Tuckman's Five Stages Of Teamwork Essay

1457 Words3 Pages

Immanuel Wilder
BA 133
Dr. Creasy
28 July 2017
Teamwork
Teams are involved in everyone’s everyday life. Throughout one’s lifetime, teamwork will be a skill needed in order to succeed in some capacity. Teams involve teammates working towards a common goal using teamwork. Tuckman’s five stages of team development explains the common phases in a team’s life span. Tuckman’s five stages were created by a man named Bruce Tuckman in 1965. The five stages of team development are forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. The first stage of Tuckman’s five stages is forming. This is a period when the team is happy and just starting to get to know each other. The team is figuring out who everyone is and how each person acts. “In this stage, …show more content…

The three internal processes are task work, teamwork, and team states. Team process is a noun that “reflects the different type of activities, communications, and interactions that occur within teams and contribute to their ultimate end goals,” (Dr. Creasy PowerPoint). Teams should go through a period of synergy, which is when more than two people come together in order to achieve a goal bigger than themselves for the greater good of the team. The first internal team process is called task work process. Task work processes are the actions of the team members that directly affect the team’s accomplishments. Task work processes have three parts: creative behavior, decision making, boundary spanning. Creative behavior is when the team is focused on establishing useful ideas. In Miracle, the teammates use brainstorming in order to figure out how to understand their coach, Herb Brooks. They do not really understand everything he means and wants, but they think of ideas to understand him. The decision making part of task work processes is an essential part. Decision making is when the team mutually agrees that they need to change in order to succeed. After the team decides to listen to Coach Brooks and abide by what he says, they become a more fluid team and work well together. The third portion of task work processes is boundary spanning. Boundary spanning is when an external source pushes the limits of the team. Although a head coach of a team is a part of the team, many do not consider the coach as an internal teammate. Coach Herb Brooks pushes the limits of his players by calling them out such as when he accuses Rob McClanahan of quitting on his team even though he had a badly bruised leg. Coach Brooks also pushes the limits of his team when he makes them skate “Herbies” after a 3-3 tie to Norway. He does not stop until everyone is puking and team captain Mike Eruzione

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