group activity

Activity- Communication skills - Power of body languageOverview :

Body language speaks louder than any words you can ever utter. Whether youre telling people that you love them, youre angry with them, or dont care less about them, your body movements reveal your thoughts, moods, and attitudes. Both consciously and sub-consciously your body tells observers whats really going on with you.Time :10 minutes

Set up :1.Explain to the group that you are going to give them a series of instructions, which you would like them to copy as fast as they can2.State the following actions as YOU do them:Put your hand to your noseClap your handsStand upTouch your shoulderSit downStamp your footCross your armsPut your hand to your mouth BUT WHILE SAYING THIS PUT YOUR HAND TO YOUR NOSE3.Observe the number of group members who copy what you did rather than what you said.What's the point from this activity ? :Facilitate discussion on how body language can reinforce verbal communication, however it can also be stronger than verbal communication it is important that we are aware of our body language in order to ensure we are projecting the right message.

Activity- communication skills- Square talkOverview :

This is a challenging activity where participants are all blindfolded and receive instructions from the trainer that should be strictly followed, the exerciseenables participants to recognise the importance of communicating effectively, and understand the important aspects of communication.

Tools/Items required:

One blindfold per participant , one long rope per sub group

Time :25 minutes

Set up :Divide the group into sub-groups of ideally 5. If this is not possible, some delegates can be given 2 pieces of information, or some the same information, ensuring all information is communicated (NB The minimum number of participants required for the activity is 3)Clear the room as far as is practicableBlindfold each delegate and verbally communicate the objective of the activityDisorientate each delegate individually, hand them the rope and subtly give them their individual informationBe aware of time and inform delegates when they have 5 minutes of the 25 minutes leftRules :Verbally communicate the following to the whole group, once they are blindfolded:-The objective of the activity is to make a square from a rope. ( Stand to form a square shape )The following information should be verbally communicated to delegates individually, as they are handed the rope.

Participant A :All team members are blindfolded and must remain so for the duration of the activity.

Participant B :The rope you are holding is approximately ____ foot in length.

Participant C :The rope you are holding is knotted together to form a circle; it must not be undone.

Participant D :You must not let go of the rope.

Participant E :You will be told when you have 5 minutes of your 20 minutes left.Discussion Questions :Discuss with the group how they felt the activity went, giving feedback using the following Review Questions

1.Do you feel as a group you communicated effectively?2.During the Activity, what communication skills did you use effectively?3.During the activity, what communication skills could you have used to improve performance?4.How important is communication in the workplace? Why?5.What key points have you learned about communication from this activity, that you wish to apply in the workplace?What's the point from this activity ? :This tough challenging activity reinforces the importance of being able to communicate effectively with other team members while being blindfolded. It requires strong teamwork and planning as well as efficient use of all possible communication skills the team has to succeed in forming a square while blindfolded.Goodluck!

Activity - Communication skills - Room 101Overview :

The purpose of this exercise is to practice your influential and persuasive skills in a competitive fun debate focusing on communication skills like choosing positive language, being passionate and enthusiastic about one's case, showing 'benefits' to others ...etc.

Time :

1 Hour

Tools/Items Required :

Flip Chart , Flip Chart Marker

Set up :The title of the activity relates to Room 101 as featured in the George Orwell novel 1984. Room 101 is to where Big Brother banishes anything that is deemed to be destructive or contradictory to the idea of the society created in the novel.In this context we will use the Room 101 concept to argue against ridding the world of any annoying, pointless or unpleasant things we would like to place into Room 101.

Instructions :Split the group intro threes:Their first task in their trios is to come up with three things upon which firstly, they can all agree should be placed into Room 101They will later need to persuade the wider group of their rationale, so its important that they can convince themselves unanimously in their trio if they are to have any hope of convincing the wider group.

