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Phases of Team Development: 2024 Update

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Abstract

Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen, over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius’ first-hand professional experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance, Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective and visual conveying the five phases of team development — Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — inclusive of a graph showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics and strategies for each phase. Project Managers, Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, DevOps Leads, and other leaders can apply the information to help handle challenges or issues experienced by teams. By doing so, they’ll advance the teams’ (and their own) happiness, productivity, and success. Graffius initially developed his unique material in 2008, and he periodically refreshes it. This article (including the accompanying visual) provides the 2024 update to his ‘Phases of Team Development’ work. Graffius’ work has “team development” in the title. Alternative terms — which may be interchangeable in the context of this post — include group development, group dynamics, team agility, team building, team coaching, team collaboration, teamcraft, team dynamics, team leadership, team optimization, team performance, team tradecraft, and teamwork. Check out the full story. It’s here: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/teams-2024.html (and a PDF of it is attached). #Agile #AgileCoach #AgileProjectManagement #Agility #Business #BusinessLeadership #Coaching #Collaboration #DevOps #GroupDynamics #Leadership #PhasesOfTeamDevelopment #ProjectManagement #ProjectManager #Scrum #ScrumMaster #Team #TeamAgility #TeamBuilding #TeamCoaching #TeamCollaboration #TeamDynamics #TeamLeadership #TeamOptimization #TeamPerformance #Teamwork #Tech #TechLeadership #Technology #Tuckman
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Scott M. Graffius’ Phases of Team Development: 2024 UpdateScott M. Graffius’ Phases of Team Development: 2024 Update
!05 January 2024
BY SCOTT M. GRAFFIUS | ScottGraffius.com
Introduction
Informed by the research of Bruce W. Tuckman and Mary Ann C. Jensen,
over 100 subsequent studies, and Scott M. Graffius’ first-hand professional
experience with, and analysis of, team leadership and performance,
Graffius created his ‘Phases of Team Development’ as a unique perspective
and visual conveying the five phases of team development — Forming,
Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning — inclusive of a graph
showing how performance varies by phase, as well as the characteristics
and strategies for each phase.
Project Managers, Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, DevOps Leads, and
other leaders can apply the information to help handle challenges or issues
experienced by teams. By doing so, they’ll advance the teams’ (and their
own) happiness, productivity, and success.
Graffius initially developed his unique material in 2008, and he periodically
refreshes it. This article (including the accompanying visual) provides the
2024 update to his ‘Phases of Team Development’ work.
Graffius work has “team development” in the title. Alternative terms —
which may be interchangeable in the context of this article — include
group development, group dynamics, team agility, team building, team
coaching, team collaboration, teamcraft, team dynamics, team leadership,
team optimization, team performance, team tradecraft, and teamwork.
Five Phases of Team Development
1. Forming
Characteristics of the Forming phase include displaying eagerness,
socializing, generally polite tone, sticking to safe topics, unclear about how
one fits in, and some anxiety and questioning.
Strategies for Forming include taking the ‘lead,’ being highly visible,
facilitating introductions, providing the ‘big picture,’ establishing clear
expectations, communicating success criteria, and ensuring response
times are quick.
2. Storming
Traits of the Storming phase include some resistance, lack of participation,
conflict based on differences of opinions, competition, and high emotions.
Strategies for Storming include requesting and encouraging feedback,
identifying issues and facilitating their resolution, normalizing matters, and
building trust by honoring commitments.
3. Norming
Features of the Norming phase include developing cohesion; purpose and
goals are well-understood; more confident; improved commitment;
members are engaged and supportive; and relief, lowered anxiety.
Strategies for Norming include delivering feedback, recognizing individual
and team efforts, providing learning/upskilling opportunities, and
monitoring the ‘energy’ of the team.
4. Performing
Characteristics of the Performing phase include demonstrations of
interdependence and self-management; high motivation, trust, and
empathy; individuals defer to team needs; producing deliverables
effectively; and consistent performance.
Strategies for Performing include ‘guiding from the side’ (minimal
intervention), highlighting successes, and encouraging collective decision-
making and problem-solving.
