Shelter from the Storm

We’re all storming.

Tuckerman's classic team development model shows us how teams develop: first they Form, then Storm as they struggle to work together, develop Norms to improve, and then start to really Perform. I've taught and coached many teams along this timeline over the years.

However, I've noticed that despite all of the work and energy spent getting better, almost no teams made it all of the way to high-performance. Why is this?

While there's a lot of factors, I think it's related to VUCA. An acronym for Volatile, Uncertain, Chaotic and Ambiguous, I find it perfectly summarizes our current business environment. Everything moves so rapidly that we all need to continually adjust what we’re doing just to survive, much less thrive.

Tuckerman’s model was created in 1965. Its linear way of viewing team growth is valuable but outdated. In a VUCA world, its rare that a team stays together long enough to make it to Performing, much less makes it through Storming.

So how to get better? Teams can ask themselves these questions:

- How can we perform in a state of storming?
- How can we align with others in a disorganized world?

How you and your teammates answer these questions will tell you a lot about how well you'll work together. Intentionally plan for the chaos rather than reacting to it before it hits you.

Let me know what you think. I'd like to explore how we can perform - even in the rain.