If needed the trainer can supply some varied examples of things that people may have argued for in the past (these include things as varied as mosquitoes to Simon Cowell, marmite to world hunger).This is a competitive activity and only if the majority of the wider group agree will they have their wish of getting their item into Room 101.Once the group have come up with their list, tell them to formulate their rationale / arguments to the wider groupIn turn ask each trio to present their opening argument for their first item to be put into Room 101Invite the wider group to debate / argue against these pointsAllow the proposing group to defend / persuade the others in response to the argumentsNext, ask them to make a closing statement summarising their case to have the item placed in Room 101Hold a vote amongst the wider group (except those in the proposing trio) as to whether the item should be placed in Room 101. If the majority agrees the item goes into Room 101Trainer marks up a tick /cross on flipchart for the proposing groupThis repeats until all groups have taken turns to argue one point in turn until all three items, for each trio have been debatedThe group(s) with the most items placed in Room 101 winsTrainer note.Keep the arguments light hearted groups will quickly ascertain that it is a competitive game and that it is in their interests to argue against the other proposing groups. Despite this, it is normally possible to persuade enough people to your point of view though if you have chosen good items and put forward a good argument.Also be mindful of time. Ideally this activity should be completed within 60 mins for a typical sized training group, so you may need to prompt groups to make their closing statements and move the game along if the debates get too lively!

Discussion and debrief :

This persuasive communication skills warm up activity whilst it is a fun activity, it focuses on some of the techniques displayed in this warm up such as choosing positive language, being impassioned and enthusiastic about one's case, selecting "benefits" to others of coming to way of thinking etc.Activity-Negotiation skills- Push / Pull Activity |Print| EmailOverview :

A quick simple but powerful activity that shows there are two ways to get others to do what we want them to do, we can either push them and in that case we will definitely get resistance or we can pull them or in other words convince them with our point of view, explain the reasons and tell them why we want them to take this action and consequently expect lower or no resistance.

Time :

15 Minutes

Set up :

Ask half the class to exit the room for 2 minutes. While they are out debrief the remaining group to pair up with each of their colleagues when they re-enter the room and to ask his/her partner to raise their arms in front of them so that their palms are facing them.Round 1:Participants start pushing their partners without any explanation to try and get them to go to the opposite side of the room, so instinctively their partner will start resisting.Round 2:Each participant has to ask his/her partner very gently and give them a reason why they want them to accompany him/her to the other side of the room so his / her partner will willingly go without any resistance.

What's the point ? :

There are two ways to influence people PUSH as we have seen from this simple activity. If we push others into what we want them to do, they will instinctively resist.Discussion & Debrief:

It's human nature , we instinctively resist if we are forced to do something without understanding the reason behind it. This activity clearly shows this practically and it was very clear in the first round when participants started pushing their partners without any explanations , instinctively their partners started to resist them. Alternatively on round 2 when each participant explained the reason why he wants his/her partner to accompany them to the other side of the room there was no resistance at all.Activity - Negotiation - Win as much as you can |Print| EmailOverview :

This is a very competitive activity that shows the impact of various win-lose situations on groups where they need to make decisions to compete with other groups and on other instances co-operate with other rival groups to win as much as possible . This activity dramatizes the merits of both competitive and collaborative models within the context of intragroup and inter group relations.Time :

