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C ollaboration is a word that belongs in the same "warm fuzzy feelings" list as love, peace, and healthy

eating. T h e decision to collaborate on a project instantly creates visions of heightened creativity, enlightened cooperation, and stunning results. T h e phrase "Let's collaborate on this" does not magically lead to a successful outcome, however. T h e Chicago Cubs prove that just because a group of highly talented people gets together in a team does not mean it can perform well.

Most effective groups, teams, or committees go through four separate stages before achieving effective collaboration. In 1965, psychologist Bruce Tuckman coined an unforgettable mnemonic for this process: forming, storming, norming, and performing. Groups must progress through the first three stages of development to successfully achieve stage four. Whether you are a group leader or simply a participant, your awareness of these four essential stages of tasks and expectations will help propel your collaborative efforts from an "oh well, maybe next season" experience to a successful venture with fabulous results.

F O R M I N G is the first stage of group development. This is an orientation stage that can be compared to a first date. On a first date, relationships are polite and reserved. You are trying to get to know each other, trying to decide if this is a relationship you want to continue. Caution, confusion, and courtesy are dominant.

Members of your newly formed committee must also get to know each other. Together you must decide on the purpose and structure of the group and your roles within that structure. Some questions you might ask during this time include, "Who are these other people? W h a t is expected of me? W h o is going to lead? W h a t is supposed to happen?" Even if you have worked together with other group members for years, forming a new

eature Hot Spot: Collaboration

Four Steps to Effective Collaboration By Penny Johnson

team requires this orientation period to establish goals and procedures.

This forming stage is not the time to expect free and open discussions or to create a consensus. In the beginning, fostering trust, encouraging relationship building, and clarifying purposes and expectations take precedence over making decisions or taking action.

If you are a committee chair, you play a very important role during this period. Group members will more likely interact directly with you rather than with other members. You need to direct the team clearly by establishing clear objectives, explaining task requirements, and generating a commitment to common goals. You should also

encourage equal participation among team members.

This first stage is usually rather short. Often it can be accomplished in the first committee meeting. Whether you are a leader or just a member, you can help the group progress by focusing on activities that will build a positive working relationship.

T h e S T O R M I N G stage does not seem to fit with the goal of a cooperative team. T h e conflict, criticism, and confrontation that define this stage is the opposite of the diplomacy and peacemaking you would expect from a successful collaborative effort. Surprisingly, however, almost all observers of group development have noted that for a group to become an effective team, it must go through

PENNY J0HN50N is the teen specialist at the public library in Baraboo, Wisconsin. Her involvement in YALSA includes chairing the Midwinter 2010 Social Event Task Force, the Midwinter 2 ü i i Institute Task Force, and the Annual 2011 Pre-Conference Task Force. She is also the organizer and current convener for the YALSA Serving Older Teens and Young Adults Interest Group. While earning her bachelor's degree in management, Penny had ample opportunity to study the principles of effective organizations and dynamic leadership.

Fall 2010 I Young Adult Library Services | YALS

Four Steps to Effective Collaboration

a period of internal strife. Most often this is centered on a strug^e for leadership or influence within the group. Unless your committee faces this conflict, it will most likely become "stuck" or go "off-track."

During this confrontational stage your authority as chair may be challenged as others jockey for position as their roles are clarified. Working methods start to be defined. If you are a committee member you may feel overwhelmed by how much there is to do, or uncomfortable with the approach being used. You or others may even react by questioning how worthwhile the goal of the team is and resist taking on tasks. Some questions you may ask include "How will we handle dissension? How can we make decisions amid disagreement? How will we communicate negative information? Do I want to maintain my membership in this team?"

Challenging group goals can be a healthy process if the conflict results in greater cohesiveness and acceptance. If the conflia becomes extremely intense and dysfunctional, however, the group may dissolve, or continue as an ineffective team that never advances to higher levels of maturity.

As a committee chair you need to be aware this storming stage is an important part of team growth. Rather than squelching confrontation or criticism, you need to provide a forum for open expression. Focusing on process improvement, recognizing team achievement, and fostering win-win relationships are your group's predominant tasks for progressing through this stage.

