teams a vote will be taken on who assumes positions of responsibility, often in sub-team leader roles. In others, it will happen more organically as some team members simply assert control over the situation. In some, the leader, having observed where various talents lie, will simply assign these subsidiary leadership roles.

Common features of the Storming stage include:

• Power dynamics are shifting as individuals challenge authority.
• No cohesive team direction has yet been found.
• Individuals are asserting their place within the team, often competitively.
• Cliques are forming, and a group purpose begins to develop.
• Compromises may be found, and the initial leader adopts a coaching role.

Even in stage two, no real group purpose has been assented to by most parties. Everyone is still finding their feet and their place in the hierarchy. This dynamic continues until the breakthrough into the third stage.

Norming Stage

A sense of group purpose develops in the “norming” stage, so called because it is now that group “norms” come to the fore. The group finally settles upon one unified direction, and the lines of reporting and responsibility become fixed.

Larger decisions tend to be taken by group vote, with smaller ones delegated to sub-team leaders or individuals with unique talents and abilities. Now, finally, the team begins to behave as a cohesive whole and can begin to accomplish its goals.

Individuals are now held accountable for failure to deliver upon promises and the leader is respected, while remaining under ongoing scrutiny. Features of stage three include:

• Group consensus forming, facilitated by the leader.
• Commitment and a sense of unity within the group develops.
• The team begin to enjoy their tasks and sense of shared purpose.
• The leader is finally accepted and respected.
• Responsibilities are shared within the team.
• More empathetic team members ensure than nobody is side-lined.
• Strategy, process, and practical working methods are decided upon.
• The team begins to see its first successes, as milestones are met.

Here’s where it all comes together. In a complex, multifaceted task requiring a large team, it could take several meetings to reach this stage. For much smaller groups with single, well-defined tasks, consensus and norming might occur within an hour or two.

Finally, the team is ready to achieve something!

Performing Stage

Now the group dynamic is stable, the team should be operating towards a single agreed-upon purpose. Milestones are met within agreed deadlines. Individual needs are set aside for the greater good.

While individuals may be reassigned to different tasks during this phase, the overall structure of the team does not usually change. The defined purpose means that much of the group’s work is independent of direct input from the leader. The leader now takes on a supervisory role, having delegated most tasks.

Common aspects of this stage include:

• A high degree of autonomy with well-defined roles.
• A goal-focused culture with a sense of competition to achieve those goals.
• While disagreements do occur, they are resolved with small changes to operating procedures or minor interventions from the leader (arbitrating).
• Team members begin to look out for one another. “I’ve got your back” is a typical refrain.
• A sense of excitement builds as a task which could not have been achieved by one person alone is brought to fruition.
• Praise is assigned by the leader, and sub-leaders.
• Accountability is also implemented, where some team members do not pull their weight. They may be reassigned or removed from the group if improvements aren’t seen. The leader may be involved in disciplinary procedures of this nature.
• The end goal is realised, and group members enjoy a shared sense of achievement.

This last phase is really where all the work gets done, and its here that the group can finally said to cohere. This should be the longest phase since once stability is achieved, it’s merely a matter of working like the proverbial “well-oiled machine.”

Or, as Tuckman puts it, “With group norms and roles established, group members focus on achieving common goals, often reaching an unexpectedly high level of success.”
Check out our Team Building Training and our Management Training for further help on how to build high performing teams.