5. Adjourning
Typical traits of the Adjourning phase (also referred to as the Transitioning
or Mourning phase) include potential sadness, and disbanding of
temporary teams.
Strategies for Adjourning include communicating change, conducting a
summative team evaluation via a retrospective or lessons learned session,
recognizing individual and team efforts and achievements, and celebrating
the team's accomplishments (a party/after-party).
Conclusion
Project Managers, Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, DevOps Leads, and
other leaders can apply the information in this article and the
accompanying visual to help handle challenges or issues experienced by
teams. By doing so, they’ll advance the teams’ (and their own) happiness,
productivity, and success.
This article provided a brief overview of the five phases of team
development. Scott M. Graffius presents dynamic and engaging talks and
workshops on this topic and more at conferences and other events (public
and private/corporate) around the world. To learn more, visit here. For
booking information, please complete a speaker engagement request form
or email Scott M. Graffius.
If you're looking for additional information on this article (such as
references/sources, citation details, or permission request information),
read on.
Graffius’ Research is Widely Cited, Featured, and Used
Businesses, scientists, journalists, professional associations, government
agencies, universities, and others around the world have featured and
used prior — 2023 and earlier — editions of Scott M. Graffius’ ‘Phases of
Team Development’ material. Here are a few examples:
Academic Cooperation Association
Adobe
American Management Association
Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute
Bayer
Boston University
CodeMonk
Dagen
Deimos Aerospace
Erste Bank
FSU College of Medicine
Hasso Plattner Institute (Hasso-Plattner-Institut für Digital Engineering
GmbH)
IEEE
Innovify
Life Sciences Trainers & Educators Network (LTEN)
London South Bank University
New Zealand Government
Prima Resource
Singapore University of Social Sciences
Technical University of Munich
Torrens University Australia
UK Sports Institute
University of Galway Ireland
University of Graz Austria
University of Waterloo
US National Park Service
Virginia Tech
Warsaw University of Technology
Yale University
Zittau/Gorlitz University of Applied Sciences
And many more
References/Sources
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2. Alfateh, Maryam Ali Abu; Messaadia, Mourad; and Ali, Mazen (2023,
September). Exploring the Dynamics of Team Formation in Human-
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How to Cite This Article
Graffius, Scott M. (2024, January 8). Scott M. Graffius Phases of Team
Development: 2024 Update. Available at:
https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/teams-2024.html.
Permission Request Information
To request permission to use the ‘Phases of Team Development’ visual shown
at the top of this article or any other material from this publication, email
Scott M. Graffius. If your request is approved, Graffius will give you an
authorization/license and, if applicable, high-resolution files of the visual.
About Scott M. Graffius
Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL,
LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, thinker,
creator, multi-award-winning author, and international public speaker.
Founder and CEO of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary
Exceptional Agility™, he has generated over $1.9 billion for Global Fortune
500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and
content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured
and used by Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project
Management Institute, IEEE, National Academy of Sciences, United States
Department of Energy, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He
delights audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on
agile project management, AI, Tech leadership, video game development,
strategic alignment, the science of high performance teams, and more. To
date, he's presented sessions at 89 conferences and other events across
25 countries.
His full bio is available here.
Connect with Scott on:
Twitter,
Facebook, and
LinkedIn.