1 Hour

Tools/Items required :Copies of the win as much as you can tally sheet for each team , pencils, paperSet up :4 Groups of four persons per group.( Each group are seated far enough away from each other for strategy to be discussed confidentially, yet close enough for the cluster to interact.)Rules :I.Groups are formed and divided into quartets. Each quartet will then be seated as in the illustration preceding. Each quartet is given a copy of the Tally Sheet and asked to study it. At the end of five minutes, participants are asked to share their understanding of the game with their partners.II.The facilitator reads the following directions aloud:1.The title of this activity is Win as Much as You Can. You are to keep that goal in mind throughout the experience.2.There are three key rules:a.You are not to confer with other members of the whole group unless you are given specific permission to do so. This prohibition applies to non-verbal as well as verbal communication.b.Each quartet must agree upon a single choice for each round.c.You are to ensure that the other members of the whole group do not know your quartets choice until you are instructed to reveal it.3.There are ten rounds to this exercise. During each round you and your partners will have two minutes to mark your choice for the round. Remember the rules. You may now take two minutes to mark your choice for round one.a.(After a lapse of two minutes.) If you have not marked your choice, please raise your hand. (The facilitator should make sure that each quartet has completed the task before he proceeds, but he should keep the activity moving.)b.Share your decision with the other members of your total group.c.Mark your scorecard on the Tally Sheet for round one according to the payoff schedule.d.Are there any questions about the scoring? (The response to all questions concerning the purpose of the activity should be, The name of the game is Win as Much as You Can.)4.(The facilitator continues the game as follows:)a.You have two minutes to mark your decision for round two.b.Have any quartet not finished?c.Share and score.5.(The game is continued by conducting rounds three and four like rounds one and two.)6.Round five is a bonus round. You will note that the Tally Sheet indicates that all amounts won or lost on this round will be multiplied by three. Before I ask you to mark your choice for this round, I am going to allow you to discuss this with other members of the total group. After the group discussion, you and your partners will have two minutes to discuss your decision, as before. You may now have five minutes for group discussion. (Discussion is stopped after five minutes.) You and your partners now have two minutes to mark your decision for round five. Remember the rules are now in effect. (After lapse of two minutes.) Has any quartet not finished? Share and score.7.(The facilitator conducts rounds six and seven like rounds one through four.)8.(Round eight is conducted like round five, with the bonus value increased from three to five times par.)9.(Round nine is conducted like rounds one through four and rounds six and seven.)10.(Round ten is conducted like rounds five and eight, with the bonus value increased to ten times par.)11.(The facilitator has the group compute its net score from the four quartet scores. Example +18, -21, +6, and +2 = +5. It is possible for each cluster to score +100, i.e. +25, +25, +25 and +25, if all four quartets choose Y, the collaboration option, in each round.)III.The facilitator opens the discussion of the process and its implications. The following key points should be raised.1.Does the You in Win as Much as You Can mean you as a quartet or you as a whole group?2.The effects of competition and collaboration should be considered on the organisation.3.How does the whole groups net score compare to the possible net score of 100?4.How does this experience relate to other group situations in your team and company.IV.If there is time, the facilitator may wish to discuss the concept of win-lose, lose-lose and win-win strategies.What's the point from this activity ? :Throughout this competitive activity , participants will go through a series of rounds/situations where they will need to make group decisions and reach consensus on actions that will impact their final result and in other instances they will have to negotiate the strategy with other groups as well collaboratively while still ensuring their group wins , which will some time force them to make some tough decisions whether to fulfill the agreements made with other groups or decide to put the interest of their team first which can also cause some conflict situations between the different teams that needs to be resolved as well throughout the activity.

WIN AS MUCH AS YOU CAN TALLY SHEET

Instructions:For ten successive rounds you and your partner(s) will chose either an X or a Y. Each rounds payoff depends on the pattern of choices made in your cluster.Pay off Schedule4 Xs: Lose $ 1.00 each

3 Xs: Win $1.00 each1 Y : Lose $3.00

2 Xs: Win $ 2.00 each2 Ys: Lose $ 2.00 each

1 X : Win $ 3.003 Ys: Lose $ 1.00 each

4 Ys: Win $ 1.00 each

You are to confer with your partners in each round and make a joint decision. In rounds 5, 8 and 10 you and your partners may first confer with the other quartets in your total group before making your joint decision, as before.ScorecardRoundYour Choice(Circle)Group's pattern of ChoicePayoffBalance

1 X Y _x _Y

2 X Y _x _Y

3 X Y _x _Y

4 X Y _x _Y

Bonus Round(Payoff X 3)5 X Y _x _Y

6 X Y _x _Y

7 X Y _x _Y


9 X Y _x _Y


Activity-creative thinking-Paper Aeroplanes |Print| EmailOverview :

This is a quick fun activity that is often used to prompt participants to think creatively and come up with out of the box ideas to accomplish this simple fun task in a competitive exciting simple activity.

