3.5 Summary

Simply because people start working together, does not mean they are automatically a team. In order to become a team, a working group goes through several development stages until it reaches maturity. Tuckman called these stages of the team life cycle forming, storming, norming, performing and finally adjourning. Although a team does not necessarily follow this development in a linear fashion, remembering these stages and being aware of the typical developments that take place at each stage helps a team to mature. This is particularly important because in order to perform well, team members need to trust each other and develop a common understanding with regard to their goals and objectives. Only when the team is ready and willing to genuinely collaborate and harnesses the intrinsic motivation of each team member to move towards team objectives are they able to perform well. One precondition for developing into a team is therefore communicating effectively and ensuring common meanings. This brings with it a number of challenges, especially in the context of virtual teams,  because it involves dealing with a variety of technological devices. Additionally, virtual communication is more susceptible to misunderstandings and misinterpretations than face-to-face communication.