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Review Use the Phases of Team Development -- Based on Bruce W. Tuckman's Model of
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Development 5 Phases of Team Development Five Stages of Team Development 5 Stages of
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Do Not Read This Article! An Exploration of the Streisand Effect and Other Phenomena * * * * * In the grand carnival of human behavior and information flow, there are quirks and curiosities so odd yet impactful that they deserve a closer look. Among these is the Streisand Effect, a phenomenon so emblematic of unintended consequences that it practically shouts, "Whatever you do, don't think of a pink elephant!" Naturally, the elephant in the room then becomes the main attraction. This article takes you on a tour of the Streisand Effect and 20 other phenomena that shape how we perceive, act, and interact in our hyper-connected world. * * * * * For the story, read the accompanying PDF or visit https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/streisand-effect.html. * * * * * Scott M. Graffius is an agile project management expert practitioner, consultant, award-winning author, and international public speaker. He has generated more than USD $1.9 billion in business value for organizations served, including Fortune 500 companies across diverse industries such as technology, entertainment, financial services, social media, healthcare, and government. Microsoft, IEEE, US Department of Energy, Yale University, and other prominent organizations have featured Graffius and his work. He divides his time between Los Angeles and Paris, France. * * * * * Tags including hashtags: #AttentionEconomy • #BarnumEffect • Zeigarnik Effect • Scott M. Graffius • Social Loafing • Self-Fulfilling Prophecy • Pygmalion Effect • Placebo Effect • Observer Effect • Mere Exposure Effect • Halo Effect • Mandela Effect • Hawthorne Effect • Groupthink • Fundamental Attribution Error • Dunning-Kruger Effect • Doppler Effect • Confirmation Bias • Cognitive Dissonance • Bystander Effect • Butterfly Effect • Barnum Effect • Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon • #ZeigarnikEffect • Streisand Effect • #PsychologicalPhenomena • #PlaceboEffect • #ObserverEffect • #MereExposureEffect • #MarketingStrategy • #MandelaEffect • #HumanBehavior • #HaloEffect • #Groupthink • #DunningKrugerEffect • #DecisionMaking • #ConfirmationBias • #ViralMarketing • #Psychology • #StreisandEffect • #PygmalionEffect • #SelfFulfillingProphecy • #SocialMedia • #SocialLoafing • #CognitiveDissonance • #CognitiveBias • #Censorship • #BystanderEffect • #ButterflyEffect • #BehavioralScience • #BaaderMeinhofPhenomenon
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Inspect and Adapt: Exploring Retrospectives and Hot Washes * * * * * Scott M. Graffius is a thought leader in agile project management, an expert on teamwork tradecraft, a creator, a consultant, a trainer, an award-winning author (Agile Scrum: Your Quick Start Guide with Step-by-Step Instructions and Agile Transformation: A Brief Story of How an Entertainment Company Developed New Capabilities and Unlocked Business Agility to Thrive in an Era of Rapid Change), and an international public speaker. * * * * * Participants at conferences and other events where Graffius has delivered talks and workshops have sought clarity on the distinctions between retrospectives and hot washes. Particularly by those possibly in intelligence or military communities, the question has been asked with increasing frequency. Based on that, Graffius decided to develop this concise article. Read the accompanying PDF or visit the following link for the story: https://agilescrumguide.com/blog/files/exploring-retrospectives-and-hot-washes.html * * * * * Hashtags: #AfterActionReview • #HotDebrief • #Sprint • #TacticalDebrief • #SprintRetrospective • #ScrumMaster • #Scrum • #Retrospectives • #Retrospective • #ProjectManager • #ProjectManagementTool • #ProjectManagement • #OperationalAssessment • #MissionDebrief • #MissionAnalysis • #MilitaryDebrief • #IntelligenceReview • #InspectAndAdapt • #HotWashes • #HotWash • #HotDebrief • #AgileCoach • #Agile • #AgileTool • #CSM • #ContinuouslyImprove • #ContinuousImprovement • #AgileTeam • #AgileScrumGuide • #AgileRetrospective
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Scott M. Graffius will be speaking at the W Love Games International Video Game Development Conference - Helsinki, where he'll present “The Science of High-Performance Game Development Teams” on October 13, 2023. Graffius’ talk is informed by his first-hand work with video game development teams as well as research and coverage from Activision Blizzard, Gameloft, International Game Developers Association, Microsoft, Rockstar Games, Sony Interactive Entertainment, and others. The information in my session can provide attendees, their teams, and their organizations with a competitive advantage! * * * * * Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. He is the Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. He has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Businesses and industries range from consumer products to e-commerce, entertainment (music, streaming/OTT video, television, film, and games), financial services, government, R&D (AI), and more. Graffius and content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Adobe, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 87 conferences and other events across 25 countries. This will be Graffius’ 88th engagement. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com to learn more. * * * * * #Activision #Blizzard #GameBiz #GameDev #GameDevConference #GameDevelopment #GameDevSkills #GameDevSpeaker #GameDevTalk #Gameloft #GTA #Helsinki #IGDA #Innovation #InternationalSpeaker #KeynoteSpeaker #Leadership #Nintendo #PlayStation #PublicSpeaker #RockstarGames #Sega #Sony #Speaker #TakeTwoInteractive #Teamwork #WLG23 #WLoveGames #WLoveGamesConference #Xbox