Time :

20 Minutes


Colored sheets of A4 paper , Masking tape

Set up :

Split participants into equal groups of 4 or 5 per group, give each group 10 sheets of A4 papers (Each group gets a different color of A4 paper sheets), Use the masking tape to create a start line where all groups will need to stand behind and a finish line(Distance between the start and finish lines is 1.5 to 2 Meters)

Rules :

The winning team will get the most paper airplanes across the taped lineEach team has a different color paperYou will have 3 minutes to strategize without your paperYou will have 5 minutes to build your airplanes and get them across the taped line

What's the point from this activity? :

The main point of this activity is to focus on the fact that we tend to stick too much to the rules even though there were too few rules in this activity and how making too many assumptions greatly hinders our ability to think creatively and come up with new, out of the box solutions to solve problemsDiscussion & Debrief :When running this activity, most groups do not use the 3 minutes to build a good strategy and brainstorm possible ways to make the largest number of aero planes out of their 10 sheets of paper and make sure they can fly the short distance from the start to the finish line , instead they rush to get to the construction phase and most of the groups spend the 5 minutes they get for construction to create as many paper aero planes (aero planes with wings and tail ) and the result is usually that most of the aero plains do not make it to the finish line because the designs are usually not very aerodynamic.

There are 8 famous blocks that prevent us from thinking creatively , the 8 blocks are:

1.Believing you arent creative2.Making assumptions3.Following the rules too strictly4.Being serious5.Avoiding risks or being wrong is bad6.Always staying with your routines/habits7.Thinking there is only one solution8.Making judgments too quicklyIf we apply the 8 blocks to what happened , ask the groups what assumptions did they make and what rules did they stick to that caused them to design the aero planes the way they did ?Despite having very few rules in this activity , most groups will stick very strictly (Literally) to them , they will mostly assume that an aero plan must have wings and tail to qualify as an aero plane , while they can be more creative and simply just crumple each sheet of paper into a ball that becomes heavier and call that a new design or a futuristic aero plan and then each "Aero plane " will be heavier in weight and it will be very easy for them to fly or throw them over the finish line.

What other creative groups have done in the past is that they simply created their Aero planes and put them together in one stack with a rubber band so that the combined weight of all the paper aero planes will ensure they will pass the finish line.Other groups simply put all their planes on one of the office chairs with wheels and they simply pushed the chair from the start to the finish line ensuring all their planes passed the finish line safely.These were some examples of what other groups did who decided to think differently and challenge the 8 blocks to creative thinking .Activity - Pass the blocks - customer service - call center |Print| EmailOverview :Members of each team are tasked with passing blocks as quickly as possible in relay styleto the team member next to themto move the whole pile of blocks from one location to the other faster than the other team. This is a fun competitive activity that's perfect for your customer service class or call center customer service training .

Time :

10 MinutesTools/Items required:20 wooden blocks ( 5 X 2 Cm blocks) that can also be substituted by 20 pieces of dominos , Stop watchSetup :Split the whole class into two equal teams standing in two lines facing each other, Ask members of each team to line up next to each other shoulder to shoulder.Put10 blocks beside the foot of the players at one end of each line.Rules :The players at one end of each line must reach to the floor to take one block at a time off their pile of blocks which is located on the floor beside him/her. When they have picked the block up they must pass it to the closest hand of the team member standing next to them. The second team member then places the block in the other hand and then passes it on to the third team members closest hand, and so on. When the final team member receives a block they must place it beside him/her on the floor forming a pile , so in brief each team is tasked with moving the pile of blocks one by one from one end to the other.If a team member drops a block the rest of the team must wait until the block has been picked up again before continuing. Each team member must not hold more than one block at a time.All 10 blocks given to each team must be used and are to be counted at the end of each round, the team who is able to move all their blocks from one end of the line to the other end is the winning team.Teams will have 5 minutes to plan their strategies before starting time.The team that completes the exercise first is declared the winnerRound 1 :In the first round you have the two teams with all team members doing the exercise , as soon as you shout start , each team should start to pass the blocks to the next team member till they reach the last person in line without dropping any blocks . as soon as each team finishes moving all the blocks to the floor next to the last team member in line take note of the time and the winning team on this round.Round 2 :Ask half of each team to take a seat (Do not participate) so now each team has half the number of team members they started with on the first round , It's important to ask the first and the last team member in each line to keep standing in the same place so that the blocks will need to travel the same distance to reach the end of the line, Start another round of the exercise and take note of the time each team took to complete is as well as the winning team.Round 3 :On the third round ask more members to take a seat (Do not participate) so you have only two team members in each team. keep in mind that the blocks will need to travel the same distance as the first round , meaning the location of the piles of blocks should not be changed , now team members will have to run to transport each block to the destination pile and beat the other team. take note of the time taken by each team and the winning team.Discussion and debrief :If you look at the time record kept for each of the 3 rounds you will notice that during the first round , despite which team won , it took each team the shortest amount of time and did the least amount of effort to move the pile of blocks from where the first team member in line is standing to where the last team member in line is standing.In round two when each team lost half of it's team members they took more time and exerted more effort to move the blocks.On the third round since each team had only two team members who actually had to race and run to move block by block from one pile to the other and it took them the longest time and a lot of effort

