Objectives
- To help the team to focus on process or climate characteristics rather than task characteristics.
- To help a team to develop a good team climate to underpin their effectiveness at getting tasks done.
- To practise open discussion on sensitive issues.
Time
30 – 45 Minutes
Materials Required
Notepads and pens.
Instructions
- Ask each team member to think of a current job-related problem or issue.
- Each individual team member writes their problem on a note pad (e.g. how can we reduce the cost of x, or improve our working relationship with y, or meet such and such a deadline).
- After 5 minutes ask each team member to pass their piece of paper with their problem written on it to the person on their right.
- That person then reads through the problem and makes a few notes about the problem on the bottom of the piece of paper. After 1 minute that person passes the paper to their right.
- Repeat this process every minute and keep the process going until each team member gets their own piece of paper back.
Debrief
- Activity leader should briefly thank the rest of the team.
- Did the team members get any particularly useful suggestions?
- Did any of the suggestions trigger new thoughts or cause you to question any of your own assumptions about the problem?
- What does the activity tell us about participation and open communication in teams?
- Ask the team to follow-up on particular solutions with other members of the team who have raised new possibilities.