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“Behind every great video game is a team of creative and technical wizards. Creators, storytellers, designers, artists, developers, testers, and others collaborate and leverage a diverse range of hard skills (also known as technical skills) and soft skills (also known as interpersonal skills) to craft an exceptional end-product ...” Read the full story at: https://scottgraffius.com/blog/files/gamedev.html * * * * * Scott M. Graffius, PMP, SA, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi-award-winning author, and international keynote speaker. Founder of Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™, he has generated over $1.9 billion of business value in aggregate for Global Fortune 500 businesses and other organizations he has served. Graffius and content from his books, talks, workshops, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities. Examples include Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Project Management Institute, IEEE, Qantas, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Yale University, Tufts University, and others. He has delighted audiences with dynamic and engaging talks and workshops on agile, project management, and technology leadership at 87 conferences and other events across 25 countries. Visit https://ScottGraffius.com/ to learn more. * * * * * * #Activision #Blizzard #Conference #Developers #GameDesign #GameDev #GameDevelopment #GameDevLife #GameDevSkills #GameDevSuccess #GameDevTalk #GameDevTeam #GameDevTeamSkills #GameIndustryTrends #GamePublishing #IGDA #Innovation #Leadership #Microsoft #Playstation #RockstarGames #SEGA #TakeTwoInteractive #Teamwork #Technology #VideoGameConference #VideoGameDevelopment #Xbox #SoftSkills #HardSkills
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Scott M. Graffius will present “Team Development Tradecraft: A Source of Competitive Advantage” at an event in Adelaide, Australia on Friday, February 4, 2022. * * * * * Attendees may be eligible to receive continuing education unit (CEU) credit, equivalent to 2.50 Professional Development Hours (PDHs). For reporting with the Project Management Institute (PMI), it's 2.50 Professional Development Units (PDUs), under the Leadership category. For reporting with the Scrum Alliance, it's 2.50 Scrum Educational Units (SEUs), under either the Learning category or the Events category. For reporting with other organizations, refer to their respective instructions. * * * * * Scott M. Graffius, PMP, CSP-SM, CSP-PO, CSM, CSPO, SFE, ITIL, LSSGB is an agile project management practitioner, consultant, multi award-winning author, and international speaker. He has generated over 1.75 billion dollars of business value in aggregate for the organizations he has served. Graffius is the founder, CEO, and principal consultant at Exceptional PPM and PMO Solutions™ and subsidiary Exceptional Agility™. His expertise spans project, program, portfolio, and PMO leadership inclusive of agile, traditional, and hybrid approaches. Content from his books, workshops, speaking engagements, and more have been featured and used by businesses, professional associations, governments, and universities including Microsoft, Oracle, Broadcom, Cisco, Gartner, Deloitte, Project Management Institute, IEEE, SANS Institute, U.S. Soccer Federation, English Institute of Sport, Ford, Qantas, Atlassian, Wrike, Bayer, National Academy of Sciences, United States Department of Energy, United States Army, New Zealand Ministry of Education, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Tufts University, Texas A&M University, Warsaw University of Technology, University of Waterloo, National University of Ireland Galway, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, and others. Graffius has spoken at 59 conferences and other events around the world, including Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States. Thinkers360 named Graffius a global top thought leader and influencer in four domains: Agile, Change Management, Digital Transformation, and GovTech. Follow Graffius on Twitter at @ScottGraffius. * * * * * #Adelaide #ADL #Agile #AgileProjectManagement #AgileSpeaker #Agility #Australia #BruceTuckman #BruceWTuckman #ConferenceSpeaker #Innovation #InternationalSpeaker #KGC #KeynoteSpeaker #Leadership #PMO #ProfessionalDevelopment #ProjectManagement #ProjectManagementSpeaker #PublicSpeaker #PublicSpeaking #Speaker #Strategies #Talk #Team #TeamDevelopment #TeamDevelopmentTradecraft #TeamLeadership #Tradecraft #YPAD
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We review the literature on people management and performance in organizations across a range of disciplines, identifying aspects of management where there is clear evidence about what works as well as aspects where the evidence is mixed or does not yet exist. We organize our discussion by four lenses, or levels of analysis, through which people management can be viewed: (i) individual extrinsic, intrinsic, and psychological factors; (ii) organizational people management, operational management, and culture; (iii) team mechanisms, composition and structural features; and (iv) relationships, including networks, leadership, and individuals’ relationships to their job and tasks. Each of these four lenses corresponds not only to a body of literature but also to a set of management tools and approaches to improving public employees’ performance; articulating the connections across these perspectives is an essential frontier for research. We find that existing people management evidence and practice have overemphasized formal management tools and financial motivations at the expense of understanding how to leverage a broader range of motivations, build organizational culture, and use informal and relational management practices. We suggest that foregrounding the role of relationships in linking people and performance—relational public management—may prove a fertile and interdisciplinary frontier for research and practices.