What's the point from this activity ?Linking this activity to our service level and looking at the pile of blocks as customers who are waiting to be serviced or as calls on our call center que, as per the rules each team member should handle one block at a time as in reality we cannot handle more than one customer at the same time. On the first round when both teams had all team members present and in place working together on handling each block (Customer/Caller) it took the shortest amount of time and the least effort to handle all the customers and so our service level was excellent , while on the second and third rounds with fewer tea m members present , it was much different, it took much longer time and much more effort for members of each team to pass the blocks (handle customers/calls)What this competitive activity shows clearly is the effect it has on the service level if only one or more of the team is not there in place helping out and supporting handling customers and calls otherwise it will have a great effect on the time it takes to handle customers or answer customer calls resulting in longer waiting times for customers . Moreover the work flow will be much more smooth and easy as we have seen in round one and team members will be more relaxed and not overly stressed handling customers .

Goodluck!Activity - Manager or leader |Print| EmailOverview :

This classic activity clearly shows the difference between being a manager and being a leader. Management and leadership are often interchanged within the business world; however, they are two very distinct skills.Management is essentially process/task focused and centers on the current and immediate future. Whereas, Leadership is much more people and future focused. It includes setting culture & Direction for the organization.

Time :Approx. 30 minutes

Tools/Items required:Manager Vs Leader table (Pls. See below) , Post it notes , Two Flip chart sheetsSet up :

Split the participants into small groups , give each group a copy of the Manager Vs Leader table and a different color of post it notes.Hang the two Flip Chart sheets and put the title Leader on one of them and Manager on the other one

Each group is tasked to identify which of the statements on the Manager Vs leader table describe management behavior and which describe leadership behavior, write one statement on each post it note and stick it either on the Manger flip chart sheet or the Leader flip chart sheet on the wall.

Give the groups 15 minutes for this taskWhat's the point from this activity ? :

The aim of this activity is to clearly show the difference between managers and leaders and how every leader can be a manager but not every manager can be a leader.Manager Vs Leaders Table :Manager Or Leader

Scheduling workSharing a visionPlan and prioritise steps to task achievementUse analytical data to support recommendationsExplain goals, plan and rolesProvide feedback on performanceMotivating staffProvide focusCreate a cultureInspiring peopleDelegating tasksEnsuring predictabilityCo-ordinate effortCo-ordinate resourcesGive orders and instructionsAct as interface between team and outsideTake risksGuide progressMonitor progressCheck task completionCreate a positive team feelingMonitor feelings and moraleLook over the horizonAppeal to peoples emotionsFollow systems and proceduresProvide development opportunitiesEnsure effective inductionMonitor budgets, tasks etcUse analytical data to forecast trendsMonitoring progressUnleashing potentialBe a good role modelAppeal to rational thinkingBuild teams

Answer :

The following table shows the distinct elements which fall under each category.ManagerLeader

