TEAM FORMATION

A Narrative Report
Presented to
Engr. Delfa Castilla
Cebu Technological University – Danao Campus
Sabang, Danao City, Cebu

In Partial Fulfillment
of the requirement of the Subject
Technopreneurship

By:

GENITA, AUBREY LOU

ORLAIN, TRISHA CLARISSE
QUILANTANG, TRISH KACEY
SUICO, KRISTY JEAN
Learning Objectives:
​ By the end of this lesson, students are expected to:
●​ Define what a team is and differentiate it from a group.
●​ Recognize the importance of teamwork in accomplishing complex tasks
and achieving common goals.
●​ Explain the different stages of team development (Forming, Storming,
Norming, Performing, and Adjourning)​

Introduction
​ Teamwork plays a crucial role in both academic and professional environments.
An individual may possess skills and knowledge, but working alone often limits
efficiency and effectiveness. A team, on the other hand, brings together diverse talents,
ideas, and perspectives, enabling members to achieve goals that would be difficult to
accomplish individually.

Team formation is an intentional process of building a group that shares common

objectives, mutual trust, and a collective commitment to success. Unlike a mere
group, where individuals may act independently with different goals or motivations, a
true team requires unity, collaboration, and alignment of interests. This means that
members must be willing to set aside personal agendas in favor of the shared mission,
support one another during challenges, and celebrate successes as a collective
achievement.

The difference between a Group and a Team

​ A group is a collection of individuals who come together for a common purpose

or shared interest. The members of a group may share certain characteristics, such as
being part of the same organization, having a common hobby, or being connected through
a specific context or goal. However, they may have individual goals and responsibilities
that are not necessarily aligned with each other. Group members may interact with each
other, but their level of coordination and collaboration may vary.

​ On the other hand, a team is a more structured and cohesive form of a group. It is
characterised by a higher degree of interdependence, coordination, and collaboration
among its members. Unlike a group, a team has a clear and defined purpose or mission,
specific goals to achieve, and a collective responsibility for reaching those goals. Team
members often have complementary skills, expertise, or roles that contribute to the
overall performance and success of the team.
Team Members

​ The team members must complement each other. All team members should help
each other and work in unison. Personal interests must take a back seat and all of them
must deliver their level best to achieve the team objective. Team members must not argue
among themselves or underestimate the other member.

For example, organizations have a sales team, administration team, human

resources team operation team and so on. All the members of the sales team would work
together to achieve the sales target and generate revenues for the organization.

Team Size

​ The team size depends on the complexity of the task to be accomplished. Ideally a
team should consist of 7-10 members. Too many members also lead to confusions and
misunderstandings. It is not always that we require a team. Teams should be formed when
the task is a little complicated. A single brain can sometimes not take all critical decisions
alone, thus a team is formed where the team members contribute equally making the task
easy. A team can actually create wonders if all the team members work in unison.

Team Formation- Meaning, Stages and Forming an Effective Team

Teams are becoming a key tool for organizing work in today’s corporate world.
Teams have the potential to immediately amass, organize, relocate, and disperse.
However, teams are an effective tool of employee motivation. It is essential to consider
the fact that teams develop and get mature over a period of time. Team development
creates a captivating atmosphere by encouraging cooperation, teamwork, interdependence
and by building trust among team members.

The 5 Stages of Team Formation

This particular strategy for team building was introduced by a researcher named
Bruce Wayne Tuckman. He was an American psychologist (1938–2016) who analyzed
a number of studies about teams and how they worked together. He used a meta-analysis
approach to research and understand general concepts about group development. His
initial research in 1965 analyzed 61 separate white paper publications on team
development published over a period of 32 years; 92% of these were written and
published between 1948–1964. He published his groundbreaking work ‘Tuckman’s
Stages’ in 1965.

Tuckman started by defining four stages of forming teams. His theory was further
developed by PhD student Mary Ann Jensen ten years later. In 1977, she added the last
stage — Adjourning — thereby completing what we now know as the modern theory
of Team Development.
 Figure 1. Understanding the 5 Stages of Team Development

Stage 1: Forming (Getting Everyone on Board)

The first step in a team’s life is bringing together a group of individuals.

Individuals focus on defining and assigning tasks, establishing a schedule, organizing the
team’s work, and other start-up matters. In addition to focusing on the scope of the team’s
purpose and means of approaching it, individuals in the formation stage are also
gathering impressions and information about one another. Since people generally want to
be accepted by others, during this period they usually avoid conflict and disagreement.
Team members may begin to work on their tasks independently, not yet focused on their
relationships with fellow team members.

Stage 2: Storming (Share and Collaborate)

During this stage, team members are eager to get going. Conflict can arise as
people tend to bring different ideas of how to accomplish goals. At this time, they notice
differences rather than similarities. At this stage, communication is important. Tensions
will increase. So recognizing and publicly acknowledging accomplishments also become
important. It becomes important to participate in meetings and diversity needs to be
valued.
Stage 3: Norming (Finding the Best Way)

Successfully moving through the storming stage means that a team has clarified
its purpose and its strategy for achieving its goals. It now transitions to a period focused
on developing shared values about how team members will work together. These norms
of collaboration can address issues ranging from when to use certain modes of
communication, such as e-mail versus telephone, to how team meetings will be run and
what to do when conflicts arise. Norms become a way of simplifying choices and
facilitating collaboration, since members have shared expectations about how work will
get done.

Stage 4: Performing (Focus and Deliver)

This stage is when team members are trained, competent, as well as able to do
their own problem solving. At this time, ways need to be looked at in order to challenge
them as well as develop them. By now team members work together easily on
interdependent tasks and are able to communicate and coordinate effectively. There are
fewer time-consuming distractions based on interpersonal and group dynamics. For this
reason, motivation is usually high and team members have confidence in their ability to
attain goals.

While these four stages—forming, storming, norming, and performing—are

distinct and generally sequential, they often blend into one another and even overlap. A
team may pass through one phase only to return to it. For example, if a new member joins
the team, there may be a second brief period of formation while that person is integrated.
A team may also need to return to an earlier stage if its performance declines.
Team-building exercises are often done to help a team through its development process.

Stage 5: Adjourning (Review and Celebrate Successes)

The addition of the fifth stage, adjourning, encourages teams to reflect on their
past projects together, discuss their strengths and weaknesses and make plans for
improvement in the future. This step helps to truly strengthen a team, as they all can
provide input on the team as a whole and on how they can work more effectively. This
can also help to address issues people are having and make sure they are solved so
everyone on the team feels heard, safe and content.
References

Difference between Group and Team. (2023, August 26). Geeks for Geeks. Retrieved
from:[Link]
p-and-team/

Team Development – Meaning, Stages and Forming an Effective Team. (2025, April 3)
Management Study Guide. Retrieved
from:[Link]

Tuckman's Stages of Group Development. (2024, December 4). Westchester University.

Retrieved
from:[Link]
xt=These%20stages%20are%20commonly%20known,more%20collaborative%20
or%20shared%20leadership.

Ricci, M. (2024, July 25). Team Development: Tuckman’s Five Stages of Group
Development. Medium. Retrieved
from:[Link]