As a team member you should strive to turn challenges into constructive suggestions for improvement. Everyone should be allowed to legitimately express their personal uniqueness and idiosyncrasies, so long as they are not destructive to the overall team. Diversity is productive.

If the members of your committee are more interested in keeping peace than in solving problems, your group will

never achieve effertive collaboration. Harmony sometimes must be sacrificed as the team attacks problems and accomplishes objectives.

Surviving the difficulties of this conflict phase usually results in feelings of relief, increased trust in each other, and a sense that "we're all in this together" as the group gradually moves into the N O R M I N G stage. A hierarchy is established, individual differences are recognized, and task assignments are made based on skills and abilities. Now your team members know each other better, you may be socializing together, and you are able to ask each other for help and provide constructive criticism. Your committee is developing a strong commitment to the team goal, and is starting to see good progress towards it.

Questions you may ask during this differentiation stage include "What are the norms and values of the team? How can I best get along with everyone else? How can I show my support to others? How can I fit in?"

There is often a prolonged overlap between storming and norming behavior: As new tasks come up, your group may lapse back into typical storming stage behavior, but this eventually dies out.

As the committee chair you can step back during the norming stage and let your team rake responsibility for progress towards the goal. This is a good time to arrange a social or team-building event. You should concentrate on providing supportive feedback and encouraging team member empowerment. Your team, rather than you or any other single person, should take responsibility for solving problems, confronting and correcting mistakes, and ensuring success.

One dysfunctional characteristic your committee may develop during this stage is conformity in thought or action. Also known as "groupthink," conforming is a phase that reduces the creativity and

innovation of your team because individual members have become uninspired to think independently or to consider ideas or solutions that run counter to those supported by the majority of the team. While there is a sense of cohesiveness that can be reassuring to you and other members, the creative juices have stopped flowing and your group is stagnant.

Knocking your committee out of its groupthink rut is a challenge and calls for specific action. Suggestions for addressing groupthink include designating at least one team member as a critical evaluator or devil's advocate, forming multiple subgroups to develop independent ideas, inviting outside experts to critique the team's decisions, and holding second- chance meetings where decisions are revisited and honestly evaluated.

While successfully negotiating the norming stage offers team members a sense of accomplishment and progress, your team has not yet reached the optimal phase. Short-term effectiveness may look rather impressive, but for long-term results your group must transition into the P E R F O R M I N G stage.

T h e fourth stage of group development is when effective collaboration truly occurs. By successRiUy passing through the first three stages you and your committee members have formed a cohesive relationship and are committed to the group's success. Individual differences are accepted without being labeled good or bad. Decisions are made through rational group discussion. Conflict is dealt with openly and resolved. Members listen to each other and share information.

Your group's trust level is so well established that it can organize and reorganize itself any way it wishes. You can operate in the absence of leading members. T h e work tasks can be knitted together because you are all are confident in each other. Team members in this stage exhibit a sense of mutual responsibility and

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concern for one another as you carry out your work. Your relationships are not limited merely to accomplishing a task together but also extend to ensuring that each team member is learning, developing, and improving. Coaching and assisting one another is common.

If you are the leader of such a dynamic group, delegate as far as you sensibly can. Once the team has achieved high performance, you should aim to have as "light a touch " as you can. You will now be

able to start focusing on other goals and areas of work. Being part of the team at this stage feels easy compared with earlier on.

Of course, reaching this stage of development does not equal Team Nirvana. Continuous improvement needs to replace accomplishment as a key objective. T h e challenges of this phase include seeking innovation and speed, sponsoring and facilitating committee members' new ideas, and fostering extraordinary performances.

Whether you are a committee chair or participant, you should remain aware of this forming, storming, norming, and performing process. Conduct regular reviews of where your group is, and adjust your behavior and leadership approach to suit the stage your team has reached. In this way you really can reach the heightened creativity, enlightened cooperation, and stunning results of your collaborative dreams. YALS

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