Scheduling workDelegating tasksUse analytical data to support recommendationsMotivating staffEnsuring predictabilityCo-ordinate effortCo-ordinate resourcesGive orders and instructionsGuide progressMonitor progressCheck task completionFollow systems and proceduresMonitor budgets, tasks etcUse analytical data to forecast trendsMonitoring progressAppeal to rational thinkingBuild teamsProvide feedback on performanceAct as interface between team and outsidePlan and prioritise steps to task achievementExplain goals, plan and rolesInspiring peopleAppeal to peoples emotionsSharing a visionProvide focusMonitor feelings and moraleCreate a cultureCreate a positive team feelingEnsure effective inductionProvide development opportunitiesUnleashing potentialLook over the horizonTake risksBe a good role model

Activity - Leadership skills - Chairs |Print| EmailOverview :

This simpleactivity focuses on the importance of having a plan and a specific strategy for any team to achieve any task but more importantly shows the importance of having a leader who takes charge and realizes this strategy .Time :

30 Minutes


Chairs (One chair per person)Set up :

Every attendee puts their chair round the room in a random order. All tables etc should be moved out of the way.The chairs should be pointing in different directions with someone sat on every chair, eg:

Ask for a VolunteerThe volunteer will be asked to walk slowly back to their empty chair and sit down. If the chair is filled they can then walk to and sit in the next empty chair available.The role of everyone else is to stop the volunteer from sitting down.

Rules :

Only one person may stand up at once and move.Nobody can do two consecutive moves.You cannot sit in the chair youve just left.When the exercise starts you cannot talk.Nobody may touch the volunteer.You have 2 mins to prepare your strategy.After each round review what happened.Seek a new volunteer for each round.Give two minutes planning time each round.Ensure you control the speed of the volunteer slow walk.Discussion questions:Do you need a leader?What was difficult about planning with so many participants?Does everyone agree with the plan?Does everyone think the plan will work?Does everyone know what the plan is?What would make it easier?What's the point from this activity ? :

When doing this activity a leaders usually emerges during the planning period , participants will find out that they need a plan and they need consensus from all members and agreement to this strategy , the presence of the leader will help realize this plan and ensure all team members are aligned with this plan.Activity - Leadership skills - build , Fly and Land paper planes |Print| EmailOverview :

This activity is for the reinforcement of several different leadership skills , some of the skills that will be emphasized throughout this activity are planning and scheduling work, use of resources , setting objectives and priorities , coaching, checking understanding, evaluation and continuous feedback to achieve excellence and the benefits of synergy of teams in action and working collaboratively.Time :

1 HourTools/Items required:

1. Runway and planes landing area as per the figure below

2. Colored paper (80 per group)3. Rulers (one per group)Set up :

PART (I)1.Divide the whole group into smaller groups2.Each group chooses its own leader.3.Take the group leaders into a separate room where you show them how to create the desired plane from two sheets of colored A4 papers. (Trainer should try to make the paper plane prototype design as complex as possible)4.Group leaders go back to their groups, each with the colored paper and a ruler.Optional: You may give them white paper for the training period in their groupsPART (II)1.In their groups, group leaders teach their group members how to create the desired plane.Optional: You may give them 10 minutes to train their group members before the actual time starts. However, if you decide to do so make sure that the groups have only white paper. After the 10 minute training is over, distribute the colored paper.2.Each group is asked to create 40 planes. ( 20 minutes). Important: the groups are not allowed to use anything except the colored paper and the ruler.3.After 20 minutes ask the groups to stop. Count the number of planes in each group. Each plane is worth 10 points.4.Give each group a score and record it.PART (III)1.Groups move towards the runway. (Two groups share one runway as shown above. However, you must make sure that each has a different color).2.The main target here is to fly the created planes which must land inside the area shown above. (5 minutes)3.Only planes that land inside the specified area are counted. Each is worth 30 points.4. Planes that land on the border lines or outside this area will not be counted.Optional: You may give them 3 minutes to try the best ways to fly their planes.5.After 5 minutes ask the groups to stop. Count the number of planes that landed within the specified area.6.Give each group a score and record it.7.Add the scores in steps II and III and then announce the winning group.

Discussion and debrief :

During the planes construction phase:Notice how each team leader utilized his/her time during the planes construction phase:Did he\she spend enough time guiding and demonstrating to their team members how to construct the planes ? did they have to dedicate specific time to help (coach) certain team members who were having difficulty constructing their planes and hence affecting the profitability of the team.

