W1_Thuraiya_Leadership Styles analysis Using Tuckman model

W2_Juhaina_PDD Leadership Style

-       Problem Definition

Working in the Projects Development Department (PDD), it is highly essential to have a high team performance in order to ensure our projects run smoothly and achieve the required goals. Several factors affect the team’s performance with the leadership style having a great influence. Therefore it is essential for the team manager to identify the leadership style required to be adopted according to the stage that the group is operating in order to lead and manage his/her team effectively.

-       Identify the Feasible Alternative

Psychologist Bruce Tuckman introduced the 4 stage model of "forming, storming, norming, and performing" in his 1965 article, "Developmental Sequence in Small Groups." Which described the path that most teams follow on their way to high performance.

Each stage has its own group dynamics and the team manager should be able to identify this aspect and accordingly use the leadership style that is appropriate to improve the team’s performance. Following are the different leadership styles to be compared:

1.     Directing Style

2.     Coaching Style

3.     Facilitating Style

4.     Delegative Style

-       Development of the Outcome for Alternative

The (PDD) team completed a questionnaire prepared by Erin Barkema and John W. Moran. The questionnaire consists of 32 questions with statements about team work in order to assess what stage the team is operating in and accordingly identify the leadership style to be adopted.

-       Selection Criteria

Using the above mentioned questionnaire, the below table includes the results of the questionnaire made by me and the group average:

Group Stage	My Score	Average Score
Forming	18	21
Storming	21	19
Norming	28	28
Performing	33	33

Table 1: Resulting scores of the questionnaire by me & the PDD team

-       Analysis and Comparison of the Alternative

It is clear from table 1 that team scored the highest at the Norming and Performing stages. The questionnaire indicated that if the group scores high in both these stages, then the group is in the Performing Stage.

As we’ve now identified that the team is in the Performing Stage, we can now compare between the different approaches and identify the most appropriate style required for the leading the team. At the performing stage, the team has a clear vision of the objectives targeted and is able to operate efficiently without instructions from the leader, by making decisions against criteria that is agreed with the leader. The team members help one another on various aspects.

The leader cannot adopt the Directive Style in this case as the team is aware and efficient without the leader’s instructions. The leader does not need to adopt the Coaching Style either due to the team’s ability to make decisions independently. The Facilitating Style is not appropriate as the team is fully functional without participation from the leader. Therefore, it is concluded that the Delegative Style the is most appropriate for the team as it provides the team the responsibility and authority it requires.

-       Selection of the Preferred Alternative

The Delegative Style is the best alternative leadership style among the four styles that will improve the team’s performance according to the results of the scores of the questionnaire.

-       Performance Monitoring and the Post Evaluation of Result

The team’s performance needs to be monitored under the implementation of the Delegative Style leadership. It is recommended to redo the analysis after a few months to ensure that the team is adapting to the leadership style.

-       References

1.     Bruce Tuckman 1965 original 'Forming-storming-norming-performing' concept; Alan Chapman 2001-2013 review and code.

2.     Scoring The Tuckman Team Maturity Questionnaire Electronically, Erin Barkema and John W Moran, retrieved 11 November 2017 from (http://www.phf.org/resourcestools/Documents/Electronic_Tuckman.pdf)

3.     What Everybody Ought to Know About Team Building and Situational Leadership. (2017). Leadership Thoughts. Retrieved 11 November 2017, from https://www.leadershipthoughts.com/team-building-and-situational-leadership