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Scott M. Graffius will present “DevOps and Team Leadership” at a private event in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 21, 2021. This will be a hybrid event – with in person and virtual online attendance – for DevOps staff, HR, and executive management. Attendees may be eligible to receive continuing education unit (CEU) credit, equivalent to 2.00 hours. For reporting with the Project Management Institute (PMI), it's 2.00 professional development units (PDUs), under the Leadership category. For reporting with the Scrum Alliance, it's 2.00 Scrum educational units (SEUs), under either the Learning category or the Events category. For reporting with other organizations, refer to their respective instructions. Visit https://www.scottgraffius.com and follow Scott on Twitter at @ScottGraffius (https://twitter.com/scottgraffius). #Agile #AgileCoach #Agility #BusinessAgility #Career #Development #DevOps #InternationalSpeaker #LAS #Leadership #ProfessionalDevelopment #Project #ProjectLeadership #ProjectManagement #PublicSpeaker #SoftSkills #Speaker #Talk #Team #TeamDevelopment #TeamDynamics #TeamLeadership #TeamPerformance #Tech #Technology #Tradecraft #Tuckman #Upskill #Upskilling #Vegas
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Scott M. Graffius will be speaking at the 6th annual DevOps Pro Europe 2021 Conference. He will lead the session “But First, the Team! (Edition for DevOps Pro Europe 2021 Conference) on May 13, 2021. The conference is a hybrid event: speakers and attendees can participate in-person (in Vilnius, Lithuania) or online. See https://www.scottgraffius.com and follow Scott on Twitter at @ScottGraffius (https://twitter.com/scottgraffius). #Agile #Agility #BusinessAgility #Career #Development #DevOps #DevOpsEU #DevOpsProEurope #InternationalSpeaker #IT #Leadership #Lithuania #LT #Project #ProjectManagement #ProjectManager #PublicSpeaker #SoftSkills #Speaker #Team #TeamDevelopment #TeamDynamics #Tuckman #ProjectLeadership #TeamPerformance #Tech #TechConference #Technology #Tradecraft #Vilnius
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Teams (agile or otherwise) go through phases of development, and Bruce Tuckman established a popular framework on the subject. According to Tuckman, all phases—Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, and Adjourning—are necessary for teams to grow, tackle problems, find solutions, plan work, and deliver results. Scott M. Graffius developed a related custom illustration, Phases of Team Development, which he revises periodically. He released an updated version of the visual on January 4, 2021. This article features the new version of the Phases of Team Development illustration along with a brief overview of the characteristics and strategies for each phase. Five Phases of Team Development 1. Forming Characteristics of Forming include displaying eagerness, socializing, generally polite tone, sticking to safe topics, being unclear about how one fits in, and some anxiety and questioning. Strategies for this phase include taking the ‘lead,’ being highly visible, facilitating introductions, providing the ‘big picture,’ establishing clear expectations, communicating success criteria, and ensuring that response times are quick. 2. Storming Traits of Storming include resistance, lack of participation, conflict related to differences of feelings and opinions, competition, high emotions, and starting to move towards group norms. Strategies for this phase include requesting and encouraging feedback, identifying issues and facilitating their resolution, normalizing matters, and building trust by honoring commitments. 3. Norming Features of Norming include an improved sense of purpose and understanding of goals, higher confidence, improved commitment, team members are engaged and supportive, relief—lowered anxiety, and starting to develop cohesion. Strategies for this phase include recognizing individual and team efforts, proving opportunities for learning and feedback, and monitoring the ‘energy’ of the team. 4. Performing Characteristics of Performing include higher motivation, elevated trust and empathy, individuals typically deferring to the team's needs, effective production, consistent performance, and demonstrations of interdependence and self-management (also referred to as self-organization). Strategies for this phase include ‘guiding from the side’ (minimal intervention), celebrating successes, and encouraging collective decision-making and problem-solving. 