After score calculation and upon completion of the activity :

Ask each group why they chose their leader ?Ask team members if they felt that their team leader was successful in explaining & Demonstrating how to construct the planes ?Ask team members if each of them was given enough time by the team leader to practice constructing the planes ?Ask team members if their team leader had a specific action plan in order to achieve the team's target and whether that plan was communicated clearly to each of them? Was it a successful plan? Did he give room for negotiations if they had any comments or objections? How did they feel about that?

Ask team members if their team leader divided the tasks equally among all team members? or they felt that some were assigned more tasks than others ?Ask team members if they felt they were given enough guidance by their team leaders during the planes construction phase ?Ask team leaders if they had to participate in constructing the planes themselves or they totally depended on their team members to do the construction ( To better utilize their time , team leaders should spend enough time training and demonstrating to team members how to properly construct the planes to start with to avoid having to do the construction themselves and properly utilize their teams members as a resource and their time as well )

Ask team leaders about the rationale on which they divided the tasks among their team members?

- Knowing their teams , resources and timeframes they were given, ask team leaders how far off their initial forecast were they once they started implementation and what changes they found out they had to do during the course of the activity to ensure the construction of planes on time and ensure getting the points for each constructed planeAsk team leaders about any specific actions they had to take to deal with team members having difficulty constructing the planes and consequently affecting overall team profitability.knowing that having a plan in place for a specific activity will ensure it is done in less time than starting with no plan at all. Discuss with team leaders how true was this during the activity?Make sure all participants get the point that having a plan is the only way to ensure both deadlines and targets are achieved.Ask team members as well as leaders, If they were to redo the activity , how differently would they do it and why? OR which actions they would keep and which they would change and why?Activity-Team building-The Bridge contract |Print| EmailOverview :Congratulations! Your team has the opportunity to win a $1m contract!Your team is currently involved in bidding for a majorbridgeconstructionproject. The customer has designed a challenging project to help them choose the most effective team amongst a number of rival companies.

Rules :The specification for this project is as follows:- Build a Bridge Construction to be made out of paper Standard building unit is an A4 sheet Units may be joined by tape Free standing structure Size of Bridge must allow your team to pass through it (one at a time) Up to $5000 could be awarded (against your costs) for the beauty of the design. Up to $1000 will be awarded for the team name.

Tools/Items required :A4 paper sheets , Tape

Note:

Actual construction time starts 35 minutes from receiving this specification (set by customer)You must be ready at this time. Construction time will commence whether you are ready or not.Construction time finishes when three team members have successfully passed through the Bridge without the Bridge falling down!

Costs of material and LabourMaterials: $1000 per unit for the first 2 sheets $2000 per unit for the next 4 sheets $4000 for additional units of paperLabour Cost For Construction Team: $12000 per minute for the first 5 minutes ($200/sec) $18,000 per minute thereafter ($300/sec)

PHASE 1 - Planning:You have 45 minutes prior to competitive testing against rival construction team(s). During this time you should: Work out your team/organisation strategy Evaluate possible approaches Test and evaluate prototype designs Produce forecasts for material costs and construction time (Failure to provide forecasts will cost you $5000)

Outputs:As part of the planning process, the facilitator wants to see each group utilise or produce the following things. The vision, mission and values of your construction organisation The KRAs for the project Role & responsibilities allocated for the task All customers and suppliers identified (both internal and external) Assumptions you have made regarding the project

PHASE 2 - Building:This will commence at a fixed starting time (approximately 45 minutes) set by the customer (trainer) Construction Assessing the design merits (beauty award) Cost evaluation

NOTE:Other competitors have already achieved a total cost of $60,000The Bridge Project Evaluation formTeam Name:

Labour CostsStart Time:Finish Time:Elapsed Time in Seconds (ET)If elapsed time is less than 5 minutes then; labour costs = ET x 200If elapsed time is greater than 5 minutes then; labour costs = [ (ET 300) x 300] + 1200$ $

Material CostsTotal number of building units (BU)If BU is equal to or greater than 6 the material costs =[(BU 6) x 400] + 10000$

Beauty of DesignMaximum award of $5000 (offset against construction costs)$

Total Project cost$

Team Building activity : The Flying Carpet |Print| EmailOverview :

The team are flying over the desert on their flying carpet and suddenly they spot a stand storm heading towards them in the opposite direction. The team will have to turn the carpet around to escape crashing and a slow and agonising death but there are some problems.There is no steering wheel on the carpet and they have to perform the manoeuvre in mid-air as they cannot land!Time :

15 MinutesTools/Items required:

Carpet , the teamRules :

The team has to remain on the carpet at all times no-one may step off, jump up and down or be held off the ground for the entire exercise.If anyone touches anything other than the carpet i.e. the ground, then the team will have to start again.

Safety precautions :

Do not move too quickly you may fall over.Maximum number in team 8.Goodluck!Activity-Team Building - Sheep and Shepherd |Print| EmailOverview :

Each shepherdneeds to guide his/hergroup of blind sheep into the pen using only a whistle. This is a challenging team building activity where each team needs to come up with a very good plan to be able tocommunicate non-verbally.Time :


Blindfolds for the 'Sheep' , Whistle for the 'Shepherd'Set up :

Split the participants into sub groupsOne person in your group will be selected as a shepherd.The remainder of the group will be sheep and will be blindfolded.The sheep will be individually led (already blindfolded) to various points in the immediate area and left there.A pen area will be marked out (not necessarily near the shepherd).Identify the shepherdBrief the whole group away from the area 10mins preparation time.Take the whole group to the edge of the area. Blindfold the sheep and lead them to various points around the pen area. Disorientate the sheep.Stand the shepherd away from the pen.Begin the time and re-iterate No verbal communication.Trainers should watch for safety and use STOP if difficulties arise.Rules :

The shepherd must guide the sheep into the pen.No verbal communication after the preparation phase.Sheep must not remove blindfolds until the end of the exercise.The shepherd cannot move.The shepherd must remain in their original position away from the pen and not touch any sheep.The shepherd can only communicate with a whistle. The sheep can only return communications without verbal communication.10 minutes maximum for the briefing and preparation phase.25 minutes in total for both the planning and the retrieval/penning phase.

Safety:Trainers will oversee the activity and watch for delegates getting into difficulty. If a trainer shouts STOP all must stop until the trainer has sorted out the situation.

What's the point from this activity ? :

For each team to be able to complete this challenge successfully , they will need to come up with a very efficient communication plan between them . They will need to be very creative and come up with and agree on a plan together and execute it successfully to enable their 'shepherd' to successfully guide them into their designated pen without any verbal communication and using only the whistle .Goodluck!Team Building Activity : Pass the Cards |Print| EmailOverview :

Members of each team are tasked withpassingcards as quickly as possible in relay styleto move the whole deck of cards from one location to the other faster than the other team.`

Time :


Two decks of playing cards

Setup :

Split the whole class into two equal teams standing in two lines facing each other, Ask members of each team to line up next to each other shoulder to shoulder.Put a deck of cards beside the foot of the players at one end of each line.Rules :

The players at one end of each line must reach to the floor to take one card at a time off their pile(deck) of cards which is located on the floor beside him/her. When they have picked the card up they must pass it to the closest hand of the team member standing next to them. The second team member then places the card in the other hand and then passes it on to the third team members closest hand, and so on. When the final team member receives a card they must place it on a pile beside him/her on the floor.

If a team member drops a card the rest of the team must wait until the card has been picked up again before continuing. Each team member must not hold more than one card at a time.All 52 cards must be used and are to be counted at the end of the game

Teams will have 5 minutes to plan their strategies before starting time.

The team that completes the exercise first so declared the winner.Discussion Questions and debrief :How did the winning team win?Who led the 5 minute planning session? Why?Who dropped the cards? Why? (Pressure?)Was the planning stage of any value? Why?Can this exercise be related to the workplace?

What's the point from this activity ?

This is a competitive team building activity that gets the group warmed up and open up communication between them and shows the value of collaboration between team members and planning to win and achieve success.

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