5. Adjourning Typical traits of Adjourning (also referred to as Transitioning or Mourning) include a shift to process orientation, sadness, recognition of team and individual efforts, and disbanding. Strategies for this phase include recognizing change, providing an opportunity for summative team evaluations (which may go by ‘lessons learned,’ post-project review, retrospective, or another label), providing an opportunity for individual acknowledgments, and celebrating the team's accomplishments—which may involve a party and possibly an ‘after-party.’ To learn more, and for downloadable high-resolution versions of the illustration, visit bit.ly/teams-21. #Tuckman #BruceTuckman #Team #Development #Dynamics #Performance #Leadership #TeamDevelopment #TeamDynamics #TeamPerformance #TeamLeadership #Forming #Storming #Norming #Performing #Adjourning #Agile #ProjectManagement
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Scott M. Graffius spoke at the Techstars Startup Week conference, where he presented "Agile Scrum Helps Innovators, Disruptors, and Entrepreneurs Develop and Deliver Products at Astounding Speed Which Drives Competitive Advantage" to an audience of startups and others in the entrepreneurial community on October 4, 2018. Additional information is available at https://www.ScottGraffius.com. #agile #scrum #projectmanagement #projectmgmt #agilepm #agilescrumguide #transformation #agiletransformation #speaker #publicspeaker #keynote #keynotespeaker #conference #conferencespeaker #agilespeaker #author #book #agilebook #agileauthor #agilecoach #agileexpert #innovation #sdlc #product #development #productdevelopment #software #softwaredevelopment #startup #startups #pmi #projectmanagementinstitute #scrumalliance #ieee #tech #technology #leadership
Chapter
It is commonly agreed that the ever-changing reality of the 21st century impacts organizations and individuals alike. Important changes and new concepts include new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and within it, machine learning, cognitive computing, deep learning, etc. While it is speculated that millions of jobs will be eliminated due to these changes, there is also strong foundation to suggest that millions of new jobs that don’t currently exist, will be created. Similarly, while many higher educatio9n graduates will have difficulties finding a job, organizations will have difficulties finding talented employees with 21st century skills. Thus, an inquiry into the skills required for this turbulent era is a pressing issue which will largely impact the workforce of the (near) future. Recent data highlights the importance of soft skills for evolving workplace environments. Soft skills constitute a set of not purely cognitive skills and competencies that computers do not currently poses, that enable people to work together with machines in increasingly complex ways and that that help people function in a constantly changing reality. Such skills include the capacity to adapt to continuous changes, to cope with rising levels of stress and persevere, to show empathy and moral judgment, to establish and maintain positive relationships and work well in teams, to think creatively and innovatively, and to be a life-long learner. In particular, emotional-social intelligence (ESI) competencies have been noted to account for human advantage over AI, and their crucial importance in the workplace, together with their contribution to workers' well-being and professional success, are recently increasingly emphasized. Most importantly, ESI, and soft skills more generally, can be cultivated to a significant extent and well-designed interventions in workplaces, higher education and school have been found to enhance SEI skills and bring many benefits. This chapter will discuss the crucial role of soft skills in the emerging AI era, the importance of integrating them in education, work settings and more generally, and effective methods to do so.